Friday, January 29, 2016

Something missing

I glanced at the mirror and instantly realised something was missing.
“It has to do with your old-fashioned goggles, dad. Throw it out and grab a new branded one,” suggested my daughter.
The idea sounded good and within a week my look had changed, but the mirror reflection indicated something was still missing.
“It is because of the wrinkles, dad. Try out the new face cream. It’s awesome,” recommended my second daughter, naming a branded item.
Cool indeed it was. My face was shining the whole day, but I could sense something was still missing.
When I confided in my best friend, she studied me for a second and her face flashed with an idea.
“There you go. Look at your hairstyle again in the mirror. That’s where the fault lies. Use a gel,” she came out with a name.
I went for it and yet the problem persisted.
I remained silent and tried to comprehend what was wrong. The answer emerged from the silence. 
Next day, when I entered the office, my pretty female colleague gave a high-five, while my Ugandan colleague gave a hug. There was cheer all around and I had found what was missing.
Yes. The smile.

Monday, January 25, 2016

Recent Editorials

Here are some recent editorials I wrote for The Gulf Today. (Posted for my records)

Land-grabber Israel
does it again

For years, Israel has been obsessed with one agenda: harass, kill, humiliate or intimidate innocent Palestinians.
Among the several means that Israel adopts, land-grabbing is one, and it is now set for the largest land seizure since August 2014.
In its latest disgraceful move, Cogat, a unit of Israel's Defence Ministry, has confirmed in an email purportedly sent to Reuters, that a political decision to seize the territory has already been taken and the lands are in the final stages of being declared “state lands.”
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has rightly denounced the seizure, but what is demoralising is that such mere condemnations do not have any impact and Israel has been insulting the international community for too long without being pulled up.
Settlement activities are a clear violation of international law and run counter to the public pronouncements of the government of Israel supporting a two-state solution.
Senior member of the Palestine Liberation Organisation Hanan Ashrawi is absolutely correct when she says Israel is stealing land specially in the Jordan Valley under the pretext it wants to annex it.
This should be considered a reason for a real and effective intervention by the international community to end such a flagrant and grave aggression. Israel should not be allowed to kill all chances of peace.
To compound the problems of Palestinians, the Israelis also repeatedly demolish Palestinian houses. During the year 2015, over 535 Palestinian houses in several districts of the occupied West Bank and Al Quds were razed ignoring protests from all peace-loving people across the world.
In another snub to European peace voices, Israeli forces have demolished six structures in the West Bank funded by the European Union's humanitarian arm. The structures were dwellings and latrines for Bedouins living in an area known as E1 - a particularly sensitive zone between occupied Jerusalem and the Dead Sea.
Palestinians feel deep frustration over the occupation that has lasted several decades.
The world community has, unfortunately, failed to provide the Palestinian people with protection and to hold the Israeli occupation power accountable for its violations.
The continuing expansion of settlements, the demolition of Palestinian homes, the revocation of residency rights and the eviction and displacement of numerous Palestinian families from East Jerusalem are in deep contravention of international law. Such actions do not contribute to peace.
Israeli atrocities have gone on for too long. It’s time to force Israel to abide by international law.

Weed out toxic seeds
of extremist ideology

Honestly, there is not much surprise in the research carried out by the Pew Research Centre that indicates no Muslim-majority country in the world supports Daesh.
It is known that Muslims across the world hold the terrorist organisation in contempt, with highly respected Muslim religious leaders denouncing the group for its crimes against humanity.
A chart created for                         The Independent newspaper by Statista showed only 4 per cent of Indonesians declared a "favourable view" of the group.
The figure was put at 0 per cent in some countries.
Thursday was the first time Daesh had claimed an attack in Indonesia, where previous bombings had been attributed to an Al Qaeda affiliate called Jemaah Islamiyah.
More than 200 million people identify themselves as Muslim in Indonesia according to 2011 research – that is 87 per cent of the population.
In a specific reference to the dreaded Daesh group, the UN Security Council recently mentioned, “By its violent extremist ideology, its terrorist acts, its gross systematic and widespread attacks directed against civilians, violations of international humanitarian law, including those driven on religious or ethnic ground, its eradication of cultural heritage, Daesh constitutes a global threat to international peace and security.”
Terrorism is definitely not a phenomenon linked to any particular religion. There can be no cause or grievance that can justify the horrors that terrorist groups carry out against innocent people.
Interestingly, the UAE has identified the fact that terrorism and extremism are interdependent and hence there is a need to dismantle the relationship.
Right from the beginning, the UAE has stressed its firm and open stance in countering extremism, and does not accept the hijacking of the Islamic religion by takfiri groups.
The war on terrorism, as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Anwar Bin Mohammed Gargash, stated recently, begins with a fight on both its funding, and extremist educational and fundamentalist curricula which encourage its growth.
There can be no doubt that it is its consistent and unwavering stand against terrorism and extremism in all forms and manifestations that has made the UAE an oasis of peace and a model for others to emulate.
Terrorism is a scourge impacting all of humanity and people from all regions and religions.
Repeated attempts by Daesh to disturb public order and spread terror among people should not be allowed to win. The world should stand united and weed out the toxic seeds of extremist ideology.

Rein in Iran for
peace to reign

The fact that various Arab, Islamic and friendly countries and the UN Security Council have all categorically rejected the wanton attacks on the Saudi Embassy in Tehran indicates that the world will no longer tolerate Iranian interference in the internal affairs of Arab countries under any pretext.
The attacks on the Saudi Embassy in Tehran and its consulate in the city of Mashhad and threats received by Saudi diplomats there from Iranian groups that stormed the two missions are definitely a major violation of diplomatic norms.
What raises serious concerns about likely official complicity is the utter failure of the Iranian security authorities to protect diplomats and Saudi diplomatic missions.
Arab foreign ministers at an emergency Arab League session on Sunday in Cairo hit the nail on the head when they blamed Iran for interfering in the affairs of other Middle Eastern states and undermining regional security.
UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan also raised a pertinent point that the attack "took place under the nose and within the earshot of security forces."
Judicial rulings implemented recently by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were clearly against a number of terrorists. The hostile statements by various Iranian leaders amount to blatant Iranian meddling in the internal affairs of Saudi Arabia.
The GCC Ministerial Council has rightly expressed strong condemnation and rejection of these attacks, holding the Iranian authorities fully responsible for these terrorist acts in accordance with its commitment to the 1961 and 1963 Vienna Conventions as well as the international law, which hold the countries responsible for protecting diplomatic missions.
Going by the background of the situation, the anger of the Gulf Arab countries is entirely justified and the various actions initiated by most of these countries are reasonable reactions to repeated provocation by Tehran.
Tehran has also obviously failed to recognise that positive relations between states should be based on mutual respect and the adoption of a clear-cut policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of others.
The international community should initiate serious efforts to prevent such attacks on diplomatic missions in Iran. Iran should realise that meddling will just not work anymore.
At a time when some countries in the region are facing turmoil, it is appalling that Iran keeps itself busy flouting international norms and principles of good neighbourliness and igniting more crises instead of promoting peace initiatives.

Cowardly killings
in Pakistan

Cold-blooded terrorists have struck again in Pakistan. The violence at the Bacha Khan University in Charsadda town in which gunmen killed several people has left the world shocked and heart-broken.
The dastardly incident has also brought back grim memories of the horrific December 2014 Peshawar school attack that killed more than 150 people, mostly children.
Only a cold-blooded mindset can plot the killing of innocent professors and students at the sacred institutions that shape the future of the country with knowledge and wisdom.
The fact that these incidents took place in broad daylight highlights the brutal nature of the perpetrators. Those who engaged in the heinous crime have no religion and can only be seen as enemies of humanity.
Pakistan’s struggle against terrorism has now reached a decisive point and it is unlikely that the momentum would be reversed.
It is believed that the intelligence agencies had received some kind of clues about these terrorist attacks beforehand. That’s the reason some schools in Peshawar were abruptly closed last week. Unfortunately, the authorities were not able to stop the criminals from hitting their targets this time.
The attackers had apparently scaled a wall to enter the campus, killing a caretaker in a school guesthouse before moving on to the boys' hostel.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has rightly vowed to wipe out the menace of terrorism from the country.
The latest violence has also highlighted the vulnerability of Pakistani institutions, which was dramatically exposed in the attack two years ago on Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani girl shot at by a Taliban gunman outside her school in Swat Valley.
The idea behind such reprehensible killings by terrorists is obviously to create fear among the public.
The law enforcement agencies need to act swiftly and track down the sponsors and planners of such heinous acts.
Last month, as the country marked the first anniversary of the Peshawar school attack, the military claimed phenomenal successes in its operation against militants and said it had killed around 3,500 insurgents.
It would be foolhardy to think that attacks by terrorists such as the one in Charsadda may weaken the Pakistan military's resolve. On the contrary, it would only strengthen its determination to eliminate extremism.
All peace-loving people across the world stand in total solidarity with the people of Pakistan.
The message should be loud and clear: Guns will not be allowed to wipe out human values.

Unprecedented level
of suffering in Madaya

It is good that a UN humanitarian convoy has finally reached the besieged Syrian town of Madaya with life-saving health and food supplies, but what is also a matter of huge concern is the condition of about 4.5 million people living in hard-to-reach areas across Syria, including nearly 400,000 in 15 besieged locations without access to the aid that they desperately need.
The 42,000 residents of Madaya have been facing desperate times and more than two dozen people have reportedly starved to death, crippled by a six-month government siege that has made even bread and water hard to find.
“Crowds of hungry kids around," Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative Sajjad Malik said via text message from the isolated town as the first four trucks of the 49-truck convoy unloaded in the dark to help relieve a situation that UN officials last week called “horrendous… ghastly.”
Food has been so scarce that people repeatedly mentioned that a kilo of rice would cost $300, according to Malik. One family had to “sell a motorbike to get five kilos of rice.”
Residents told UN staff that a main source of food in recent weeks has been a soup made of grass boiled with the few available spices. With no access to electricity, people in Madaya had tried to stay warm by burning cardboard.
Deliberate starvation of civilians amounts to war crimes under the international human rights law and international humanitarian law.
Top UN officials say they have received credible reports of people dying from starvation and being killed or injured while trying to leave the area, which last received UN humanitarian aid in October.
Highlighting the gravity of the situation, a World Health Organisation official stated, “People gathered in the market place. You could see many were malnourished, starving. They were skinny, tired, severely distressed. There was no smile on anybody's face. It is not what you see when you arrive with a convoy. The children I talked to said they had no strength to play."
Many malnourished people were too weak to leave their homes.
It is sad to note that the level of suffering in Madaya has no precedent in Syria’s war. Ordinary citizens should be protected against the woes of armed conflicts.
All parties involved in the conflict should facilitate unimpeded access to people in besieged areas in Syria. The international community should extend every form of assistance to the victims in such blockaded cities.


Libya cannot afford
to remain divided

The terrorist attack that targeted a police training centre in the Libyan city of Zliten and left scores dead and injured is a highly condemnable, heinous act that highlights the urgent need for all stakeholders to press ahead with forming a recently-agreed national unity government.
The attack also signifies the pressing need for the activation and rebuilding of Libyan security forces.
Daesh has been expanding its foothold in Libya, exploiting the instability that has gripped the country since the 2011 uprising.
The turmoil has also led to Libya’s rise as a stepping stone for migrants crossing the Mediterranean to Europe.
The continuing attacks by Daesh-affiliates on oil facilities near Sidra, in central Libya, clearly indicates attempts by extremists to strip these natural resources from the Libyan people.
Top UN officials have correctly pointed out that every wasted day in failure to implement the Libyan Political Agreement is a day of gain for the terrorists.
In a report to the UN Security Council in November, International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said that Daesh was responsible for at least 27 car and suicide bombings in the country in 2015.
The country is dependent on oil, which in 2012 accounted for 95 per cent of government revenue. As fierce fighting has disabled oil fields and ports, Libya’s output has dropped.
It is currently producing less than a fifth of exports prior to 2011.
In December, UN officials facilitated the final stages of an agreement to form a Government of National Accord with a presidency council, cabinet, house of representatives and state council, in talks between the sides in Morocco in a bid to end four years of factional fighting that has killed many Libyans and left nearly 2.4 million in desperate need of humanitarian aid.
The UN Security Council also called on the new Presidency Council to work within the 30 days prescribed by the Agreement to form a Government of National Accord and finalise interim security arrangements needed to stabilise the North African country.
The situation is indeed grave. The crumbling state could be crippled if terrorists seize control of oil resources.
Libyans need to remain united in order to confront terrorism in all its forms. All leaders should strive to create a conducive environment for the government to assume its responsibilities.
The international community should also redouble efforts to help the country overcome the security and economic challenges.

Monday, January 11, 2016

Recent Editorials


Here are some recent editorials I wrote for The Gulf Today. (Posted for my records)

American gun lobby
playing with fire

At last, good sense seems to prevail in America on the deadly issue of gun violence.
President Barack Obama’s decision to look for ways to keep guns out of the hands of "a dangerous few" without depending on Congress to pass a law reflects his determination to tackle the problem with more earnestness.
Obama has made fighting gun violence his chief resolution for 2016, calling it a major piece of "unfinished business" for his White House administration.
Indications are that steps to strengthen background checks could also come this week and that surely is encouraging news.
However, the task is not easy. The president’s attempts have drawn the ire of certain sections, especially Repubicans.
GOP front-runner Donald Trump vowed to first veto and then "unsign" Obama's possible executive action on guns at a rally in Mississippi.
The National Rifle Association has criticised Obama’s tactic as a "political stunt."
Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott mentioned in a Twitter comment: "Obama wants to impose more gun control. My response? Come & take it."
For too long, gun control has remained a hot topic in the US, where the Second Amendment of the Constitution protects the right to bear arms.
Earlier efforts to push through national reforms to gun laws following mass shootings at various places like Newtown, Connecticut and Oregon have all met firm resistance in the Republican-controlled Congress.
The Pew Research Center found last December that 57 per cent of Americans say they believe owning a gun helps protect people from crime, up from 48 per cent in 2012. The rest said owning a gun would put personal safety at risk.
Data compiled by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, an advocacy group in Washington, reveals that on average 89 people die each day from gun violence in the US.
There have been incidents of horrific gun violence in the last few years. Sadly, much of the victims were innocent bystanders, including children.
Considering that America is a place where people own more guns than anywhere else in the world, any step aimed at keeping guns out of the wrong hands is necessary to save lives and should be welcomed.
Obama’s renewed determination to crack the whip on gun violence is a positive step that deserves the support of one and all.
The US gun lobby has played with fire for too long. Time has come to rein it in.

Rein in Iran for
peace to reign

The fact that various Arab, Islamic and friendly countries and the UN Security Council have all categorically rejected the wanton attacks on the Saudi Embassy in Tehran indicates that the world will no longer tolerate Iranian interference in the internal affairs of Arab countries under any pretext.
The attacks on the Saudi Embassy in Tehran and its consulate in the city of Mashhad and threats received by Saudi diplomats there from Iranian groups that stormed the two missions are definitely a major violation of diplomatic norms.
What raises serious concerns about likely official complicity is the utter failure of the Iranian security authorities to protect diplomats and Saudi diplomatic missions.
Arab foreign ministers at an emergency Arab League session on Sunday in Cairo hit the nail on the head when they blamed Iran for interfering in the affairs of other Middle Eastern states and undermining regional security.
UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan also raised a pertinent point that the attack "took place under the nose and within the earshot of security forces."
Judicial rulings implemented recently by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were clearly against a number of terrorists. The hostile statements by various Iranian leaders amount to blatant Iranian meddling in the internal affairs of Saudi Arabia.
The GCC Ministerial Council has rightly expressed strong condemnation and rejection of these attacks, holding the Iranian authorities fully responsible for these terrorist acts in accordance with its commitment to the 1961 and 1963 Vienna Conventions as well as the international law, which hold the countries responsible for protecting diplomatic missions.
Going by the background of the situation, the anger of the Gulf Arab countries is entirely justified and the various actions initiated by most of these countries are reasonable reactions to repeated provocation by Tehran.
Tehran has also obviously failed to recognise that positive relations between states should be based on mutual respect and the adoption of a clear-cut policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of others.
The international community should initiate serious efforts to prevent such attacks on diplomatic missions in Iran. Iran should realise that meddling will just not work anymore.
At a time when some countries in the region are facing turmoil, it is appalling that Iran keeps itself busy flouting international norms and principles of good neighbourliness and igniting more crises instead of promoting peace initiatives.

Israeli bullying does not
spare even UN officials

Talk of violations or brutality and Israel’s name instantly comes to one’s mind.
In its latest disgraceful act, Israel has forced the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian territories to resign by refusing to grant him access to the areas he is tasked with monitoring.
“Unfortunately, my efforts to help improve the lives of Palestinian victims of violations under the Israeli occupation have been frustrated every step of the way,” Makarim Wibisono said of his resignation, which he has submitted to the President of the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council.
When the official assumed his post in June 2014, he was assured by Israel that he would have access to the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
However, his repeated requests for access, both written and oral, later proved to be unsuccessful.
It may be recalled that in his recent reports, the UN Rapporteur voiced concerns at Israeli raids against the Hebron-based Youth Against Settlements in the occupied West Bank, at the high level of clashes in the city where Palestinians live in close proximity to a large settler population, and at the blockade around the Gaza strip, which imposes severe restrictions on Palestinian movement, imports and exports.
The lack of effective protection of Palestinian victims from continuing human rights violations and violations of international humanitarian law is a matter of serious concern.
On the ground, Israeli brutality continues unabated.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that at least 170 Palestinians were killed in 2015 by the occupying forces, including over 140 during the ongoing Israeli escalation in the occupied territories.
At least 15,377 Palestinians were also wounded in 2015, 90% of them in demonstrations and clashes in the West Bank and Al Quds.
That’s not all. Israeli authorities demolished during the year 2015, over 535 Palestinian houses in several districts of the occupied West Bank and Al Quds.
Israel should be made to realise the importance of respecting sacred sites in occupied Jerusalem. Any change in the status quo of the religious sanctities policy will have serious effects on stability in the Middle East.
The international community should step up efforts to rein in Israel and support the right of the Palestinian people to establish an independent state, with Jerusalem as its capital.
A just and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue is the only way that can contribute towards establishing regional and international stability.

N.Korea testing
world’s patience

A comprehensive, hard-hitting international response is what the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) deserves after its shock announcement that it has tested its first hydrogen bomb.
Pyongyang has gone too far in its provocative tactics and mere verbal threats from the international community would only encourage the rogue regime to continue on its wayward path.
If confirmed, this would be the fourth nuclear test carried out by the country since 2006.
Though there is some scepticism in the air with experts suggesting the apparent yield was far too low for a thermonuclear device, harsher penalties are the only way out to rein in DPRK.
The nuclear test has already ignited anger in the region. South Korea has raised its military alert to the highest level at locations along the border where loudspeakers will resume propaganda broadcasts into the North on Friday.
Such propaganda broadcasts have in the past angered the North, prompting an exchange of artillery fire across the border.
A successful hydrogen bomb test would be a big new step for the North. Fusion is the main principle behind the hydrogen bomb, which can be hundreds of times more powerful than atomic bombs that use fission.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has already condemned the grave contravention of the international norm against nuclear testing. He has stated that the act is profoundly destabilising for regional security and seriously undermines international non-proliferation efforts.
The problem is that the latest censure and sanctions threats have a familiar tone, given similar outrage that greeted the North's previous tests in 2006, 2009 and 2013.
As some experts suggest, there is a need to find a strategy that combines coercion with negotiation.
All eyes at the UN will now be on China, a veto-wielding council member, to see just how far it will go in tightening the sanctions grip on its unruly neighbour.
In this, Beijing has its own worries to sort out. A North Korean collapse and the prospect of a US-allied Korea directly on its border are not expected to be greeted with merriment by China.
Nuclear weapons pose a grave threat to entire mankind.  Such activities by the DPRK pose a grave threat to international peace and security.
Resolute action is needed to make the North Korean regime understand that aggravation does not always help.
The only path forward is for North Korea to cease any further nuclear activities and meet its obligations for verifiable denuclearisation.

Optimistic start to
Daesh elimination

The flying of the Iraqi flag above the main government complex in Ramadi marks the military’s first major victory over Daesh in 18 months when the terrorists made a shock advance and is surely a huge and optimistic start to the elimination of Daesh.
The victory has broken the back of Daesh and indicates a positive beginning in the process of liberation of other areas held by it.
The task has not been easy as the terrorists are said to have planted several explosive devices on the roads and in the buildings of the government complex.
The terrorists have devastated Ramadi and a return to absolute normalcy may indeed take more time.
Defence Minister Khaled Al Obeidi had declared recently that Iraqi forces had reconquered more than half of the territory lost to Daesh.
The brave Iraqi forces that took the fight to the terrorists’ doors with courage deserve all praise.
The army no longer faces any resistance in the city and its main task now is to defuse countless bombs and traps.
Disturbingly, Daesh used civilians as human shields to escape the battle especially when it became clear that their last stand in Ramadi was doomed.
The success has visibly propped up more confidence with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi vowing to liberate the second city of Mosul and rid the entire country of Daesh in 2016.
Of course, retaking Mosul would be hard as the region is a mosaic of different ethnic and religious groups lying between Turkey, Syria and Iraqi Kurdistan. Nevertheless, precision planning, confidence and commitment can do the trick.
It is also good that the United Nations has stepped up its efforts to cut off all sources of funding for Daesh and other terrorist groups, including ransom payments, no matter by whom.
With terrorists increasingly employing elusive tricks to raise and transfer funds, covering their tracks and leaving little evidence to identify tainted resources, the international community must stay ahead of the curve to combat their ploys, as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon recently suggested.
Many countries have yet to set up the necessary legal regimes and institutions to identify and freeze terrorist assets.
The liberation of Ramadi is surely a big victory yet in the fight against Daesh.
This success will help boost the morale of Iraq's military, which collapsed when Daesh took over large parts of the country in June 2014. Daesh terrorists should know that they have no place to hide.

Friday, January 1, 2016

Happy New Year

Yes, spread cheer in New Year..Wish all my friends the very best in 2016.
(My article in The Gulf Today, Jan.1, 2016)