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Afghan students in JNU appeal for visa extension as Afghanistan falls to Taliban

Amidst the deteriorating security condition in Afghanistan following the month-long offensive by Islamist outfit Taliban, Afghan students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have requested the Indian government to extend their visas.

While speaking about the matter to ANI, an Afghan student named Jalal-ud-din said, “My visa will expire next month. My request is to extend my visa for the long term. I don’t have any option. Other students from Afghan also facing the same problem.”

The same issue of security threat at the hands of the Taliban was also flagged by another student named Ali Asghar. While expressing fear about the future of women and religious minorities, the JNU student said, “I’m part of a minority community in Afghanistan. I am from Bamyan province. It was the most peaceful & safe province. Today I heard that they (Taliban) took control of my province. I am worried about the future of minorities and women.”

Other than Afghan students in JNU, even Afghan nationals who have been living in India have expressed their concerns over their country falling to Taliban.

Some of the Afghan nationals living in India are either on student or medical visa or have fled the country earlier and applied for refugee status.

Taliban takes over Afghanistan, government surrenders

After a month-long offensive against the Afghan army, terrorists associated with the Islamist outfit Taliban finally reached the gates of Kabul on Sunday (August 15). In a statement, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid claimed that the terrorists intended to enter Kabul in a peaceful way without force or war. He added, “The Islamic Emirate instructs all its forces to stand at the gates of Kabul, not to try to enter the city. Also, until the completion of the transition process, the security of Kabul city is referred to the other side, which must be maintained.”

Reportedly, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar will become the new president of Afghanistan under the Taliban regime after the Afghanistan Government surrendered to the Islamic terrorists. Earlier, a Taliban delegation led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar had made their way to the presidential palace after entering Kabul. However, some reports indicate that Ali Ahmad Jalali, former Afghan Interior Minister, will head the new transitional government in Afghanistan. President Ashraf Ghani was expected to relinquish power after talks with the Taliban. He has finally resigned earlier in the day and Ali Ahamd Jalali was appointed interim chief.

Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine goes woke, changes ‘breastfeeding’ to ‘chestfeeding’, ‘breast milk’ to ‘parent’s milk’

An organisation of doctors called the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (ABM) has issued new guidelines that suggest using terms such as “chestfeeding”, “human milk feeding”, and “parent’s milk” to promote what it describes as “gender-inclusive language”.

According to the reports, the Chicago based ABM has issued a statement on “infant feeding and lactation-related language and gender”, co-authored by eight doctors. In the statement, the academy said that “the use of de-sexed or gender-inclusive language is appropriate in many settings.”

“ABM recognizes that not all people who give birth and lactate identify as female, and that some of these individuals identify as neither female nor male,” ABM said in a document.

In the new guidelines, the ABM has suggested “gender-inclusive terms” for “breastfeeding” that include – “chestfeeding”, “lactating, expressing”, “pumping”, “human milk feeding”. Similarly, alternatives for “breast milk” include “milk”, “human milk”, “mother’s own milk”, “parent’s milk”, and “father’s milk”.

One of the co-authors, Dr Laura Kair of the UC Davis Children’s Hospital, claimed that “language has power.” 

“The language that we use should be as inclusive as possible when discussing infant feeding,” she said adding that it is best for them to ask the patients about their affirmed terminology. When communicating medical research, language should accurately reflect the population studied so as not to mask research needs, she added.

Meanwhile, critics have slammed such terminology. Actress Kirstie Alley said she was “tired” of phrases “nullifying” women and their ability to breastfeed. 

“I’m a little tired of the degrading and nullifying of women and their abilities. Breastfeeding is one of our abilities. It’s a beautiful and important ability. Knock off the nullifying of women for the sake of lunatics. Equal rights does not equal insanity,” Alley tweeted.

This proposal joins that several proposals by the woke movement that essentially aims to ‘cancel’ women, where all feminine terms are replaced with ‘gender-neutral’ terms. These terminologies come after President Biden’s administration used the phrase “birthing people” instead of “mothers” in a 2022 budget proposal, causing massive outrage worldwide.

Earlier, in a similar bizarre incident, a hospital trust in the United Kingdom had instructed its staff to adopt “gender-inclusive language” for its perinatal services, including referring to “breastfeeding” as “chestfeeding” and “mother” with “mother or birthing parent”.

The Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust had decided to be more “gender-inclusive” to respect “trans and non-binary birthing people”. In doing so, they had changed the post-natal terminologies and instructed their staff to use phrases such as “human milk”, “chest milk”, and “milk from the feeding mother or parent” instead of the word “breastmilk”. They had concluded that the word “breast” is discriminatory.

This particular health trust had become the first to formally implement the “gender-inclusive” policy for its maternity services, which will now be referred to as “perinatal services” because the word “maternity” was not “gender-inclusive” for the trust.

The trust has also changed terminologies of “woman” with “woman or person”, “father” with “parent”, “co-parent” or “second biological parent”.

 

Who is Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar? The Taliban leader who is rumoured to become the next president of Afghanistan

On Sunday, speculations were rife that Taliban commander Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar will become the new President of Afghanistan under the Taliban regime after the Afghanistan Government surrendered to the Islamic terrorists. President Ashraf Ghani is expected to relinquish power after talks with the Taliban in a mostly bloodless transfer of power. It is expected that US-based Ali Ahmad Jalali will head an interim government for the time being before the Taliban forms a full-fledged government under Ghani Baradar.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar led a Taliban delegation to negotiate with the Afghan government for the transfer of power in Afghanistan. He had made his way to the presidential palace after Taliban fighters had captured Kabul. After a month-long offensive against the Afghan army, terrorists associated with the Islamist outfit Taliban finally reached the gates of Kabul on Sunday.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar – a Pashtun goat herder to becoming Afghan President under Taliban regime

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is one of the four men who founded the Taliban movement in Afghanistan in 1994. According to Interpol, Mullah Baradar was born in Weetmak village in Dehrawood district, in the Uruzgan province of Afghanistan, in 1968.

Mullah Baradar, the co-founder of the Taliban, is a Durrani Pashtun of the Popalzai tribe, the same as former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai.

After founding the Taliban movement in 1994 along with Mullah Mohammed Omar, Mullah Baradar rose to the ranks of a military strategist and commander. As a key Taliban leader, he was responsible for the day-to-day command of their operations against the US forces and also accessed funds from across the globe.

Baradar, who emerged during the 1980s in the ‘Jihad’ against the Soviet troops in Kandahar, went on to become a linchpin of the insurgency against the US troops after the Taliban were toppled by the US-led invasion in 2001.

Mullah Baradar has held important responsibilities in almost all the major wars across Afghanistan and remained the top commander of the Taliban’s formation during their war against the United States. At the time the Taliban was toppled by the US forces, Mullah Baradar was serving as Deputy Minister of Defence.

According to sources, Mullah Baradar’s wife is Mullah Omar’s sister, and as a trusted aide of the then Taliban chief, he controlled the financial operations of the Taliban.

Arrested by US forces in 2010, released before peace talks

Mullah Baradar, like other Taliban leaders, was targeted by UN Security Council sanctions, which included the freezing of assets, a travel ban and an arms embargo. He was eventually captured in a joint US-Pakistani operation in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi in February 2010.

Interestingly, until his capture, the world knew little of Mullah Baradar before his name topped the list of Taliban prisoners the Afghans wanted to be released to encourage peace talks with the Taliban. At the time of his arrest, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar was the second-in-command to the Taliban’s spiritual leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar, and one of his most trusted commanders.

On September 21, 2018, Pakistani officials released Mullah Baradar from their custody as a condition for talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban. He is reputedly one of those very few in the ranks of the Taliban who favoured talks with the US and the Afghan government.

As the Taliban began to take over Afghanistan after US forces began withdrawing from the war-torn country last month, Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Barada had travelled to China to met Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Prior to his visit to China, Mullah Baradar had also travelled to Russia to discuss future ties with the Communist country.

‘We will not leave until the mission is complete’: Watch what former US Pres George Bush had said after defeating Taliban in 2001

Unprecedented scenes were observed in Afghanistan as Taliban has managed to overthrow the incumbent US-backed government in the country. According to reports coming in, Taliban’s Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is in contention to become the new Afghan President while Ali Ahmad Jalali, former Afghan Interior Minister, will head the transitional government.

The US exit after 20 years marks the return of the Islamic terrorist outfit to power. On the occasion of the fall of Kabul, the speech that former US President George Bush delivered in the aftermath of the USA’s victory over Taliban in 2001 has gone viral on social media.

In his speech, George Bush emphasised on ‘human rights’ and the support from allies. The speech was made on the 12th of December, 2001 during the Signing Ceremony for Afghan Women and Children Relief Act of 2001.

During the speech, George Bush said, “For several years, the people of Afghanistan have suffered under one of the most brutal regimes — brutal regimes — in modern history; a regime allied with terrorists and a regime at war with women. Thanks to our military and our allies and the brave fighters of Afghanistan, the Taliban regime is coming to an end.”

He continued, “Yet, our responsibilities to the people of Afghanistan have not ended. We work for a new era of human rights and human dignity in that country.”

Bush had stated, “Before the Taliban came, women played an incredibly important part of that society. Seventy percent of the nation’s teachers were women. Half of the government workers in Afghanistan were women, and 40 percent of the doctors in the capital of Kabul were women. The Taliban destroyed that progress. And in the process, they offered us a clear image of the world they and the terrorists would like to impose on the rest of us.”

George Bush had gone on to state, “The central goal of the terrorists is the brutal oppression of women — and not only the women of Afghanistan. The terrorists who help rule Afghanistan are found in dozens and dozens of countries around the world. And that is the reason this great nation, with our friends and allies, will not rest until we bring them all to justice.”

“America and our allies will do our part in the rebuilding of Afghanistan. We learned our lessons from the past. We will not leave until the mission is complete. (Applause.) We will work with international institutions on long-term development — on the long-term development of Afghanistan. We will provide immediate humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan,” he had added.

George Bush past comments go viral

With Taliban set to return to power, the comments made by George Bush 20 years ago have gone viral again.

Intelligence failure?

In the second week of August 2021, intelligence agencies in the United States of America had predicted that Kabul would fall within 90 days. A US defence official talking to Reuters citing US intelligence sources said that the new assessment of how long the Taliban will take to capture Kabul is a result of the rapid gains the Taliban has made in the recent weeks even as the US-led foreign forces prepare their final withdrawal from the country.

The official had added that it is not a forgone conclusion, as the Afghan security forces could be able to push back the Taliban by putting up more resistance. But Kabul has fallen to Taliban within a week of that statement.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar to become new Afghan President under Taliban regime as Ashraf Ghani set to exit

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar will be the new president of Afghanistan under the Taliban regime after the Afghanistan Government surrendered before the Islamic terrorists. President Ashraf Ghani is expected to relinquish power after talks with the Taliban.

Earlier, a Taliban delegation led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar had made their way to the presidential palace after entering Kabul.

However, some reports indicate that Ali Ahmad Jalali, former Afghan Interior Minister, will head the new transitional government in Afghanistan.

After a month-long offensive against the Afghan army, terrorists associated with the Islamist outfit Taliban finally reached the gates of Kabul on Sunday (August 15).

In a statement, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid stated, “Declaration of the Islamic Emirate not to fight in Kabul Praise be to God that with the help of God Almighty and the broad support of our people, all parts of the country have come under the control of the Islamic Emirate. However, since the capital Kabul is a large and densely populated city, the Mujahideen of the Islamic Emirate do not intend to enter the city by force or war, but rather to enter Kabul peacefully.”

He further added, “Negotiations are underway to ensure that the transition process is completed safely and securely, without compromising the lives, property and honor of anyone, and without compromising the lives of Kabulis. The Islamic Emirate instructs all its forces to stand at the gates of Kabul, not to try to enter the city. Also, until the completion of the transition process, the security of Kabul city is referred to the other side, which must be maintained.”

The Taliban had also urged President Ashraf Ghani to surrender to avoid bloodshed.

Did you know Prime Minister of India ‘hoists’ the national flag on Independence Day while the President of India ‘unfurls’ on Republic Day

On August 15, India celebrates its Independence. Prime Minister hoists the national flag at the red fort and addresses the nation. The Tricolour is hoisted to commemorate the Inpendence Day or Swatantrata Diwas across the country. Interestingly, many do not know that we hoist the national flag on Independence Day and unfurl it on Republic Day.

Here are some of the key differences:

Significance

Independence Day is observed as India became independent of British rule on 15th August 1947 after the Indian Independence Act was passed. It coincided with the partition of India on religious lines and a new country Pakistan came into existence. Republic Day is celebrated to commemorate the date on which the Constitution of India came into effect on 26th Republic, 1950. The Constitution was adopted by the Indian Constituent Assembly on 26 November 1949 and came into effect on 26 January 1950 with a democratic government system.

Positioning of the National Flag on the pole

When the Tricolour is to be ‘hoisted’ on Independence Day, i.e. August 15, the flag is tied and sits at the bottom of the pole. The Prime Minister of the country raises the flag up and hoists it with the aim to honour the historical event of the day.

On the other hand, when the Tricolour is to be ‘unfurled’ on Republic Day, i.e. January 26, the flag remains closed and tied up at the top of the pole. The President of India unfurls it without pulling it up like it is done on Independence Day. The difference between the two ceremonies is because when India became Republic, it was already independent.

Who hoists or unfurls the Tricolour?

Prime Minister is the head of the government. He ‘hoists’ the flag on Independence Day. On the other hand, the President of India ‘unfurls’ the Tricolour on Republic Day as the constitutional head and first citizen of the country.

Location of the celebrations

On Independence Day, the Prime Minister of India hoists the flag at the Red Fort in New Delhi. On the other hand, the Republic Day ceremony of unfurling the flag by the President of India takes place at Rajpath in the national capital.

Activities on the two events

On Independence Day, a flag hoisting ceremony takes place, followed by Prime Minister’s address. There are some cultural performances by the children on the same day.

On Republic Day, a flag unfurling ceremony takes place, followed by a parade that includes a march by the Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force, and Police Departments, along with the tableau of all the states and Union Territories take place. Cultural performances by children are also included in the ceremony.

Afghanistan: Kabul on the verge of fall as Taliban reaches final frontier, asks President Ashraf Ghani to surrender

After a month-long offensive against the Afghan army, terrorists associated with the Islamist outfit Taliban finally reached the gates of Kabul on Sunday (August 15).

In a statement, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid stated, “Declaration of the Islamic Emirate not to fight in Kabul Praise be to God that with the help of God Almighty and the broad support of our people, all parts of the country have come under the control of the Islamic Emirate. However, since the capital Kabul is a large and densely populated city, the Mujahideen of the Islamic Emirate do not intend to enter the city by force or war, but rather to enter Kabul peacefully. “

He further added, “Negotiations are underway to ensure that the transition process is completed safely and securely, without compromising the lives, property and honor of anyone, and without compromising the lives of Kabulis. The Islamic Emirate instructs all its forces to stand at the gates of Kabul, not to try to enter the city. Also, until the completion of the transition process, the security of Kabul city is referred to the other side, which must be maintained.”

Zabihullah Mujahid claimed, “We reiterate that the Islamic Emirate does not intend to take revenge on anyone, all those who have served in the military and civilian sectors in the Kabul administration are forgiven and safe, no one will be retaliated against. All should stay in their own country, in their own place and home, and not try to leave the country. We want all Afghans, from all walks of life, to see themselves in a future Islamic system with a responsible government that serves and is acceptable to all. God willing.”

Meanwhile, the Afghan government stated the defense forces are working with the international partners to control the security situation in Kabul. Reportedly, the Taliban has asked incumbent President Ashraf Ghani to surrender to avoid bloodshed. He is expected to agree to this demand, the Taliban will capture the presidential palace first after entering Kabul.

On Saturday (August 14), Afghan President Ashraf Ghani made his first public appearance after the Islamist terror outfit, Taliban, intensified its offensive and got hold of key territories. Dozens of border crossings and provinces have fallen into the hands of the Taliban since the US announced to withdraw its troops by August end.

In a pre-recorded message, the Afghan President called for the remobilisation of armed forces, following their crushing defeat at the hands of the Taliban. He emphasised that it was the topmost priority of the Afghan government. Ashraf Ghani said, “Under the current situation, remobilizing of the security and defence forces is our top priority and required measures are underway for this purpose.”

He also informed that the government is in touch with ‘local leaders’ and ‘international partners’ to resolve the ongoing human rights crisis. The Afghan President said, “I know that you are concerned about your present and future but I assure you as your president that my focus is to prevent further instability, violence, and displacement of my people. To do this, I have started widespread consultations within and outside the government, with political leaders and international partners and I will soon share the results with the people.”

Obama faces criticism as Martha’s Vineyard reports increase in Covid-19 cases after his maskless birthday party

Former President Barack Obama is facing sharp criticism as Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts has reported an increase in Covid-19 cases after his birthday bash last weekend. Hashtags such as “#superspreader” and “#ObamaVariant” were trending on Twitter after the reports of an increase in Covid cases came out. At least 74 people have tested positive for the virus since Obama’s party, which is the highest reported case in any week since April 2021.

However, health officials of the area claimed it was too early to say if the hundreds of workers and guests who came for the “maskless party” for his birthday contributed to the surge. Maura Valley, Spokesperson, Tisbury health agent and boards of health, said, “At this time, we’re not aware of any cases connected to the Obama party. It’s a little too early, and the only way we’re going to know is through comprehensive contact tracing.”

Reportedly, hundreds of people came to attend Obama’s birthday bash last Saturday even though he had “toned down” the celebrations amidst rising cases of Covid-19. The three-day event started on Thursday at the Barn Bowl & Bistro, followed by celebrations on Friday at luxury Winnetu Oceanside Resort Friday and a brunch on Sunday at the Beach Road restaurant.

A week after the party, 48 cases were reported on Saturday, six on Sunday, seven on Monday, eight on Tuesday, 13 on Wednesday, 18 on Thursday and 20 on Friday. Obama had announced that he had disinvited everyone but his family and close friends. However, over 300 people still showed up for the party, including Beyonce, Jay Z, John Legend, and Chrissy Teigan.

Daily Mail reported that Celebrities, including Bradley Cooper, had checked into the Harbor View Hotel. Six staff members of the Hotel have now tested positive for the deadly virus. The Hotel has become one of the three new Covid clusters in Edgartown. The other two are Alchemy Bistro & Bar that reported 14 cases, and Port Hunter restaurant, where five cases were reported.

Due to the rise in the cases, the mask mandate has been reinstated at several restaurants and bars across the island.

‘What is this new rubbish?’: Kashmir School Director suffers a meltdown after caller asks if National Flag was hoisted at her school

Sabbah Haji, Director of Haji Public School in Jammu and Kashmir, suffered a meltdown on Independence Day. Apparently, she received a call from someone asking whether the National Flag was hoisted at her school on the occasion.

Miffed by the question, Sabbah Haji replied that her school did not and it was Sunday. “What is this new rubbish,” she said about the call. Then, without any evidence, she insinuated that the Government of India was behind the call.

Sabbah Haji, Kashmir School Director
Source: Twitter

The Kashmir School Director is clearly unhappy with the Independence Day celebrations in the Union Territory. She has been seething about it during the days leading up to it.

Sabbah Haji, Kashmir School Director
Source: Twitter

Sabbah Haji also appears to harbour separatist inclinations. Responding to a tweet where the user was mourning over “occupied and illegally annexed Kashmir”, she says that it is nothing new that the world has forgotten about it and that the insult has gone on for long.

Sabbah Haji, Kashmir School Director
Source: Twitter

That the Director of a School in Kashmir does not wish to hoist the Indian Flag on Independence Day and appears to harbour separatist inclinations is indeed a cause for concern as she is in a position where she is able to influence the impressionable minds of children.

The children are the future and as long as they are influenced into embracing a misguided worldview, Kashmir will continue to suffer as a consequence. Terrorism has been a cause for extreme concern in the Valley, including the menace funded from across the border.

Meanwhile, Muzaffar Wani, the father of Hizbul Mujahideen commander and Islamic terrorist Burhan Wani, hoisted the Tricolour in Tral on Sunday. On Independence Day, the Tricolour was hoisted at all government schools, colleges and other institutions across the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. As part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’, the Union Territory administration had directed all departments, including the Education department to hoist flags in all offices on Independence Day. 

As Kashmir recovers from the scourge of terrorism following the abrogation of Article 370, there are some elements clearly who wish for the valley to remain entrapped in an endless cycle of bloodshed.

The Quint strikes again, this time uses gaumutra jibe while wishing on Independence Day

The Quint has gone from whitewashing terrorists to now speaking the language of terrorists. While wishing its readers for the 75th year of Indian Independence, The Quint spoke the language of Pulwama terrorist by making a gaumutra jibe.

The Quint’s comic on Independence Day

The first slide in the four-part comic shared by The Quint showed a man, likely Prime Minister Modi’s caricature, hoisting the national flag. It said how as India marches into 75th year of Independence, it hopes to get…’

The Quint

The Quint then says it wants freedom from sexism, marital rape and patriarchy. All legit and valid things to hope and wish to get freedom from. These are social evils which continue to plague us. However, right under it, The Quint talks about ‘freedom from religious nationalism’ and shows a man tied up to a tree with three men chanting ‘Jai Shri Raim’

Here The Quint conveniently forgets how Islamists have long been asking for beheading of Hindus as well. Here is Aam Aadmi Party leader Amanatullah Khan justifying beheading of Yati Narsinghanand over allegations of blasphemy.

Amanatullah Khan’s tweet

Some threats and religious fundamentalism gets a free pass because, well, ‘liberals’ love biryani.

Further, The Quint also conveniently forgets that many of the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ hate crimes were eventually fake. Even recently, when alleged ‘fact-checker’ Mohammed Zubair of Alt News took to Twitter to share incident where one elderly man was allegedly beaten up and forced to chant Jai Shri Ram, it was eventually revealed how that was not the case. In fact, he was beaten up by his own co-religionists over allegations of black magic gone wrong.

The Quint

The Quint then ironically talks about wanting the freedom to ‘get real news’ while in reality, what the publication itself does is whitewashing their crimes and humanising terrorists and rapists especially if the accused is a Muslim.

In this particular slide, The Quint also uses the gaumutra jibe, by claiming that people ‘consume gaumutra’ as misinformation. Pulwama terrorist Abdul Ahmad Dhar had carried out the attack which killed 40 CRPF soldiers because he wanted to kill those who ‘drink cow urine’. The ‘cow urine’ (or gaumutra’) is a jibe for Hindus and shows the deep rooted hatred for Hindus Islamists harbour. That The Quint should use the same speaks volumes about its own hatred for Hindus.

The Quint

In the last slide, The Quint speaks about people should have ‘freedom to love anyone you like’ and has a man wearing ‘Anti love jihad squad’ written on his clothes. Here again it shows its bias as the anti-forced religious conversion law is not against law but against forced religious conversion of victims – and applies to all. That there are innumerable cases where Hindu women are lured into marriage or even physical relationship by men who have hidden their religious identity and then tried to force them to convert to Islam, or killed if they refuse to do so is completely ignored by The Quint.

But why let facts get in the way of virtue signalling and whitewashing crimes of Islamists.