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The Print
17 hours ago
- Politics
- The Print
Pakistan's coldness to Iran shows idea of Ummah is poetic illusion
There is a possibility that Asim Munir will do what Pakistan has often done in such moments—remain silent, walking the tightrope between pragmatism and posturing, quietly leaving behind the cause of the Ummah and the idea of Islamic brotherhood. Because let's be honest, the same country that loudly invokes Muslim unity on Kashmir or Palestine suddenly goes quiet when it comes to Iran or Uyghur Muslims in China. When realpolitik knocks, slogans about Ummah often step aside. For a country that never misses a chance to claim it's the guardian of the Ummah (global Muslim community), Pakistan's silence right now is deafening. As Israel pounds Iran, where is the self-declared sword of Islamic brotherhood? Their army chief is on a five-day charm offensive in Washington — shaking hands, posing for cameras, sharing polite smiles with the same superpower arming Israel to the teeth. Maybe even betraying the Ummah by quietly playing a crucial role for the Israel-West alliance. Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff and effectively the most powerful man in the country, is currently on a five-day official visit to the United States. The visit aims to strengthen military and strategic ties between Islamabad and Washington. But let's not kid ourselves—timing is everything. With tensions flaring in the Middle East, particularly between Iran and Israel, speculation is running wild. Is Pakistan's de facto ruler visiting Washington just to exchange handshakes and sound bites, or is something bigger at play ? Is he there to pick a side? Speaking to reporters after a high-level interaction, US President Donald Trump didn't leave much to the imagination either. 'We spoke about the Iran-Israel issue. Pakistan understands Iran better than us — they're a key player in regional peace,' he said . And just like that, Pakistan's position is no longer neutral geography. What about Ummah? During the recent India-Pakistan conflict, Turkey sided with Pakistan, Iran offered to mediate, while Saudi Arabia sent its Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Adel Al-Jubeir, to both Islamabad and New Delhi. Iran, in fact, was the first country to recognise Pakistan after its creation. And when Pakistan conducted its underground nuclear tests in 1998 and faced immediate Western sanctions, it didn't stand alone. The response from the Islamic world was swift and clear. Within days, envoys from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman, Qatar — even Iran — landed in Islamabad to offer not just words, but real support, economic and moral. All in the name of shared faith and the pride of a Muslim nation asserting its sovereignty. But now, as Iran faces attacks and uncertainty, Pakistan's stance feels unusually cold. Pakistani officials quickly clarified that they never promised nuclear support to Iran. It has sealed its borders with Iran indefinitely and shut its airspace. So naturally, questions will be raised. What is left of the idea of Muslim unity worldwide? All the talk of Ummah – was it just a sermon for Friday prayers and headlines? All that chest-thumping about Islamic unity — does it dissolve every time there's a price to pay, and only valid when Pakistan is the one asking for support? Also read: Asim Munir is the first Punjabi general to attack India. It's sociologically important Pakistan's game plan Anyone with even the slightest grasp of geopolitics can see through the game. Pakistan's elite have long used Islam and the idea of Ummah not as a sacred bond, but as a convenient tool — to serve their own interests, to freeload off the goodwill of Muslim nations, to gather diplomatic sympathy when needed and at the same time, to fuel radicalisation that ruins innocent lives across borders. The irony reaches a whole new level when they try to pose as the voice of Indian Muslims — invoking shared faith as if it's a political strategy, not a matter of conscience. This is not solidarity; it is opportunism wrapped in religious rhetoric. The truth is, Pakistan couldn't even accept the Muslims who migrated there and chose it as their homeland. To this day, they are called 'Muhajir (outsiders)' in a country they helped build. And while the vast majority of Indian Muslims have rejected Pakistan's interference—including conservative leaders like Asaduddin Owaisi—there are still some who, in the name of Ummah, hold on to the illusion. They need to open their eyes to the hypocrisy. The idea of Ummah may sound poetic, but reality is far more grounded. Nations are defined by borders, by policies, by sovereignty. Your future lies with the country you belong to, not with some imagined brotherhood across the border. No fantasy of religious unity can protect you from geopolitical truth. The sooner that's accepted, the better it is for everyone. Amana Begam Ansari is a columnist, writer, and TV news panellist. She runs a weekly YouTube show called 'India This Week by Amana and Khalid'. She tweets @Amana_Ansari. Views are personal. (Edited by Zoya Bhatti)
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Taiwan envoy urges congressional action, warns of rising China threat after meeting lawmakers
Taiwan's top envoy to the U.S. urged the Senate to ease tax burdens between the two countries and asked Congress to fast-track foreign military sales, following a closed-door lunch Wednesday with the House. Ambassador Alexander Tah-Ray Yui, Taipei's top representative in Washington, told Fox News Digital that he is encouraged that U.S. leaders recognize the urgent existential threat China poses, but emphasized the need to get weapons into the hands of the Taiwanese military more quickly and to address issues impeding two-way investment. "We appreciate the United States prioritizing Taiwan and helping us strengthen our defense capabilities," Yui said. "We're cheering on more military commitments to the states and [a] joint effort to speed up the delivery of the products that we bought." Yui called on the Senate to advance a stalled double taxation agreement, which has already cleared the House. Robert Maginnis: 9 Signs Beijing's Taiwan Invasion May Be Imminent "That's an important incentive for Taiwanese companies to come to the United States and invest – but also vice versa for U.S. companies to go to Taiwan," he said. "We are the only one of the large trading partners without this treatment, which is worrying for the whole country right now." Read On The Fox News App By a vote of 423 to 1, the House last Congress passed the United States-Taiwan Expedited Double-Tax Relief Act, legislation that prevents double taxation on cross-border investments. The ambassador also offered a sobering assessment of China's increasingly belligerent posture in the Taiwan Strait and across the Indo-Pacific. "We are concerned," Yui said. "The [People's Liberation] Army and Navy are increasing their activities around Taiwan, harassing our territorial waters and airspace. These provocations are constant." While emphasizing that "we don't want war," he noted that the U.S. and regional partners have begun ramping up their own defenses, recognizing the threat. 'Coming For Us': Expert Sounds Alarm On Ccp's Mission To 'Kill Americans' After Fbi Makes Shocking Arrests Rep. August Pfluger, who chairs the influential RSC, told Fox News Digital that the meeting was a show of solidarity with Taiwan's democratic government and a rebuke of China's authoritarian policies. "China is an existential threat to Taiwan," said Pfluger, a Texas Republican. "The difference between mainland China and Taiwan is how they treat human life. Taiwan values openness. China suppresses free speech, targets groups like the Uyghur Muslims – it's deeply concerning." The lunch meeting, attended by dozens of House Republicans, comes amid rising tensions in the region – but just as President Donald Trump announced a deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping to ease the trade war. While Pfluger did not commit to further supplemental aid, he said he supports efforts by both nations to strengthen military readiness, including Taiwan's move to increase defense spending to 3% of GDP. "It stands to reason that Taiwan increasing their own internal spending on defense, as well as the U.S. recapitalizing our Navy and Air and Space Forces, is vitally important," he said. Asked what message Congress wants to send to the Taiwanese people, Pfluger was unequivocal: "We stand by them – as an ally, as a trading partner, as a democracy facing tyranny just next door." The conversation came at a time when U.S. military officials are warning China is readying for battle in the Indo-Pacific in an effort to "dominate" the region. "Beijing is preparing for war in the Indo-Pacific as part of its broader strategy to dominate that region and then the world," Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress this week. He added that such an outcome could put the U.S. economy and its supply chains in a choke hold. "China is undertaking a historic military buildup and actively rehearsing for an invasion of Taiwan," he said. "These aggressive maneuvers are not routine exercises, they are rehearsals for a forced unification," Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, added in his own testimony. Taiwan has recently renewed an effort to purge its ranks of Chinese sympathizers, indicting four people on Tuesday suspected of spying for China that had infiltrated the presidential office. Two Chinese aircraft carriers spotted conducting operations in the Pacific demonstrated the country's "expansionist" aims, Taiwan Defense Minister Wellington Koo said Wednesday. "Crossing from the first island chain into the second island chain sends a definite political message and their expansionist nature can be seen," he told reporters in Taipei. The first island chain refers to the region from Japan to Taiwan and the Philippines to Borneo and the second island chain spreads farther into the Pacific, toward the U.S. territory of article source: Taiwan envoy urges congressional action, warns of rising China threat after meeting lawmakers
7NEWS
07-06-2025
- 7NEWS
Why do we obsess over serial killers but tune out war crimes?
It is often said that an average person unknowingly walks past 36 murderers in their lifetime — a chilling statistic that fuels Reddit threads, true crime podcasts, and Netflix documentaries. From the likes of Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer, society has developed a near-obsessive fascination with serial killers. But while these individual criminals captivate millions, mass atrocities and war crimes — such as Israel's devastating war in Gaza, the civil war in Syria, the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya in Myanmar, the mass internment of Uyghur Muslims in China, or the ongoing violence in Sudan's Darfur region — often receive far less emotional engagement from the public. So why does a single killer enthrall us more than state-sanctioned violence that claims thousands of lives? University of Sydney criminologist Helen Easton the says the answer lies in cultural proximity and perceived relatability, not just of the killer but of the victims too. 'Part of our culture' 'We tend to be fascinated by serial killers who are part of our culture,' Easton told It feels close to home because victims of serial killings are people who live in the same cities and cultures as us. 'There's this idea of proximity, they feel close to us. They might look like us, live where we live, or share our language.' Easton said victims of serial killers — particularly when perceived as 'random' or middle-class — generate public empathy. In contrast, victims of war crimes in distant or less culturally familiar regions often do not. 'There's a subconscious way we categorise people's value. In the case of the Rwandan genocide or violence in parts of Africa, there's often a language and cultural barrier that distances us,' she said. Easton said with Palestine and Israel, the engagement is higher because of Israel's connection with the western world and strong ties with the US but, even then, it lacks the sense of sensationalised focus we see with serial killers. Even fewer people know or are interested in learning about what's going on in Sudan. But serial killers such as Bundy and Dahmer — whose crimes sprees rocked suburban America in the 1970s — continue to fascinate even years after their deaths and captivate the public through documentaries, books, and movies. Bundy kidnapped, raped and killed dozens of young females — many of them students he abducted from their homes., college campuses or from public places by pretending he needed help — across Washington, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Utah and Florida from 1974 to 1978. Serial killer and sex offender Dahmer — known as the Milwaukee Cannibal — killed and dismembered 17 young males from 1978 to 1991, with many of his horrendous crimes taking place inside his suburban home. The enduring interest in both those cases compares with UK serial killer Steve Wright, whose five victims in 2006 were sex workers. Easton's own research into Wright, who was convicted in 2008, underscores this selective attention — saying in many cases, it is the worth of the victim rather than the brutality of the crimes that shapes public interest. 'He fits the definition of a serial killer but there was no morbid fascination,' Easton said. 'That tells us something, we care about who the victim is. Prostituted women are seen as vulnerable and society often blames them for their victimisation.' This phenomenon also extends to how justice is pursued. Serial killers, who often lack social or political power, are easier targets for legal accountability. War criminals, on the other hand, are frequently shielded by political and economic interests. 'Serial killers tend not to be powerful people,' Easton explains. 'War criminals often are, and that structural power protects them. While a serial killer may have power over their victims, they don't have power in the broader sociopolitical system.' Psychological fatigue is also something to consider, Easton says. The scale and horror of genocide and war can be emotionally overwhelming, causing many people to disengage. In contrast, serial killers offer narratives that are both terrifying and digestible — and sometimes hit close to home. 'We get fatigued hearing about war and genocide, it's so horrific that I think that we can't grasp it,' Easton said. 'Serial killers are close to us, they're culturally similar to us, physically, perhaps in the same countries, but they're also distant enough from us for us to be interested in them. The chance of being killed by a serial killer is very low.' Despite the disturbing nature of serial killings, many reports on them are packaged for entertainment — from bingeable documentaries to Halloween costumes. Meanwhile, ongoing conflicts involving mass suffering are frequently reduced to headlines or statistics or buried in global news cycles. These media trends reveal deeper truths about our collective empathy and its limitations.
NDTV
23-05-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Harvard University's 'Links' To China, Iran Triggers US National Security Concerns
Washington DC: As the US government's crackdown on Harvard University intensifies, links to China and Iran have emerged, raising national security concerns in the United States. The premier university is being investigated by the House Select Committee on China as well as the House Committee on Education and Workforce for its links to groups affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party and research groups being aided by Iran. Harvard University is facing charges of partnering with foreign adversaries and collaborating with entities implicated in human rights abuses. The charges are grave. A letter by has been sent by the House committees to Harvard University and its President Alan Garber seeking transparency and accountability over its "partnerships and activities that raise serious national security and ethical concerns". CHINA AND IRAN LINKS Some of the concerns listed in the letter include: Harvard University's collaboration with Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps or XPCC, wherein the Ivy league university would "train and prepare" members of the XPCC - a US-sanctioned paramilitary group that "plays a central role in the Chinese Communist Party's genocide of Uyghur Muslims". Harvard hosted the XPCC at least four times after the US government had sanctioned the paramilitary group over its "genocide against Uyghurs". Harvard University's research wing, funded by the US Department of Defence, forging partnerships with "Chinese military-linked universities, including Tsinghua, Zhejiang, and Huazhong Universities" without consent of the US government. The ongoing joint investigation has revealed that "China's Tsinghua University actively conducts defense research for China's People's Liberation Army and has been implicated in cyber-attacks against the United States." It also found that Zhejiang University has been involved in "economic and cyber espionage" against the US, while Huazhong University, with which Harvard worked on projects based on artificial intelligence, microelectronics, and quantum science, has close ties to China's PLA. Harvard University's collaborations with "Iranian-government-funded researchers" working directly with Tehran. This includes projects "financed by the Iranian National Science Foundation", whose primary focus is on funding scientific research and development across various fields, including nuclear technology. Harvard University's tie-ups with "organ transplantation research involving China-based collaborators". This comes amid "mounting evidence of the Chinese Communist Party's forced organ harvesting practices". WHAT THE INVESTIGATING TEAM SAID In the letter to Harvard President, House Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar wrote, "Harvard trained members of a sanctioned Chinese paramilitary group responsible for genocide, and its researchers partnered with Chinese military universities on DoD-funded research and worked with researchers funded by the Iranian regime." "These are not isolated incidents - they represent a disturbing pattern that puts U.S. national security at risk. The Select Committee's investigation will deliver answers, expose the truth, and hold Harvard accountable to the American people," the Republican Congressman added. Tim Walburg, Chairperson of the House Committee on Education and Workforce, wrote, "No American university or college should be assisting the Chinese Communist Party in expanding its influence, oppressing American citizens, or undermining US national security. Unfortunately, we have found several instances in which Harvard University aided and even collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party – including helping Chinese researchers on military projects funded by the Iranian government. This is unacceptable and Harvard President Garber needs to provide answers to Congress for this colossal failure." Harvard University has been given till June 2, 2025 to submit all internal documents, communications, and testimonies from Harvard officials who have been made part of the investigation. ACTIONS BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY The US Department of Homeland Security has also stepped in, stopping the enrollment of foreign students and student exchange programmes at Harvard University due to its "pro-terrorist conduct". A statement by the Department of Homeland Security said, "Harvard is being held accountable for collaboration with the CCP, fostering violence, antisemitism, and pro-terrorist conduct from students on its campus." It further stated that "Harvard's leadership has created an unsafe campus environment by permitting anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators to harass and physically assault individuals, including many Jewish students, and otherwise obstruct its once-venerable learning environment." The US Government is "holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus," said Secretary Kristi Noem. WHAT HARVARD UNIVERSITY SAID Meanwhile, Harvard University has called the US Government's move to ban foreign students as "unlawful". In a statement, Harvard spokesperson Jason Newton said, "We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard's ability to host international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the University - and this nation - immeasurably. We are working quickly to provide guidance and support to members of our community. This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard's academic and research mission." The Ivy league university however, has not said anything about the charges it faces about its links to China, its military, the Iranian government, and what the Homeland Security labelled "pro-terrorist conduct".
Epoch Times
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Epoch Times
One of Seven: Sen. Cotton Highlights China's Calculated Approach to Religious Persecution
Commentary Sen. Tom Cotton's (R-Ark.) latest book, 'Seven Things You Can't Say About China,' rips back the curtain on the Chinese Communist Party's persistent influence and ongoing efforts to suppress political, economic, and social freedoms. While much of the global conversation surrounding China focuses on trade and military expansion, a critical and often overlooked aspect of Beijing's authoritarianism is its systematic persecution of religious groups. China's efforts are no longer confined to traditional methods of censorship and intimidation; it has expanded into a sophisticated network of surveillance technology and economic coercion, aiding its efforts to silence dissent both at home and abroad. A State-Controlled Faith: China's War on Religious Freedom China does not abide religious independence. Instead, it allows for only For Christians, the control is In regions like Xinjiang, the persecution is even more extreme. Uyghur Muslims face mass detentions, forced labor, and ideological indoctrination, all aimed at These attacks are particularly disheartening when we consider that, in a country of 1.4 billion people, fewer than 25 percent adhere to any religion. Technology as a Weapon of Suppression China is perfecting its persecution of religious groups. No longer simply about physical oppression, it now harnesses the world's most advanced Related Stories 5/22/2025 5/22/2025 The Meanwhile, digital censorship ensures that religious discourse remains firmly under state control. Religious websites, online sermons, and digital faith communities must receive government approval to exist. Chinese authorities routinely shut down platforms that distribute religious materials, ensuring that spiritual teachings remain inaccessible outside of state-sanctioned institutions. Furthermore, The Economic Side of Religious Persecution China's war on faith is firmly nested in its global economic strategy. Forced labor involving religious minorities—particularly Uyghurs—has created an Beyond forced labor, China has leveraged economic dependency to Even in the United States and other Western countries, China exploits economic retaliations to silence dissent. Corporations that criticize Beijing's human rights record frequently face trade restrictions or are blocked from the Chinese market. What Comes Next? While the United States has responded with Internationally, China's export of surveillance technology to authoritarian regimes raises deeper concerns. Many governments have purchased Chinese facial recognition systems, signaling a growing trend where The Future of Religious Freedom in China Under Xi Jinping's leadership, China's religious persecution has evolved into a multi-dimensional strategy, combining state control, economic leverage, and technological suppression to dismantle independent faith communities. The question now is whether Western nations will move beyond rhetoric to take tangible steps in response. Economic policy, diplomatic alliances, and counter-surveillance measures will determine whether Beijing's war on religious freedom continues unchallenged—or whether global pressure forces a reckoning. For now, Cotton's book highlights an uncomfortable truth: China's human rights abuses are not isolated incidents—they are a calculated strategy designed to reshape global governance. And unless the world takes action, the consequences will extend far beyond China's borders. Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
