December 12, 2023

PARIS, Dec 11 (Reuters) – France is to end funding for its biggest Muslim high school on the grounds of administrative failures and questionable teaching practices, a local official said on Monday, the latest in what some rights groups say is a wider crackdown on Muslims. Private school Averroes, the first Muslim high school to open in mainland France in 2003 in the northern city of Lille, has more than 800 pupils and has been under contract with the state since 2008. Pupils follow the regular French curriculum, and are also offered religion classes. But in an October report seen by Reuters, the interior ministry’s local office said the school was suffering from administrative and financial dysfunction and that some teaching did not align with French republican values. The interior ministry’s local office declined to provide more details on the contract termination. Many Muslims feel France – home to the largest Muslim population in Europe – has become more hostile towards them, especially after France suffered a string of deadly jihadist attacks in 2015. In September, the education minister banned the abaya, the loose-fitting, full-length robe worn by some Muslim women, in public schools. Last year, a deportation order was given to an imam from the same area of northern France. Averroes headmaster Eric Dufour said he had yet to receive notification from the interior ministry’s local office, but that the school intended to challenge the decision in administrative court. “When it comes to republican values, we do more than any other school,” Dufour told Reuters last week in Lille, after he had been summoned to an education committee meeting in late November that made him fear the decision to end the school’s contract was coming. And a 2020 education ministry inspection report that Reuters reviewed said that “nothing in the observations … allows (us) to think teaching practices don’t respect republican values”. The ministry didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment. Headmaster Dufour said that without public funding, the school would be unable to meet its budget needs. “We would have to double fees for every family to hold on, which is out of the question,” he said. Mohamed Daoudi said the main reason he chose Averroes for his 12-year-old son was its excellent results, and that he and other parents felt the interior ministry local office’s decision was an injustice. “It’s really a witch-hunt,” Daoudi said. “It’s an injustice doubled with an insult.” A project director in the tech industry, Daoudi said he had lived abroad for 15 years and was ready to leave again if the school were to close. “I would rather put my kids in public school in Canada,” he said. He added that he felt like it was part of a wider crackdown on France’s Muslim minority. “We do everything by the book, and we are still being pestered.” Reporting by Juliette Jabkhiro, editing by Nick Macfie Source:https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/france-end-contract-with-biggest-muslim-high-school-amid-fears-wider-crackdown-2023-12-11/

Armed men stormed a police station in northwestern Pakistan, killing at least five people, officials say, with the number of casualties expected to rise. The attack took place on Tuesday in the city of Dera Ismail Khan in the restive province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, located at the edge of the lawless tribal regions bordering Afghanistan, also wounded at least 28 people, said Aizaz Mehmood, an official of the state-run rescue service. “We are still hearing gunshots,” he said. end of list However, the Reuters news agency reported quoting two security officials that there were at least 24 deaths at the police station, being used by the Pakistani army as a base camp. “Many of them were killed while they were sleeping and in civilian clothes so we are still determining if they are all military personnel,” an official was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency. The fighters rammed a vehicle laden with explosives into the main gate of the police station, following up with a gun attack, according to officials. Pakistani group Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan (TJP), which has emerged recently, said its fighters carried out the attack aimed at the Pakistani army, in a statement quoted by Reuters. Former Pakistan Taliban stronghold It was not immediately clear if the group in question is linked to the main armed outlawed group Pakistan Taliban, known by the acronym TTP, which has targeted the state and its institutions for years. Dera Ismail Khan is a former stronghold of the TTP, which seeks to overthrow the government and replace it with their harsh brand of religious laws. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has witnessed a rise in violence with several deadly attacks. In January, at least 101 people were killed when a suicide bomber targeted a mosque in Peshawar. Authorities say fighters have become emboldened while living openly in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover of that country in 2021. Source:https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/12/894

At least 20 people have been reportedly killed, including seven children, in the bombing of the city of Rafah by Israeli forces. A UN expert warns that “every single Palestinian in Gaza is going hungry” as Israel continues its deadly bombardment of the enclave. Al Jazeera denounces the killing of its journalist Anas al-Shifa’s 65-year-old father in an Israeli attack on his home in northern Gaza. Israel says it will screen humanitarian aid at the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing, but supplies will still enter Gaza only via Egypt’s Rafah. More than 18,200 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombardment since October 7. The revised death toll in Israel stands at 1,147. Israel’s defence minister says war will ‘take time’ Israel’s defence minister has pushed back against international calls for a ceasefire, saying the current phase of what Israel says is an operation against Hamas will “take time”. “We are going to defend ourselves. I am fighting for Israel’s future,” Yoav Gallant, a member of Israel’s three-man war cabinet, said in a briefing with The Associated Press. Gallant refused to commit to any firm deadlines but signalled that the current phase, characterised by heavy ground fighting backed up by air power, could stretch on for weeks and that further military activity could continue for months. He added that the next phase would be lower-intensity fighting against “pockets of resistance” and would require Israeli troops to maintain their freedom of operation. Click here to share on social media Know their names: Palestinians killed by Israel in the occupied West Bank This year, at least 483 Palestinians have been killed and more than 12,769 wounded by Israeli forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank. Since October 7, as jets bombarded Gaza, the Israeli military ramped up its raids in the West Bank. As of December 10, at least 106 Palestinian children have been killed by Israeli soldiers or settlers this year, reaching three times the number recorded in 2022. This year alone accounts for a quarter of all Palestinian deaths over the past 20 years. Click Photos: Gaza on Tuesday morning [Said Khatib/AFP] [Jack Guez/AFP] [Jack Guez/AFP] [Jack Guez/AFP] Click Photos: Aftermath of Israeli strikes on houses in Khan Younis [Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters] [Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters] [Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters] [Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters] Click here to share on social media Israeli raids continue in the occupied West Bank In addition to the raid in the city of Jenin, where four Palestinians have been killed, Israeli forces have carried out operations in other parts of the occupied West Bank: Israeli raids took place in the town of Silwad, northeast of Ramallah where 15 people were arrested. Several people were detained in the town of Samu in Israeli raids on Palestinian homes. ⁠Olive fields in the towns of Qasr and Orta, south of Nablus, were vandalised by Israeli forces who were accompanied by Israeli settlers. Raids were also reported in Bethlehem and Deir Ballut south of Qalqilya city. Click here to share on social media Houthis say they targeted tanker headed to Israel A spokesperson for Yemen’s Houthi group has confirmed that it was behind a missile attack on a Norway-flagged chemical tanker off the Yemeni coast on its way to Israel. “In support of the oppressed Palestinian people, currently reeling under the destruction, killing and siege of the Gaza Strip, and to heed the calls of our free Yemeni people, the Yemeni Naval Forces carried out an outstanding military operation against MV Strinda,” Yahiya Sarie said. “Over the past two days, the Yemeni Armed Forces prevented a number of vessels from passing through. Those vessels heeded our warnings. “We reiterate that we will continue to prevent all vessels headed to the Israeli ports, regardless of their nationalities, from navigating in the Arab or Red Sea, until the necessary food and medical supplies are delivered to our brothers in the Gaza Strip.” Click here to share on social media The Palestinian Health Ministry is reporting that a fourth Palestinian has been killed in Israeli raids on Jenin in the occupied West Bank. One person was wounded in the attack on al-Sibat neighbourhood, Wafa news agency reported, while at least 40 people have been arrested. Israeli forces have also surrounded three hospitals in the area, the report added. With the latest killings, the death toll in West Bank since October 7 has gone up to 279. Click here to share on social media US unlikely to put any real pressure to rein in Israel Giorgio Cafiero There’s no denying that the Biden administration would like to see Israel change certain aspects of its conduct. White House officials have concerns about how the war in Gaza will impact the region in the long term but there are no signs that the administration wants to put any real pressure on Israel to make the changes it would like to see. The Israelis understand that the opinions of the White House are just opinions, rhetoric is just rhetoric and if there’s no real pressure, this language doesn’t really mean anything. Given the elections coming up, I don’t think that Biden wants to have a fight with the pro-Israel lobby. I doubt he will do much to challenge the Netanyahu government. At the same time, as this war drags on and the humanitarian disaster worsens, we can see Biden paying a price politically. We can see voters who otherwise would have backed Biden decide to vote for a third party candidate, or not vote at all. Source:https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2023/12/12/israel-hamas-war-live-palestinians-going-hungry-as-israel-pounds-gaza