Skip to main content

Israeli occupier attacks threaten historic Christian presence in West Bank town

In Taybeh, one of the few Palestinian communities with a Christian majority in the occupied West Bank, fears are growing that Israeli occupier attacks on farmland and property could push more families to emigrate, threatening the town’s demographic character and historic Christian presence. Local officials and clergy warned of the impact of rising violence by Israeli occupiers, which has coincided with worsening living and economic conditions in the town. Taybeh, east of Ramallah, is one of the few Palestinian towns in the West Bank that still has a Christian majority, according to church and local accounts. Residents say the town’s Christian roots go back thousands of years. Residents say the attacks have deepened fears in the town, even as they stress their determination to remain on their land. Also Read: Pakistan raises red flag over illegal settlements in West Bank, calls for Israel accountability In recent years, Israeli occupiers have established several ill...
Post a Comment

Sikh religious sites at risk in Pakistan, India as Ravi River overflows

Floodwaters from the Ravi River surged into Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur on Wednesday, submerging its courtyard and halting pilgrimage at one of Sikhism’s holiest sites. Visuals from the field showed the shrine’s marble steps and courtyard completely inundated, as floodwater swept into the complex overnight. Around 200 to 300 pilgrims were stranded in Kartarpur Corridor, with the armed forces called in to carry out rescue operations. Officials from the Evacuee Trust Property Board confirmed that floodwater had seeped into the compound, reaching nearly three feet in some areas and forcing pilgrimages to a sudden halt. The Punjab government had placed disaster management agencies on high alert on Tuesday, warning of “exceptionally high” inundation risks as relentless monsoon rains, glacial melt, and the release of water from Indian dams combined to swell Pakistan’s rivers. Nearly 190,000 people have since been evacuated from inundated villages, with the military and rescue agencies scrambling to protect communities along the Ravi, Chenab and Sutlej. Read: Punjab holds its breath as rivers surge But the threat is not confined to Pakistan. Across the border in India’s Gurdaspur district of Punjab, the historic town of Dera Baba Nanak — home to another sacred Sikh shrine — is in reportedly precarious conditions, with rising river levels fueled by continuous heavy rainfall in the upper catchment areas, particularly Himachal Pradesh and Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). The town holds immense religious importance. It is located directly opposite Kartarpur and linked to Pakistan by the landmark visa-free Kartarpur Corridor. Since 2019, the corridor allows thousands of Indian pilgrims to visit the shrine in Narowal, where Baba Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, spent his final days. For now, the central structure at Kartarpur remains safe as its elevated platform has spared it from immediate damage. River levels remain high Water levels in Pakistan’s major rivers and reservoirs remain critically high, with inflows surpassing 1.2 million cusecs, while floodwaters continue to move downstream into Punjab. Authorities reported both large-scale evacuations and extensive rescue efforts as concerns mounted over the safety of communities along the Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej rivers. According to the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), the Indus River at Tarbela recorded an inflow of 240,000 cusecs and outflow of 245,400 cusecs. At Mangla on the Jhelum, inflow was 34,000 cusecs and outflow 8,000 cusecs. Chashma saw inflows of 326,600 cusecs and outflows of 329,000 cusecs, while at Head Marala on the Chenab, inflows reached 107,500 cusecs against 89,500 cusecs outflow.            

from Latest World News, International News | Breaking World News https://ift.tt/84HDYMG
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

At least 32 miners dead after bridge fails at cobalt site in southeast DR Congo

A bridge collapsed at a cobalt mine in southeast Democratic Republic of Congo killing at least 32 wildcat miners, a regional government official said Sunday. The bridge came down Saturday onto a flooded zone at the mine in Lualaba province, Roy Kaumba Mayonde, the provincial interior minister, told reporters. He said 32 bodies had been recovered and more were being searched for. The DRC produces more than 70 percent of the world supply of cobalt, which is essential for batteries used in electric cars, many laptop computers and mobile phones. More than 200,000 people are estimated to be working in giant illegal cobalt mines in the giant central African country. Local authorities said the bridge collapsed at the Kalando mine, about 42 kilometres (26 miles) southeast of the Lualaba provincial capital, Kolwezi. "Despite a formal ban on access to the site because of the heavy rain and the risk of a landslide, wildcat miners forced their way into the quarry," said Mayonde. He said ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Indian devotees splurge on jets, gold idols as Hindu temple opens

The private jet parking lots at airports near the Indian city of Ayodhya are full and the shops have run out of gold-plated idols, as wealthy devotees prepare for the invite-only opening ceremony of one of Hinduism's holiest temples. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Asia's richest man Mukesh Ambani are among the 8,000 or so attendees at Monday's inauguration event for the Ram Temple, which devotees believe is built on the birthplace of Lord Ram, a sacred Hindu deity. The construction of the temple, which began after the Supreme Court awarded the site to Hindus in 2019 more than two decades after a Hindu mob razed a mosque there, triggering deadly riots, fulfils a key campaign promise of Modi and his Hindu nationalist party. Read BJP-promised temple transforms Ayodhya: Muslims, locals feel neglected The opening ceremony, organised by the trust that built the temple, comes months before a national election which the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is widely expected to w...
Post a Comment
Read more

Indian opposition supporters detained ahead of protest at Modi's home

Police in the Indian capital detained dozens of opposition supporters on Tuesday as they attempted to march to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence to protest against last week's arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Kejriwal, a key opposition leader whose Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has governed the national capital territory for a decade, was arrested by the financial crime-fighting agency on corruption charges relating to the city's liquor policy, weeks before India begins voting in general elections on April 19. He was remanded to the custody of the Enforcement Directorate until March 28, with the lawyer for the agency arguing he was the "kingpin" in the case and needed to be interrogated. Kejriwal's party, all of whose main leaders are now imprisoned in connection with the case, says he has been "falsely arrested" in a "fabricated case". The federal government and Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) deny political interfere...
Post a Comment
Read more