It is reported that road shipments of goods to the Gaza Strip are under way following Israel’s decision to change the conditions of its blockade of the Palestinian territory. Israel has said it will allow the import of “civilian” goods, but will continue to restrict items they say could be used to build weapons, including cement and steel rods. Previously, only products mentioned on lists drawn up by Israel were allowed into the territory. The list of permit...

An Israeli security organisation placed an advertisement at the ads section in Yediot Aharonot Israeli newspaper, seeking “women volunteers” to attack and remove women from the Lebanese aid flotilla “Miriam” filled with aid supplies and women peace activists. The ad states that “Women with great physical strength and motivations” are needed on a volunteer basis in order to attack and evacuate women from the Lebanese aid ship. It also has a voice ...

According to a senior executive from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) of Turkey, the propaganda launched by Israel aimed at portraying Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the reason for the current tension between the two countries is a provocation paving the way for non-democratic actions within Turkey. There are also reports that Israel has been trying to incite violence inside Turkey by lending support to the militants of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (...

French lawmakers will be debating the pros and cons of ban on wearing burqa (full face veil) in public places in the first week of July, 2010. The ruling party is inclined towards legalising the ban and spreading its reach. However, human rights activists and legal experts have warned that such a decision against an individual’s privacy will not stand the test of legal scrutiny and bigger issues of human rights violations and suppression of personal liberty will crop up forci...

The proposed new law governing the marriage of Saudi nationals to foreigners will permit Saudi women to marry non-Saudis born in the Kingdom to a Saudi mother or parents both of non-Saudi nationality, on the condition that prospective husbands have legal residence, birth certificates from the department of Civil Status, and have lived in the Kingdom for at least 15 years.

A Moroccan family living in Riyadh has pardoned the Saudi killer of their 38-year-old son in exchange for the payment of pilgrimage expenses for nine of the family. The expenses were proposed, according to an adviser to Prince Turki Bin Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, as an alternative to the SR3 million in blood money offered by donors but was turned down by the family at their home in the Moroccan capital Rabat. One of the sheikhs who proposed to cover the Haj and Umra expenses expressed his rel...

The Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) and China have agreed to jointly organise a seminar on the historical relationship between China and the Muslim World in order to consolidate friendly relations between China and the OIC and explore future possibilities. During the eight-day official visit of the OIC Secretary General Prof. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu to China both sides agreed that the OIC and China would work together to enhance their traditional friendship and to increase ex...

Retail licences for chicken, mild steel round bars and cement will be abolished in Malaysia to allow market forces to determine their prices, said Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob. The move would also check the smuggling of the products, he said. He also said the supply of chicken had been more stable following the imposition of price control. The removal of the retail licences for the three items would enable the ministry to better focus ...

Muslim Aid of UK has made an initial allocation of £20,000 after launching an emergency appeal for £100,000 to support the growing humanitarian crisis in Kyrgyzstan. Muslim Aid’s partners are already assessing the situation on the ground. Hamid Azad, Assistant CEO of Muslim Aid said: ‘The people of Kyrgyzstan need assistance – water, sanitation, medicine, clothing and food. Thousands of people have fled their homes. An urgent and fast response is needed from NG...

About 5000 protestors marched in Kosovo against government’s decision to ban students from covering their heads with scarves in public schools. They assembled in the capital from all over the country and urged the government to lift this discrimination against Muslims. This is ironical as 90% of population in Kosovo is Muslim and the government has forced this form of secularism after the nation was declared independent in 2008 from Serbia.

After a polish soldier was killed in Afghanistan, Poland expressed its desire to go out of the country. Poland’s defence Minister Bordan Klich has called for the withdrawal of polish troops from Afghanistan before 2013. He has demanded that Afghan forces themselves should bear the responsibility of controlling their country. The local forces should assume control of the southeastern province of Ghazni in Afghanistan, currently under the control of polish forces. His message is clear a...

Iranian National Paralympics Goal-ball Team beat host team Britain at Sheffield World Cup, 9-1, marking and celebrating their 4th consecutive victory. Head of Public Relations of the Iranian Visually Impaired Sports Federation, Bahareh Abestan, provided the news. Before their game against the host team, the Iranian champions had beaten the German National Team 13-3. Belgium and China had earlier lost to the strong Iranian team. The Iranian Goal-ball Team is scheduled to face the US National...

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia unveiled Saudi Arabia’s first car, which was manufactured by engineers at King Saud University (KSU) in Riyadh. The car is named Ghazal 1. The car is designed to match the climate of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries. KSU President Abdullah Al-Othman informed that this was a national strategic product. KSU holds its patent rights and intellectual property rights. Professor Said Darwish of KSU’s industrial engineering department ...