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Indian Express
5 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘You don't need a separate nomenclature': Supreme Court rejects plea challenging declaration of ISIS as terrorist outfit
The Supreme Court Tuesday rejected 2002 Mumbai blasts accused Saquib Nachan's plea challenging the central notifications classifying the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as a terrorist organisation under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), 1967. The notifications dated February 16, 2015, and June 19, 2018, declared Islamic State/Islamic State of Iraq and Levant/Islamic State of Iraq and Syria/Daish/Islamic State in Khorasan Province/ISIS Wilayat Khorasan/Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham-Khorasan, and all its manifestation as 'terrorist organisation' under the anti-terror law. Saquib Nachan had contended that it was violative of his Article 25 rights, and that the expressions Caliphate and Jihad have been wrongly read to introduce the ban by equating them with terrorism. Saquib Nachan was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in December 2023 for his alleged role in promoting terrorist activities linked to ISIS. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi disposed of the matter, saying it would be more appropriate for those aggrieved to seek bail before the appropriate forum rather than contest the notifications. 'It seems to us that instead of bringing challenge to the impugned notifications, the remedy for the petitioner, or for his son, lies in approaching the appropriate forum and make out a case that the activities undertaken by them do not fall within the offending clauses of UAPA and/or that for any other valid reason, they are entitled to be released on bail,' said the bench. 'We have no reason to doubt that the court of competent jurisdiction will earnestly consider such submissions with reference to prayer for bail and/or any other relief that may be claimed by the petitioner or his son in the pending case(s),' the bench added. Senior Advocate Mukta Gupta, who was appointed amicus curiae in the case, said that according to the petitioner, his son was arrested merely based on a premise, and he too was arrested after he filed the present petition. Saquib Nachan, who was lodged in the Tihar jail, passed away at a private hospital in Delhi on June 28, 2025, following a brain haemorrhage. Gupta contended that while the UAPA provides for a mechanism to declare an organisation as an unlawful association, there is no definition of a terrorist organisation. But Justice Kant said any organisation indulging in activities that amount to a terrorist act will be considered a terrorist organisation. 'You don't need a separate nomenclature for that.' On the argument regarding jihad and caliphate, Justice Bagchi said the caliphate is defined as the Kingdom of Allah in the Quran. But when the notification uses the word, it is in relation to terrorist activity and therefore, it has to be read in the context of terrorist activity.
Edmonton Journal
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Edmonton Journal
Quebec woman pleads guilty to joining ISIL, sentenced to one day in custody
MONTREAL — A Quebec woman who travelled to Syria to join the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and marry one of its fighters, has pleaded guilty to one count of participating in the activities of a terrorist group. Article content A Quebec court judge agreed to a joint submission from the federal Crown and lawyers for Oumaima Chouay — she will serve one day in custody in addition to the 110 days she spent in pretrial detention, and be on probation for three years. As part of her guilty plea, three other terror-related charges were stayed. Article content Article content Article content Federal prosecutors say Chouay is the first person convicted in Canada for providing support to a terror group by marrying a fighter. Article content Article content The Public Prosecution Service of Canada said independent experts who examined Chouay, 29, over the past 30 months concluded that her risk of recidivism and her dangerousness to society are very low. The RCMP share that assessment. Article content 'The recommended sentence here takes into consideration the early, ongoing, demonstrated and independently evaluated steps Ms. Chouay has taken to demonstrate remorse, take responsibility, commit to fundamental change and a rejection of extremist ideology,' George Dolhai, director of public prosecutions, said in a statement. Article content 'This addresses the ultimate goal of protecting the community.' Article content Chouay admitted to joining the Islamic State, marrying a fighter and having two children with him to be raised under ISIL doctrine. She is not suspected of having participated in combat or terrorist activities. Article content Article content Chouay was charged after being repatriated to Canada from a detention camp in Syria in October 2022. She was granted bail in January 2023 under strict conditions, and authorities say she has attended depolarization therapy and will continue to do so. Article content Article content The RCMP investigation began several years earlier in 2014, when she left Canada as a teenager for Turkey before crossing into Syria. Article content '(She) knew that by joining the Islamic State, she would be participating in the activities of this terrorist group,' court documents say. Article content '(She) knew, at the time of joining the Islamic State, the various roles of women within this terrorist group, including assistance with recruitment on social media, the creation and distribution of propaganda, as well as a role in supporting fighters and founding a family raised in accordance with the values of the Islamic State.'
The Print
28-06-2025
- Politics
- The Print
36 Bangladeshis involved in allegedly setting up ISIL-inspired terror module nabbed in Malaysia
The statement added, 'Another 15 individuals have been issued deportation orders while 16 individuals are being further investigated regarding their involvement in this militant movement.' 'The planned security operation which began on 24 April 2025 was carried out in three phases of arrests around Selangor and Johor. In the operation, five of them were identified as being involved under Chapter VIA of the Penal Code (offences relating to terrorism) and have already been charged in the Shah Alam and Johor Bahru Section Courts,' Malaysia's Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said in a statement. New Delhi: Malaysian authorities Friday announced the arrests of 36 Bangladeshi citizens this week after they were 'identified' as being involved in a 'radical militant movement' based on extremist beliefs and 'terrorist ideology'. The group of individuals brought to Malaysia 'extremist' beliefs centred on the teachings of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), and created recruitment cells within the community for the purposes of 'indoctrinating radical ideas, raising funds for terrorist activities and to overthrow the legitimate government in their home country'. 'I would like to emphasise that Malaysia will not be a haven, let alone a subversive elemental battlefield for any foreign extremist movement,' Ismail declared in his statement. The Malaysian home minister added the country will 'not tolerate' any elements that threaten national security. Since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government last August in Bangladesh, the South Asian nation has seen an upsurge in extremist movements. Earlier this year, banned extremist group Hizb ut-Tahrir (HuT) took out a rally called March for Khilafat in Dhaka, calling for the establishment of an Islamic caliphate. The rally witnessed violence. The group was banned by the Hasina government in 2009. In October 2024, reports emerged from Bangladesh of elite Catholic missionary schools in Dhaka carrying out processions in favour of the establishment of a caliphate in the country. The growth of extremist ideology in Bangladesh has worried India, with the Ministry of External Affairs consistently calling on the interim government led by Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus to 'protect Hindus, their properties and religious institutions'. The latest India statement on the matter came Thursday after reports emerged of the destruction of a Durga temple in Dhaka. There have been other incidents since the fall of Hasina government that have impacted the minorities in Bangladesh. Also Read: Jaishankar says attacks on minorities in Bangladesh 'impact' Indian thinking, urges clarity in ties 'Firm and swift action' In the statement on the arrest of 36 Bangladeshis Friday, Ismail also said, 'I reiterate my assurance that the Ministry of Home Affairs will continue to strengthen intelligence capabilities and enforcement, as well as collaborate with domestic and foreign security agencies to ensure that Malaysia remains peaceful, stable and free from the threat of terrorism.' The Malaysian home minister added, 'Any attempt to turn Malaysia into a base of militant operations or transit centre for extremist movements will be dealt with firm, swift and effective action.' At the same time as concerns heighten over the growth of extremist elements in Bangladesh, the interim government has sought to positively reset ties with Pakistan. Most recently, a trilateral meeting between officials from Dhaka, Islamabad and Beijing was held in the Chinese city of Kunming. (Edited by Ajeet Tiwari) Also Read: Hindu leader's killing in Bangladesh prompts stinging rebuke from India on 'systemic persecution'
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Gov. DeSantis deletes ‘LGBTQ and Hispanic communities' from Pulse anniversary statement
Gov. Ron DeSantis' annual statement on the Pulse shooting anniversary released Thursday makes no mention of the LGBTQ and Hispanic communities — the two groups most devastated by the massacre that left 49 dead. DeSantis mentioned those communities last year and in other previous statements recognizing the shooting on June 12, 2016. Those anniversary statements called it a 'a horrific act of terrorism against the LGBTQ and Hispanic communities.' In his first year in office, however, the two-term governor faced blowback when an initial statement also failed to note who was most impacted by the shooting. The deletion this year seems in line with efforts by both the DeSantis and Trump administrations to purge what it calls 'diversity, equity and inclusion' from the government, which has included similar deletions that reference sexual orientation and race from the National Park Service website and others. 'Gov. DeSantis' erasure of the LGBTQ+ and Latino communities today may say a lot about what kind of person he is, but it doesn't change the fact that those were the communities most directly impacted at Pulse,' said Brandon Wolf, a Pulse survivor from Orlando who serves as spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign. The memorandum from the governor's office ordering flags to be at half-staff on Thursday states, 'Nine years ago, on June 12, 2016, a shooter claiming alliance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant committed a horrific act of terrorism at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida.' Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando: Remembering the victims of June 12, 2016 Spokespersons for the governor did not respond to a request for comment. The governor's memorandum from last year, and for at least the last four years, included the reference to the terrorism 'against the LGBTQ and Hispanic communities.' Wolf said in an email that DeSantis' statement cannot rewrite what happened. 'His erasure doesn't change the fact that families have empty seats at dinner tables, friends have missing faces at birthday parties, and our communities still bear the scars,' Wolf wrote in an email. 'Today, rather than letting the governor's petty political cowardice write our story, I hope people choose to remember those stolen and impacted, reflect on the costs of violent hate, and recommit to honoring those we loved and lost with action.' DeSantis' previous removal of language citing the impact of the Pulse shooting on the LGBTQ and Hispanic communities, who made up the majority of the victims at what was Latin Night at the popular gay nightclub, led to an uproar in his first year in office in 2019. The Tampa Bay Times reported at the time that DeSantis' office prepared two proclamations to commemorate the 3-year anniversary of Pulse, one that mentioned the Hispanic and LGBTQ communities and one that didn't. DeSantis initially opted for the one that didn't, but then released a different version the next day that made reference to the community before visiting the Pulse site. 'The state of Florida will not tolerate hatred towards the LGBTQ and Hispanic communities and we will stand boldly with Orlando and the Central Florida community against terrorism and hate,' one of the drafts stated. The version that was initially released stated 'the entire state of Florida has come together to stand boldly.' DeSantis' spokeswoman at the time, Helen Ferre, blamed the mishap on a staffer, but didn't identify who it was. While DeSantis had been at the forefront of opposing 'critical race theory' and DEI, the new Trump administration has taken those efforts to the extreme in its removal of language about minorities. The park service website for Stonewall National Monument, which commemorates the birth of the gay rights movement in June 1969 and led to June being declared Pride Month, removed mention of 'transgender' people despite their being at the forefront of the historic confrontation with police. A webpage on Harriet Tubman was also altered to remove mention of 'the resistance to enslavement through escape and flight' and a prominent photo of Tubman. A Trump order also called for removal of Park Service language with 'improper' ideology and called for visitors to report any instances of language that 'inappropriately disparages Americans past or living.' The Department of Defense got into hot water earlier this year when it removed a webpage about civil rights icon Jackie Robinson's military career, with the letters 'dei' inserted into their web address. The page was later restored. But the DOD did announce this month it would change the name of a Navy ship bearing the name of assassinated LGBTQ politician Harvey Milk, who was a Navy vet, and also recommended renaming ships named after Tubman, African American Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, labor leaders Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez, women's rights suffragist Lucy Stone, and civil rights leader Medgar Evers, according to CBS News.
Miami Herald
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Why Flags Are at Half-Mast Across Florida Today
Flags are being flown at half-staff across Florida on Thursday to commemorate the ninth anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando. Governor Ron DeSantis on Wednesday instructed that flags should be flown at half-staff between sunrise and sunset the following day. He said: "Nine years ago, on June 12, 2016, a shooter claiming alliance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant committed a horrific act of terrorism at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Forty-nine people were killed and fifty-three were wounded. "As a mark of respect for the victims, their families, and the many affected by this tragedy, I hereby direct the flags of the United States and the State of Florida to be flown at half-staff at all local and state buildings, installations, and grounds throughout the State of Florida." Related Articles Ron DeSantis Says Floridians Have Right to Hit Protesters With CarsDemocrats' Chances of Flipping Florida in Governor's Race-PollsFlorida Unveils Inter-City Rail ChangesMAGA Supporters Counter Anti-ICE Protests: 'Go Back to Mexico' 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
