Latest news with #Hassan
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Tanzanian politician's lawyers ask UN to declare his detention arbitrary
By Aaron Ross NAIROBI (Reuters) -Lawyers for Tanzania's jailed opposition leader Tundu Lissu filed a complaint on Friday to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in a bid to ramp up international pressure for his release. Lissu, chairman of Tanzania's main opposition party and runner-up in the 2020 presidential election, was arrested last month and charged with treason, a capital offence, over comments he is alleged to have made calling on supporters to prevent national elections in October from going ahead. Tanzania's government spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. While President Samia Suluhu Hassan has won plaudits for easing political repression, she has faced questions about unexplained abductions of government critics in recent months. Hassan, who will stand for re-election in October, has said her government respects human rights and ordered an investigation into the reported abductions. Lissu's international lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, said the confidential complaint to the U.N. working group, which issues opinions but has no enforcement power, was part of a wider pressure campaign. The European Parliament this month adopted a resolution denouncing Lissu's arrest as politically motivated, and Amsterdam said he would petition the U.S. State Department to impose sanctions. "Right down to prosecutors, judges, police - all the people that are involved in this false show trial had better be aware that they should protect their U.S. assets," Amsterdam told Reuters. In response to the European Parliament resolution, Tanzania's foreign ministry said outside criticisms about the case were based on "incomplete or partisan information". The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Lissu, who was shot 16 times in a 2017 attack for which no one has ever been charged, will appear in court on Monday. Before he appeared in court last week, authorities detained a Kenyan and a Ugandan rights activist who had come to attend the hearing. They were abandoned several days later near the borders of their home countries, and the Kenyan activist, Boniface Mwangi, said both were badly tortured while in custody. Tanzanian officials have not responded to requests for comment about the allegation. Hassan has warned outsiders against "invading and interfering in our affairs".
Reuters
a day ago
- General
- Reuters
Tanzanian politician's lawyers ask UN to declare his detention arbitrary
NAIROBI, May 30 (Reuters) - Lawyers for Tanzania's jailed opposition leader Tundu Lissu filed a complaint on Friday to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in a bid to ramp up international pressure for his release. Lissu, chairman of Tanzania's main opposition party and runner-up in the 2020 presidential election, was arrested last month and charged with treason, a capital offence, over comments he is alleged to have made calling on supporters to prevent national elections in October from going ahead. Tanzania's government spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. While President Samia Suluhu Hassan has won plaudits for easing political repression, she has faced questions about unexplained abductions of government critics in recent months. Hassan, who will stand for re-election in October, has said her government respects human rights and ordered an investigation into the reported abductions. Lissu's international lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, said the confidential complaint to the U.N. working group, which issues opinions but has no enforcement power, was part of a wider pressure campaign. The European Parliament this month adopted a resolution denouncing Lissu's arrest as politically motivated, and Amsterdam said he would petition the U.S. State Department to impose sanctions. "Right down to prosecutors, judges, police - all the people that are involved in this false show trial had better be aware that they should protect their U.S. assets," Amsterdam told Reuters. In response to the European Parliament resolution, Tanzania's foreign ministry said outside criticisms about the case were based on "incomplete or partisan information". The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Lissu, who was shot 16 times in a 2017 attack for which no one has ever been charged, will appear in court on Monday. Before he appeared in court last week, authorities detained a Kenyan and a Ugandan rights activist who had come to attend the hearing. They were abandoned several days later near the borders of their home countries, and the Kenyan activist, Boniface Mwangi, said both were badly tortured while in custody. Tanzanian officials have not responded to requests for comment about the allegation. Hassan has warned outsiders against "invading and interfering in our affairs".
The Hindu
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Vedike burns actor Kamal Hassan in an effigy
Strongly condemning the recent controversial statement made by actor Kamal Hassan about Kannada language, the members of Karnataka Rakshana Vedike staged a protest burning effigy and posters of the actor in Kalaburagi city on Friday. Mr. Hassan's recent statement claiming 'Kannada was originated from Tamil' during a promotional event for his upcoming movie 'Thug Life' has sparked widespread outrage among pro-Kannada organisations. The Vedike district president Anand Doddamani said that the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) has already banned the release of Mr. Hassan's upcoming movie 'Thug life' in Karnataka, he also urged the film distributors and theatre owners to ensure that the movie is not screened in any theatre across Karnataka.
Sinar Daily
2 days ago
- Politics
- Sinar Daily
Greta Thunberg to visit Gaza with activists
The trip is organised by the Freedom Flotilla, a coalition of groups opposed to the blockade on humanitarian aid for Gaza that Israel imposed on March 2 and has only recently begun lifting. 30 May 2025 10:28am Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg stages a pro-democracy rally to denounce "authoritarianism" in Georgia and neighbouring Azerbaijan, where the United Nations Climate Change Conference is taking place, in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi on Nov 11, 2024. - (Photo by GIORGI ARJEVANIDZE / AFP) PARIS - Climate campaigner Greta Thunberg and other activists will set sail Sunday for Gaza on a humanitarian ship aimed at protesting Israel's war on the territory, a French-Palestinian lawmaker said. The trip is organised by the Freedom Flotilla, a coalition of groups opposed to the blockade on humanitarian aid for Gaza that Israel imposed on March 2 and has only recently begun lifting. Rima Hassan, a European Parliament member also taking part in the trip, said the operation had "several aims: to condemn the humanitarian blockade and ongoing genocide, the impunity granted to the state of Israel and raise international awareness." Humanitarian aid wait destined to Gaza wait at the Kerem Shalom crossing between southern Israel and the Gaza Strip, on May 29, 2025. - (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) Hassan, an outspoken figure for French left-wing party LFI, has caused controversy in the past with her statements on the Middle East. She was due to visit the occupied Palestinian territories in February with a European Parliament delegation, but said she was refused entry to Israel. Thunberg, who rose to fame organising teen climate protests in her native Sweden, was due to travel to Gaza on a Freedom Flotilla Coalition ship earlier this month, but it was damaged en route. Activists said they suspected an Israeli drone strike was responsible. Displaced Palestinians carrying relief supplies return from an aid distribution centre in the central Gaza Strip on May 29, 2025. - (Photo by EYAD BABA / AFP) "To guarantee our security, and also the success of our mission, we need maximum mobilisation by the public for this initiative," Hassan said on social media. Aid has begun trickling back into Gaza in recent days, but humanitarian groups warn the war-ravaged territory is facing mass starvation. The White House said Thursday Israel had "signed off" on a new Gaza ceasefire proposal by US President Donald Trump, but Palestinian militant group Hamas said it could not accept the deal. - AFP More Like This
Barnama
2 days ago
- Health
- Barnama
Acupunturist Sharing Wonders Of Islamic Calligraphy With Book Lovers
KUALA LUMPUR, May 30 (Bernama) -- An acupuncturist and Muslim revert from China is intent on introducing Islamic calligraphy (khat) to the public as a medium for spiritual outreach and emotional healing. Now residing in Malaysia, Dr Hassan Bai, 57, shared with Bernama that while in university, he was drawn to the art of Chinese traditional painting. "…later I taught myself Arabic calligraphy through YouTube and Facebook, and practised daily," he said when met recently at his MUHA International booth at the Kuala Lumpur International Books Festival (KLIBF), the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur. He said khat could not be separated from a deep appreciation of the meanings of Quranic verses, adding that to produce accurate and respectful writings, one must have both knowledge and a profound understanding of the verses. "We will be more careful when we understand the meaning of the verses. There is no room for mistakes. You must be serious and patient when writing. This isn't ordinary writing but God's words," he said, adding that every stroke of ink is a form of spiritual reflection. Hassan's artworks have found homes across the world in countries such as Australia, Europe, and several in Southeast Asia, including Brunei and Singapore, with buyers coming from diverse religious and ethnic backgrounds. "I have buyers from Estonia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. This art is for everyone who appreciates beauty and meaning," he said, adding that the human touch remains valuable despite technology opening possibilities for digital printing. "Printed calligraphy might cost RM10, but handwritten pieces can go for RM100 or even RM1,000 because each work is unique. This is the result of the heart and hand of a human," Hassan said, drawing on his 12 years of experience in calligraphy.
