Miracle 518-May 8, 2020

$1 www.miraclenews.com

Volume 20 Issue 518- Ramdan 15, 1441H, May 8, 2020

BC, CANADA First Muslim Biweekly & Bilingual

THE

3 Pakistan’s Covid-19

haircuts to din10 From ner parties: B.C.

10 Council approves

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10

6

COVID-19 Surrey A Little Effort Goes A Long Way

Ibrahim: 5 Prophet Father of the Prophets

death toll doubles in Republicans urge Trump to halt The ‘new normal’ begins: Where each,

Middle East 14Which states have begun?

18 What happens if a

coronavirus vaccine?

From all our Advertisers,Writers and the Miracle Media Team Visit

Ramadan Timetable at Page 7

At Pg 6

Coronavirus Cases:

Deaths:

Recovered:

1,344,278

Last updated: May 8, 2020,06:20 GMT

3,917,999

270,740

Coronavirus Cases:

Deaths:

Recovered:

CANADA Last updated: May 8, 2020, 06:20 GMT

Coronavirus Cases:

Deaths:

Recovered:

BC;CANADA Last updated: May 8, 2020, 06:20 GMT

64,922 2,288

PM Imran says lockdown to be lifted in phases from Saturday

4,408 126

At Pg 3

28,972 1,512

‘You deserve a raise’: PM says deal reached to top up wages for essential COVID-19 workers

At Pg 6

www.worldometers.info

From haircuts to dinner parties: B.C. unveils plan for easing COVID-19 restrictions At Pg 10

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Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

o p i n i o n

Corona in Kashmir

S a symbol of cruelty, the Nazis have it all: hate, fear and fanaticism. The genocide of the Jewish people was driven by all three, but also by epidemic typhus, a disease that often follows war. This was a boon for the Nazis, who used typhus prevention as a ploy to ramp up the death toll.

“Jews were labelled disease carriers and a public health risk to justify the creation of ghettos,” one scholar writes. Typhus also led to quarantine, disinfection and “delousing baths” — code for gas chambers. In the end, the victims “were left in a diseased environment, and doomed to die”.

Today, the Hindutva project, long inspired by European fascism, borrows directly from the source.

To be Muslim in India is a rolling horror show: the state is following up on New Delhi’s pogroms with the cry of ‘corona jihad’. Whereas Muslims were being set on fire earlier in the year, they are now being assaulted with cricket bats and run out of neighbourhoods as ‘virus spreaders’. While Yogi Adityanath, the psychopathic monk that heads Uttar Pradesh, slaps Tableeghi Jamaat members with the National Security Act, fellow saffron dud Raj Thackeray goes one further. “They should be shot,” he says.

In occupied Kashmir in particular,

the coronavirus has been a blessing for the Fourth Reich. It’s been eight months since India went from occupying Kashmir to annexing it, and as many months since its people were put in cages. But after Covid-19, the Modi regime, per its fawning press, looks to be pushing its final solution.

The Modi regime looks to be pushing its final solution.

Lest it be thought that Delhi is motivated by the Kashmiris’ safety, medical infrastructure is falling apart. The Kashmir Valley has 97 ventilators for three million people, a ratio rightly remarked to be “even lower than besieged Gaza”.

Kashmiris on the way to hospital have been fired at. Videos and photographs of police brutality — of citizens lined up in chowks and beaten with lathis in Jammu city — are being circulated.

All this comes at a time when Kashmir needs access to health services more than ever. Already reeling from one of the largest mass blindings in history, its people now face a pandemic. Doctors also point to a full-blown psychological crisis, with spikes in depression, anxiety and psychotic events. Owing to the longest-running cyber shutdown in the world, low-speed internet has also meant doctors can’t download urgent medical guidance, videoconference with patients, or check scans.

When it comes to Indian oppression, however, it’s business as usual: ‘counterinsurgency operations’ continue despite corona. Where once the bodies of Kashmir’s murdered young men would be handed over to their families, they are now brought to Srinagar, sampled for DNA, and buried in secret. The occupation claims social distancing; that large funerals might spread the virus. Yet even those families that want to bury their boys quietly are told the same, because the real reason was never Covid-19.

“When we are preventing funerals, we are preventing youth from joining militants,” one police officer told a Kashmir-based journalist.

“Once he’s a militant, he will be killed. Therefore, we are actually saving lives.”

Kashmiri bodies, oppressed in life, are now stolen in death. They are also being denied a fair trial: JKLF leader Yasin Malik has been implicated in a string of 30-year-old cases, pursued at blinding speed. A judicial murder is feared and must be prevented.

Even on the other end of the spectrum, India-held Kashmir’s ex-chief ministers, detained for months, are just now being released. There can be little sympathy for the houses of Abdullah and Mufti: as career quislings that oversaw the mass rape and slaughter of their own people, their deal

with the devil in Delhi was bound to come crashing down sooner than later. One can only hope the pain they inflicted on Kashmiris is never visited on them.

In the midst of such terror, there’s little time to lose. India’s response to corona in Kashmir violates international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Modi’s annexation has also unwittingly internationalised this crisis like never before, and grounded the solution ever further in UN resolutions — advocated by world bodies, White House hopefuls in the US, and Labour leaders in Britain.

Most unprecedented of all, the report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has recommended the Human Rights Council establish a commission of inquiry into human rights violations. The COI is one of the UN’s highest-level probes, reserved for war zones and humanitarian crises like Syria and Libya. To call for its setup marks a decisive shift in international opinion, and transforms India’s ‘bilateral conflict’ into a global crisis.

Pakistan must make sure that momentum carries over to the finish line: self-determination for the Kashmiri people, and an end to this long nightmare.

Courtesy By: Asad Rahim Khan

The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting all aspects of people’s lives, business and labour community.

The measures within our COVID-19 Action Plan are an important first step and we will continue to take action to counter the impacts of COVID-19. We are committed to doing what it takes to support people throughout B.C. as we get through this together.

Delivering $1.1 billion in financial support for British Columbians: The new BC Emergency Benefit for Workers will provide a tax-free $1,000 payment to those whose ability to work has been impacted

by COVID-19. For the most upto-date information please visit: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/employment-business/covid19-financial-supports/emergencybenefit-workers.

This is on top of the federal government’s Emergency Response Benefit that will provide $2,000 per month for up to four months for eligible workers. Applications for this benefit opened April 6, 2020 and individuals can expect a payment within 10 days of applying.

You can learn more about B.C.’s financial supports here: https:// www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/ employment-business/covid-19-financial-supports#BCEBW Employment support for British Columbians: New legislative changes to the Employment Standards Act ensures

that no worker in B.C. can be laid off by their employer for following the directions of the Provincial Health Officer to self-isolate during this public health emergency.

This is retroactive and covers workers as of January 27, 2020.

You can learn more about these legislative changes here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/employment-business/ employment-standards-advice/ employment-standards/handlingdisruptions#leaves Housing and rent support: All evictions for residents are halted.

A landlord may not issue a new Notice to End Tenancy for any reason.

In exceptional cases where an eviction may be needed to protect health and safety or to prevent undue damage to the property, landlords will be able to apply to the Residential Tenancy Branch for a hearing.

A new temporary rental supplement paid directly to the landlord will help British Columbians by offering up to $500 per month for rent. For more information, please visit: www.gov.bc.ca/covid19.

Many of Canada’s banks and credit unions have frozen mortgage payments for six months for those in need.

Thank you for your comments and suggestions. They have been noted and will be considered as we continue to help people, families and businesses during this pandemic so that British Columbians are supported.

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Waan laysa lil insaniilla ma’ sa’aa That man can have nothing but what he strives for.

Muhammad Afzal Malik’s Letter respond from Office of the Minister and Deputy Premier Dear Mr. Malik: Thank you for your email addressed to the Honourable Carole James, Minister of Finance.

The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting all aspects of people’s lives, including jobs, savings and most importantly one’s own health and the health of loved ones.

Thank you for the time you took to write. For the most up-to-date information on provincial supports and services please visit www.gov. bc.ca/covid19.

This global pandemic is also affecting people, communities, businesses and non-profits across our country, and we can only tackle the crisis by working together. Our government is committed to working with our partners across B.C. and Canada to do everything we can to keep all people healthy, safe and supported.

Our government announced a $5 billion COVID-19 Action Plan to help British Columbians affected financially by the COVID-19 pandemic. Our plan builds on the Government of Canada’s plan and is focused on protecting people’s health and safety, bringing financial relief for people and businesses alongside the federal government, and building B.C.’s plan for economic recovery in partnership with the

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miraclenews@telus.net miraclenewsg@gmail.com info@miraclenews.com For information on B.C.’s Action Plan and other government resources and updates, visit: www. gov.bc.ca/covid19 To learn more about Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan, visit: https://www.canada.ca/ en/department-finance/economicresponse-plan.html For resources to help manage stress, anxiety and depression related to COVID-19, visit: https:// w w w 2 . g o v. b c . c a / a s s e t s / g o v / health-safety/covid19_stressmanagement_5_accessible.pdf Thank you again for taking the time to write.

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Middle East

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Ramdan 15, 1441H

PAKISTAN

May 8, 2020

Pakistan’s Covid-19 death toll PM Imran says lockdown to be lifted doubles in last 10 days in phases from Saturday Pakistan’s Covid-19 death toll has registered an over 100 per cent increase over the past 10 days — from April 28 till today (May 7) — while the number of cases reported by each province are also rising, data collected

by Dawn.com shows.

Since the disease emerged in the country on February 26, the highest number of deaths reported in Pakistan emerged today (May 7), with 48 fatalities being reported.

What started out as a single digit rise in the number of deaths during March, increased to double digits during the month of April.

From April 28 to May 7, 299 coronavirus deaths have been reported in the country; these account for more than 50.4 per cent of the total number of deaths till today (May 7), which stand at 591.

Despite this worrying trend, the federal government announced on Thursday that the lockdown measures imposed to curb the spread of the disease will be eased, starting Saturday. Moreover, markets will also be allowed to open for five days a week.

But while the provinces move towards easing the lockdown, the number of cases reported on a daily basis are also increasing.

From April 27 to May 6, 10,365 cases have been reported in the country, nearly one third of the total number of cases. The largest daily increase in the total number of cases was on May 6, as the tally rose by an astonishing 1,430. Health experts in the country have repeatedly warned that the vi-

rus is expected to peak in the country during the month of May. Speaking to Dawn at the end of April, Dr Sunil Dodani, head of the infectious diseases department at Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT) had said: “There has been an increase in the number of positive cases. More patients are now [also] reporting with severe illness. This pattern suggests that the next two to three weeks are crucial when the epidemic peaks.”

A day earlier, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said that countries needed to ensure they had adequate measures to control the spread of the Covid-19 respiratory disease like tracking systems and quarantine provision. ”The risk of returning to lockdown remains very real if countries do not manage the transition extremely carefully and in a phased approach,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had told a virtual briefing in Geneva.

Source: dawn.com

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday announced that the nationwide lockdown will be lifted in phases starting from Saturday (May 9).

The announcement came as Sindh and Punjab both crossed 9,000 cases on Thursday and reported their highest daily death tolls.

Punjab reported 26 deaths, the highest single-day total of any province so far, while Sindh reported 14 deaths.

The total number of deaths countrywide have reached 585, registering a 100 per cent increase over the last 10 days. “We know that we’re doing it at a time when our curve is going up [...] but it is not edging up as we were expecting,” said the prime minister in a televised address alongside his aides after a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) in Islamabad. He warned that the restrictions could be restored anytime if the outbreak worsens. Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar said six major decisions have been taken by the government: More sectors related to construction will be opened Selected OPDs will be opened to treat specific diseases and illnesses Markets will open after sehri but close at 5pm Markets will remain closed for two days per week Small markets will also be allowed to open

Violation of SOPs for mosques aggravates virus situation in KP

PESHAWAR: The brazen violation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) set for mosques led to critical situation of Covid-19 in the province, according to official reports. The reports informed provincial government that if the practice was allowed unchecked, it was likely to further exacerbate an already grim situation.

Details available with Dawn show that a presentation made to the provincial government termed the situation “critical” as cases were continued to rise alarmingly.

The presentation also contained photographic evidence of brazen

violations of SOPs for mosques during Taraweeh and Friday prayers all over the province including some of the largest mosques of the provincial capital. In the photographs, the worshippers could be seen standing shoulders to shoulder in violation of the SOPs. The document states that on April 24, nearly 650 people gathered at Jamia Masjid Qasim Ali Khan, the mosque where unofficial Ruet-i-Hilal committee headed by Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai is based. Govt asked to take prayer leaders into confidence and enforce SOPs strictly

Another mighty gathering in provincial capital took place at Jamia Masjid Umer Farooq in Hayatabad, where about 500 people turned up for Friday prayers.

The presentation, which covered the number of cases till April 26, said that provincial capital accounted for nearly 35 per cent of positive cases from all over the province. It said that the death ratio in the provincial capital was also high and stood at 8.75 per cent. It said that positive cases in the province were 14.9 per cent while the ratio of deaths stood at 34 per cent. KP’s death ratio of 5.19 per cent was the highest in the country as compared to national average of 2.1 per cent. Detailing the violations of mosques SOPs all over the province, the document noted that about 1,000 people gathered on the same Friday at Andorn Bazaar Mosque in Jamrud area of Khyber tribal district. Nearly 1,800 worshippers gathered at Teshil Bazaar Mosque Source: dawn.com

Schools to remain shut until July 15 “Earlier, we had decided to reopen our construction industry. Now we have decided to reopen more sectors related to the industry,” Umar stated, as he explained that earlier decision to give permission to bigger markets to reopen will now be expanded to cover smaller markets as well. Big shopping malls and other spaces which attract big crowds, however, would remain closed for now.

Umar said that the government deliberated opening markets after iftar but ended up deciding that markets should not open at night.“Markets will open after sehri but they will have to close at 5pm,” Umar said.

“Markets will remain closed two days a week. Our police officials need a muchneeded respite [from enforcing lockdown measures].”Umar added that OPDs in hospitals, which were shut during the lockdown, will now reopen in “selected and reserved” hospitals across the country.

Source: dawn.com

LHC moved for separate graveyards for virus victims

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Tuesday issued notices to the provincial and district governments on a petition seeking establishment of separate graveyards for people dying of coronavirus.

A citizen, Syed Husnain Haider, filed the petition, saying the patients of Covid-19 were supposed to be kept in isolation due to the fear of spread of the virus. In case any of the patients died, they were buried under strict precautionary measures in graveyards, he added.

The petitioner argued that the peo-

ple dying of the virus should be buried in separate graveyards to avoid spread of the virus. He asked the court to order the government to immediately restrain burial of coronavirus patients in public graveyards. He also sought a direction for the government authorities to establish dedicated graveyards for coronavirus victims.

Justice Shakilur Rehman heard initial contention of the petitioner and issued notices to the respondents for May 11.

Source: dawn.com

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4

Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

I n t e r n at i o n a l N e ws

Republicans urge Trump to halt Chemical leak at LG plant in India kills 11, about 1,000 ill all immigrant work visas HYDERABAD, INDIA -- A gas leak at a

GOP senators urge Trump to extend 60day ban on H-1B, other worker visas for a year, excluding agricultural workers.

President Donald Trump should further restrict employment-based immigration to the United States until the unemployment caused by the coronavirus pandemic returns to “normal levels”, a group of four Republican senators has said.

“While economic shutdowns in states and localities across the country have been necessary to reduce the spread of this pandemic, the results have been devastating for businesses and workers alike,” Senators Tom Cotton, Ted Cruz, Chuck Grassley and Josh Hawley wrote in a public letter to the president on Thursday.

President Trump issued an order on April 22 suspending most immigrant visas for 60 days but exempted guest worker programmes. The US admits about one million guest workers a year, the senators said, and should now curtail most of those permits with an exception for seasonal agricultural workers.

Trump should add guest workers to his 60day visa ban and should extend the restriction for four specific categories for up to a year or until the US employment recovers, the senators said in their letter. The categories include: • H-2B visas for non-agricultural seasonal workers, such as summer pool lifeguards.

• H-1B visas for skilled speciality and tech positions.

• Optional Practical Training extensions for international students.

• EB-5 investor visas.

“As we work toward recovery, we urge you to keep the American worker in mind and

limit the importation of unnecessary guest workers while American families and businesses get back on their feet,” the senators said in their letter.

The number of unemployed workers in the US surged more than 33 million in the seven weeks since the US outbreak began, pushing the unemployment rate to 15 percent, according to Labor Department data released on Thursday.

“There are millions of high school and college students who, if not for the coronavirus pandemic, would be walking across a graduation stage in front of their families and friends over the next few weeks,” the senators said in their letter.

“Instead of celebrating their hard work, most will be receiving their diplomas in the mail while worrying about whether they will be able to find a job in this market.”

The four senators, who represent agricultural states of Arkansas, Texas, Iowa and Missouri, called on Trump to continue to provide exemptions for seasonal agricultural guest workers who pick crops and perform other food industry tasks. They urged exemptions be available for other critical industries on a case-by-case basis.

Source: aljazeera.com

While she treated coronavirus patients, the U.S. denied this Canadian doctor a green card A New York doctor who has been treating coronavirus patients says she’s still reeling days after getting a devastating letter: Her green card application was denied.

“I’m putting my life on the line every day to do this, and it’s just blowing my mind right now that they are not appreciating it or they don’t see the value in what I’m offering to do,” Dr. Julia Iafrate told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on Tuesday. “I’m honestly beside myself. It’s like a slap in the face.”

Iafrate is an assistant professor at Columbia University Medical Center who specializes in sports medicine. But she says she wanted to volunteer to work on the front lines as coronavirus cases spiked in her city.

“Because I’m a doctor,” Iafrate said, “because that’s what I do, because I know that I can help.” Iafrate, who immigrated to the United States from Canada, says she’s lived in the U.S. for 13 years, completing a residency program at the Mayo Clinic and a sports medicine fellowship at the University of Iowa. For almost three years, she’s been working at the Columbia University Medical Center. And she’s been a team physician for the USA Ski Team and Columbia University Athletics, according to a profile on the medical center’s website.

Several days ago, Iafrate says she heard from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services that her green card application had been denied. “I was blindsided. I was flabbergasted, and so was my immigration lawyer and so was my chair of my department and everyone else involved in this case,” she said.

“They ask you to be an expert in your field ... and I am. I’ve proven that time and time again. And I was just blown away that at this time, of all times, they don’t think it’s necessary to have someone like me here.”

chemical factory owned by a South Korean company in southern India early Thursday left at least 11 people dead and about 1,000 struggling to breathe.

The chemical styrene, used to make plastic and rubber, leaked from the LG Polymers plant in the city of Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh state while workers were preparing to restart the facility after a coronavirus lockdown was eased, officials said.

Videos and photos from the area showed dozens of people, including women and children, lying unconscious in the streets, arms open wide with white froth trailing from their mouths. The scene evoked bitter memories of a major industrial disaster in 1984 that left least 4,000 people dead and another 500,000 injured, according to government figures, when methyl isocyanate leaked from a Union Carbide India pesticide plant in Bhopal in central India. Hundreds of people fled from Thursday’s gas leak, some on motorbikes and others carried in open trucks. Some who couldn’t find vehicles raced away barefooted, many with small children slung across their shoulders.

Police officers, some wearing gas masks, rushed from house to house and evacuated about 3,000 people. Struggling to breathe, many people lay on the road as passersby helped them with water.

“No one could breathe. I couldn’t see anything for some time,” Vijay Raju, a local resident, said by phone. “For a moment, I thought I would die.”

The leak was suspected to have come from large tanks left unattended because of the strict coronavirus lockdown over the past six weeks. The lockdown was eased on Monday, allowing neighbourhood shops and factories to resume activities.

“Our initial information is that workers were checking a gas storage tank when it started leaking,” said Industries Minister M. Goutham Reddy. Residents said the gas leak

began at about 3:30 a.m, when they were woken by a pungent smell. Officials said a blanket of gas spread over a radius of about 3 kilometres (1.8 miles), sickening people in at least four villages. Rescuers broke open the doors of village homes which were locked from the inside and found some people who had collapsed and transported them to hospitals.

The leak was stopped by 8 a.m., officials said. Residents were advised to cover their noses and mouths with wet masks and stay indoors. A neurotoxin, styrene gas can immobilize a person within minutes of inhalation and be deadly at high concentrations.

Police Commissioner R.K. Meena said about 100 people were hospitalized and in non-life-threatening condition.

LG Chem Ltd. is South Korea’s largest chemical company and is part of the LG Corp. conglomerate. The company said it is co-operating with Indian authorities to help residents and employees.

“The gas leakage is now under control, but the leaked gas can cause nausea and dizziness, so we are investing every effort to ensure proper treatment is provided swiftly,” LG Chem said in a statement.

It is looking into the cause of the leak but won’t know exactly until Indian authorities complete their investigation, company official Song Chun-seob said.

The Vishakhapatnam plant is a leading manufacturer of polystyrene plastic in India. It employs around 300 workers, but Song said the victims appeared mostly to be local residents.... Source ctvnews.ca

Some US firms stopped working with Huawei to develop 5G standards after US blacklisted the firm, but change may be here. The United States Department of Commerce is close to signing off on a new rule that would allow US companies to work with China’s Huawei Technologies on setting standards for next-generation 5G networks, people familiar with the matter said.

Engineers in some US technology companies stopped engaging with Huawei to develop standards after the Commerce Department blacklisted the company last year.

The listing left companies uncertain about what technology and information their employees could share with Huawei, the world’s largest telecommunications equipment maker.

That has put the US at a disadvantage, said industry and government officials. In standards-setting meetings, where protocols and technical specifications are developed that allow equipment from different compa-

gained a stronger voice as US engineers sat back in silence.

The Commerce Department placed Huawei on its “entity list” last May, citing national security concerns. The listing restricted sales of US goods and technology to the company and raised questions about how US firms could participate in organizations that establish industry standards.

After nearly a year of uncertainty, the department has drafted a new rule to address the issue, two sources told Reuters. The rule, which could still change, essentially allows US companies to participate in standards bodies where Huawei is also a member, the sources said. The draft is under final review at the Commerce Department and, if cleared, would go to other agencies for approval, the people said. It is unclear how long the full process will take or if another agency will object. “As we approach the year mark, it is very much past time that this be addressed and clarified,” said Naomi Wilson, senior director of policy for Asia at the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), which represents companies including Amazon.co Inc, Qualcomm Inc and Intel Corp.

The US government wants US companies to remain competitive with Huawei, Wilson said. “But their policies have inadvertently caused US companies to lose their seat at the table to Huawei and others on the entity list.”

Source: aljazeera.com

5G standards: Could the US soon work with Huawei to set them? nies to function together smoothly, Huawei

Asked about Iafrate, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said in a statement that it doesn’t comment on decisions related to individual cases.

“USCIS evaluates each petition, application and request on a case-by-case basis to determine if they meet all standards required under applicable laws, regulations, and policies. Agency adjudicators may request further evidence and issue subsequent denials when the petitioner provides insufficient evidence to establish eligibility based on the preponderance of the evidence standard,” the agency said. “It is incumbent upon the applicant -- not the government -- to show that the prospective beneficiary meets the requirements for eligibility under the law.”

The Trump administration has tightened immigration restrictions in recent weeks as part of the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic and warned that more restrictions could be coming as officials work to protect American jobs. Immigrant rights advocates argue that immigrants are on the front lines fighting the pandemic, and that their work is a necessary part of the country’s economy. Source ctvnews.ca

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Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

fa i t h

AbdurRahman bin Auf, may Allah be pleased with him, narrates Rasulullah spoke about Ramadan and said, “ Allah subhanahu has made the

fasting in this month an obligation (Fard) upon you; and I have made performance of prayer SUNNAH IN THIS MONTH:“anyone observes fasts, performs prayers with Iman and reckoning, he comes out of his sins like the day his mother gave him birth.”

Prophet Ibrahim: Father of the Prophets

The birth of a Great Prophet

I

brahim was born in a house of idolaters, in the kingdom of Babylon. His father Aazar was a well known idol sculptor that his people worshipped. As a young child, Ibrahim used to watch his father sculpting these idols from stones or wood.

When his father was done with them, Ibrahim would use them as toys, riding on their backs, and kicking them at times. Then after a while, he would see these same statues in the temple, and people prostrating in front of them! Ibrahim asked his father: “Why do you take these toys to the temple?” His father said: “They are statues that represent our gods. We worship them, we ask favors from them, and we offer them presents.”

Ibrahim’s mind rejected this idea, and he felt a repulsion towards the idols.

In search for the Truth

Time went by, and Ibrahim became a young man. He still could not believe that his people were worshipping the statues. He laughed whenever he saw them entering the temple, lowering their heads, silently offer-

would be total defeat. They started yelling at him and shouting: “Burn him! Burn him!

Take revenge for your gods !”

The Miracle: Allah saves Ibrahim from the fire.

be God. God is always present. Then he saw the moon rising in splendor and told them: “Could this be my Lord?” But it also set. At daybreak, he saw the sun rising and said: t “Could this be my Lord, this is bigger?” But when the sun set he said: “O my people I am free from all that you join as partners with Allah! I have turned my face towards Him Who created the heavens and the earth, and never shall I give partners to Allah.” Our Lord is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and everything. He has the power to make the stars rise and set. Ibrahim then heard Allah calling him: “O Ibrahim!”

Ibrahim said trembling: “Here I am O my Lord!” “Submit to Me! Be a Muslim!” Ibrahim fell on the ground, prostrating and crying, he said: “I submit to the Lord of the universe!” Ibrahim kept prostrating until night came again. He got up and went back to his home, in t peace, full of conviction that Allah has guided him to the Truth.

Ibrahim invites his father to Islam

ing the statues the best of their food, crying and asking forgiveness from them. He started feeling angry towards his people, who could not realize that these are only stones that could neither benefit nor harm them. They could not be gods, they have no power. God is Greater than what his people were worshipping, Most Powerful, Most Magnificent. One could not find Him sitting on a table in a temple!

One night, Ibrahim went up to the mountain, leaned against a rock, and looked up to the sky. He saw a shining star, and told his people: “Could this be my Lord?” But when it set he said: “I don’t like those that set.” The star has disappeared, it could not

A new life started for Ibrahim. His mission now was to call his people to the Truth. He would start with his father who was the closest person to him, and whom he loved so much. He said to him in the softest and kindest voice: “O father! Why do you worship that which doesn’t hear, doesn’t see, and cannot avail you in anything? O father, I have got knowledge which you have not, so follow me. I will guide you to a straight path.” His father replied angrily: “Do you reject my gods, O Ibrahim? If you don’t stop I will stone you. Get away from me before I punish you.” Ibrahim said: “Peace be on you! I will ask forgiveness of my Lord for you.”

Ibrahim confronts his people and

rejects their idols

He left his father after he lost hope to convert him to the right path, and directed his efforts towards the people of the town, but they rejected his call and threatened him. By Allah, he said, I shall plot a plan to destroy their idols. He knew that a big celebration was coming soon, where everybody would leave town for a big feast on the riverbank.

After making sure that nobody was left in town, Ibrahim went towards the temple armed with an ax. Statues of all shapes and sizes were sitting there adorned with decorations. Plates of food were offered to them, but the food was untouched. “Well, why don’t you eat? The food is getting cold.” He said to the statues, joking; then with his ax he destroyed all the statues except one, the biggest of them. He hung the ax around its neck and left.

How big was the shock when the people entered the temple! They gathered inside watching in awe their gods broken in pieces.

They wondered who might have done this?

Then they all remembered that the young Ibrahim was talking evil of their idols. They brought him to the temple and asked him: “Are you the one who has done this to our gods?” Ibrahim said: “No, this statue, the biggest of them has done it. Ask them if they can speak.” “You know well that these idols don’t speak!” They said impatiently. “Then how come you worship things that can neither speak nor see, nor even fend for themselves? Have you lost your minds?”

They kept silent for a while, for he got a point there. Their minds and their senses were telling them that the Truth is with Ibrahim, but their pride prevented them to accept it, and reject the idols they were worshipping for generations. This they thought

The decision to burn Ibrahim to death was affirmed by the priests and the king of Babylon, Nimrod. The news spread like a fire in the kingdom, and people were coming from all places to watch the execution. A huge pit was dug up and a large quantity of wood was piled up. Then the biggest fire people ever witnessed was lit. The fire flames were so high up in the sky that the birds could not fly over it for fear of being burned ! Ibrahim’s hands and feet were chained, and he was put in a catapult to throw him into the fire. At that time, Angel Jibreel came to him and said: “O Ibrahim! Is there anything you wish for?” Ibrahim could have asked to be saved from the fire, to be taken away, but no, he said: “I only wish that Allah be pleased with me.” The catapult was released, and Ibrahim was thrown in the heart of the fire.

But Allah would not allow His Prophet to be killed, He ordered the fire: “O fire! Be coolness and safety for Ibrahim!” And the miracle happened. The fire obeyed and burned only his chains. Ibrahim came out from it as if he was coming out from a garden, peaceful, his face illuminated, and not a trace of smoke on his clothes. People watched in shock and said: “Amazing ! Ibrahim’ s God has saved him from the fire!”

Ibrahim debates the Babylonian king, Nimrod

Ibrahim’s notoriety grew bigger after this event and the king of Babylon felt that his throne was in danger, and that he was loosing power, because he was pretending that he was a god. He sent for Ibrahim. He wanted to debate with him and show his people that he, the king is indeed the god, and Ibrahim was a liar. He asked Ibrahim: What can your god do that I cannot?

-My Lord is He Who gives life and death.”

Ibrahim said -I give life and death. I can bring a person from the street and have him executed, and I can grant my pardon to a person who was sentenced to death and save his life.” The king said proudly -Well my Lord Allah makes the sun rise

To be Continued at page 7

7 Remarkable Things About Khadija, Wife of Prophet Muhammad

By Yasmina Blackburn Death in Ramadan 10, Hijri 10 hadija was one of history’s most remarkable women.

I often get into debates with people about women in Islam. How we dress. How we don’t dress. What we think or don’t think or should be thinking.

I also get into debates about feminism. What it is and what it isn’t. I think I’ve spawned permanent foes because I don’t care to apply the label, feminist, to describe myself.

(I’m not one for labels, sorry. But if it’s even required of me, “Muslim woman” suits me just fine.)

But if we could agree for a moment that there exists a pure definition of the word feminist — to mean awesomely fierce to the millionth degree — then I’d like to introduce you to Islam’s first feminist: Khadija bint Khuwaylid.

Khadija was the wife of the Prophet Mu-

K

hammad (peace and blessings be upon him).

And she is one of the people I think about when I face or debate issues surrounding women today. Khadija’s existence precedes mine by more than 1,400 years. But if I can, at the very least, continuously strive to emulate her character, I will consider myself a success in life.

Born AD 555– 22 November AD 619), Seven things you might not know about the awesomely fierce Khadija (May God be pleased with her):

1) She was a successful and esteemed business-woman.

I would give anything to do an on-the-job ride-along with Khadija. Gladly swipe my car for a camel; my laptop for a governmentissued glass weight to measure goods in trade. What could I learn in one day of shadowing this highly-respected business leader

— trading furniture, pottery and silks?

Khadija was born to a father who was a successful merchant in their Quraysh tribe of Mecca. She inherited her father’s skills at a time in history when society was maledominated and dangerous. Upon her father’s death, she took over the business and traded goods through the primary commerce centers at that time — from Mecca to Syria and to Yemen — hiring the most trustworthy men of character to brave the dangerous trade routes.

Her business was larger than all of the Quraysh trades combined, and it was the most acclaimed with a reputation of fairdealing and high-quality goods.

She had a keen eye and was highly intuitive, earning the monikers, Ameerat-Quraysh (“Princess of Quraysh”) and al-Tahira (“The Pure One”) due to her stellar reputation.

Khadija knew what she was doing business-

wise, never compromising her modesty or integrity to succeed in the male-dominated trades — hiring only those that could meet these standards.

Glass ceiling? Hah! 1,400 years ago, yes, Khadija shattered it.

2) She turned down many marriage proposals.

Being the most successful woman around, rich in worldly attainment as well as char-

To be Continued at page 8

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Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

Nat i o n a l

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I n t

Forces members killed in helicopter crash ‘You deserve a raise’: PM says deal reached honoured in emotional ramp ceremony to top up wages for essential COVID-19 workers

A nation already struggling with the emotions of a pandemic lockdown, a horrific plane crash in Iran and the worst mass shooting in its history grieved again on Wednesday as it honoured the victims of Canada’s worst military tragedy in more than a decade.

OTTAWA -- A nation already struggling with the emotions of a pandemic lockdown, a horrific plane crash in Iran and the worst mass shooting in its history grieved again on Wednesday as it honoured the victims of Canada’s worst military tragedy in more than a decade. Canadians from coast to coast to coast watched as the six Armed Forces members killed in last week’s helicopter crash off the coast of Greece were welcomed home in a special ramp ceremony at Canadian Forces Base Trenton in Ontario.

The crash, whose cause remains under investigation, represents the largest loss of life in one day for the Canadian Armed Forces since six Canadian soldiers were killed in a roadside bombing in Afghanistan on Easter Sunday 2007. Reminders of COVID-19 were everywhere as the ceremony began, from the sparse crowd outside CFB Trenton to the masks and physical distancing of the victims’ families, military personnel and government leaders on hand. Among those there in person were Gov.-Gen. Julie Payette and Justin Trudeau, the first Canadian prime minister to attend a ramp ceremony since Paul Martin in January 2004, according to Queen’s University professor Kim Nossal.

The pandemic wasn’t the only difference from previous ramp ceremonies, which started in their modern form during the decade-long war in Afghanistan. There were also the pillows and military headdresses, a reminder that the remains of most of those lost have not been recovered. Under partially cloudy skies, six hearses were lined up on the tarmac awaiting the arrival of the C-17 Globemaster as the families of the dead and missing Forces members met privately with a mask-wearing Trudeau in a building on the edge of the tarmac. A short time later, the heavy transport aircraft landed and taxied to the loading area, preparing to discharge its precious cargo to those families and a grieving nation. The first to emerge was Sub-Lt. Abbigail Cowbrough, the 23-year-old sailor from Halifax whose remains were recovered shortly after the Cyclone helicopter crashed into the Ionian Sea on April 29 while returning from a NATO training mission.

A casket bearing her remains was slowly carried from the Globemaster’s hulking belly by eight military pallbearers wearing masks to a waiting hearse as a lone bagpiper played a lament. There Cowbrough’s family was given a chance to pay respects and lay roses on her casket. And then came the first of the pillows for those now missing and presumed dead. This one bore the headdress of Capt.

Brendan Ian MacDonald of New Glasgow, N.S., one of the pilots on board the Cyclone helicopter known as Stalker 22..........

Source: ctvnews.ca

OTTAWA -- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says that an agreement has been reached with all provinces and territories to top up the wages of some essential front-line workers including those in long-term care facilities where COVID-19 has spread among both residents and staff, with deadly impact.

The boost to wages will be done though a cost-sharing initiative between the federal government and the provinces and territories. The federal government is budgeting up to $3 billion to be doled out across the country to workers who are making “very low wages, while doing extraordinarily important work.”

Trudeau said the federal government will be putting up three quarters of the top-up with the provinces and territories covering the other 25 per cent of the funds, totalling $4 billion. It will be up to each province and territory to determine exactly who will be eligible in each region, but the bottom line is: “If you are risking your health to keep this country moving and you’re making minimum wage, you deserve a raise.”

The reason there is not one uniform hourly rate increase, Trudeau said, is because the spread of the pandemic is in different stages across the country, and the way essential services including healthcare are delivered differs from one province to the next.

On April 15, Trudeau first promised that funding was coming to keep front-line workers on the job and that wages would be boosted for essential workers who are making less than $2,500 a month through a transfer to the provinces and territories.

“Premiers from across the country all agree that we need to support our essential workers,” Trudeau said on Thursday. “We’re relying on these workers now, more than ever, and we will be there to support them.” Al-

to see “at least a couple of days” without any new COVID-19 cases. That has yet to happen. Henry said when that happens, one of the first steps -- which could come within weeks -- will be to allow elective surgeries to resume. Henry has also asked the restaurant industry to come up with ideas on how to partially reopen in coming weeks, provided they can ensure some level of physical distancing among guests.

B.C. Premier John Horgan announced April 29 that he has extended the provincial state of emergency for another two weeks and that plans for reopening the province with a “phased-in approach” will be announced the first week of May. What’s open: Many businesses were never ordered to close during the pandemic, although some chose to of their own volition.

Officials did not recommend the closure of outdoor recreation facilities including golf courses, city parks or playgrounds but those that voluntarily closed are now allowed to open back up. B.C.’s essential services are listed here.

Can I travel?: No, B.C. residents are being urged to avoid all non-essential travel outside of the province. People entering from another country must self-isolate for 14 days.

Public transit services have been reduced.

Remaining restrictions: B.C.’s state of emergency public health orders remain in effect.

Provincial parks remain closed. Horgan said that school “as we know it” likely won’t return until the fall. Source: ctvnews.ca

Indian troops killed four Kashmiri fighters in gun battles in Indian-occupied Kashmir on Wednesday, including the commander of the biggest separatist group fighting New Delhi in the disputed Himalayan region, a police official said. Hundreds of Indian soldiers launched an operation late on Tuesday after receiving intelligence that Hizbul Mujahideen commander Riyaz Naikoo was hiding in a village in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.

Authorities also disabled mobile internet across the Kashmir region early on Wednesday to forestall large crowds from gathering in the streets to mourn his killing.

“He was trapped in a house and early today a gun battle took place during which he and his associate were killed,” Kashmir’s Inspector General of Police, Vijay Kumar, told Reuters.

Two fighters were killed in another gun battle nearby on Wednesday, Kumar added. For decades, separatists have fought an armed conflict against Indian rule in occupied Kashmir, with the majority of them wanting

ready, Quebec, British Columbia, Ontario and Saskatchewan have rolled out hourly pay increases for some workers in essential service sectors.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh criticized the government for the length of time it took to get an agreement on these raises, and said they should become permanent.

81% OF DEATHS LINKED TO CARE HOMES Trudeau has another call with the premiers on Thursday evening where this wage increase and other ongoing pandemic issues are set to be on the agenda.

“I know a number of provinces had already put out lists of workers that they consider to be essential and many of them are joining from those lists, in terms of who gets the top up… We trust the provinces to make sure that people who need it get this help,” he said. This comes as Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said that 81 per cent of all COVID-19 deaths in Canada are linked to long-term care homes.

“That’s a lot,” Tam said, adding that while that is the national average, there are some regions that have not seen any long-term care deaths. The day prior she said that, while the epidemic is “decelerating” in Canada, “the number of deaths will continue to increase” particularly among the cases connected to long-term care homes.

Source: aljazeera.com

The ‘new normal’ begins: Where each Maths teacher-turned-top Kashmiri province and territory stands with reopening fighter killed by Indian troops

TORONTO -- With signs that the country is flattening the curve in the battle against COVID-19, the first phase of reopening some Canadian provinces has begun.

Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan are among those set to take a step out of lockdown by allowing the resumption of some economic and social activities starting in May. It’s the beginning of a “new normal” in Canada. But the changes won’t be uniform as the pandemic’s impact varies across the country.

In a meeting late last month, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and premiers laid out what is required of each province before reopening begins, stressing the ability of the health system to contain the virus.” CTVNews.ca has compiled a guide on where each province and territory stands in reopening their economies, what will be open and which restrictions will remain in place.

BRITISH COLUMBIA Current state: Before officials start easing restrictions, B.C.’s provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said April 22 that she wants

independence for the Himalayan region, or to join Pakistan. Naikoo, 35, had joined the fighters in 2012, two years after around 100 people were killed by troops during a restive summer marked by protests and violence.

A former maths teacher with a bounty of 1.2 million rupees ($15,800) on his head, Naikoo was an aide to Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani who was killed in July 2016, leading to months of unrest. “It is a major success for the troops in Kashmir,” Kumar said.

Amid a nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus, Indian troops have intensified operations in occupied Kashmir, which was split into two federally administered territories last August.

Since late March, Indian forces have killed 36 fighters, losing around 20 soldiers, including a high-ranking army officer, during the same period, according to official data.

Source: dawn.com

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Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

S p .

Ramada n

AH 1441 RAMADAN TIMETABLE 2020

Date Fajr / Maghrib Ramadan BCMA Sunrise Zawaal Dhur Asr / Iftar BCMA Date Days May/June Sahur 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 *30

Fri Sat Sun Mon Tues Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tues Wed Thu Fri Sat

May 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 *1

8:42 6:19 1:30 3:44 5:38 1:10 3:18 8:43 6:20 1:30 3:41 5:37 1:10 3:15 8:45 6:21 1:30 3:38 5:35 1:10 3:13 8:46 6:22 1:30 3:36 5:34 1:10 3:10 8:47 6:23 1:30 3:34 5:32 1:10 3:07 8:49 6:24 1:30 3:26 5:31 1:10 3:04 8:50 6:25 1:30 3:25 5:29 1:10 3:01 8:51 6:26 1:30 3:24 5:28 1:10 2:59 8:53 6:27 1:30 3:23 5:27 1:10 2:58 8:54 6:27 1:30 3:22 5:25 1:10 2:56 8:55 6:28 1:30 3:22 5:23 1:10 2:54 8:57 6:29 1:30 3:21 5:22 1:10 2:53 8:58 6:30 1:30 3:21 5:21 1:10 2:51 8:59 6:30 1:30 3:20 5:19 1:10 2:49 9:01 6:30 1:30 3:19 5:18 1:10 2:48 9:02 6:31 1:30 3:19 5:17 1:10 2:46 Shawwal 1441 AH EID UL FITAR 2020

8:43 8:44 8:45 8:47 8:48 8:50 8:51 8:52 8:54 8:55 8:56 8:58 8:59 9:00 9:02 9:03

Isha 10:20 10:20 10:20 10:20 10:20 10:20 10:20 10:30 10:30 10:30 10:30 10:30 10:30 10:30 10:30 10:30

May Allah bless everyone with peace and happiness in this Ramadan

Timetable Source Fiji Islamic Centre Surrey, Canada &* BCMA Sahur & Iftr Time Differences

Please follow your Masjid /Centre or Musalah Ramadan Timetable

Prophet Ibrahim: Father of the Prophets

Continued from page 5

from the East. Can you make it rise from the West?

The king was confounded. He was beaten at his own game, on his own territory, in front of his own people! Ibrahim left him there speechless and went back to his important mission, calling people to worship the one and only God, Allah.

Allah blesses Ibrahim with a son to become a prophet

Only a woman named Sarah and a man named Lot believed in Allah, and followed Ibrahim. He realized that nobody else would listen to him, and decided to emigrate for the cause of Allah, and to spread His Message elsewhere. Before leaving, he tried once again to convert his father to Islam, but to no avail. Ibrahim said to his

father and his people: “We are free of you and of whatever you worship besides Allah.

We have rejected you and there has arisen between us and you enmity and hatred forever unless you believe in Allah and Him alone.”

Ibrahim, Lot and Sarah started their long travel. They crossed Babylon, went through Syria and Palestine calling people to Allah, helping the poor and doing good deeds. By that time Ibrahim married Sarah. Their hope was to have children who would spread the Message of Allah after their death. As for Lot, he emigrated to the land of Sodom and settled there.

Time went by and no children were born to Sarah. She realized she was sterile. She accepted her fate and submitted to the will of Allah. Ibrahim and Sarah moved to Egypt where the king gave Sarah a woman to be her servant. The woman’s name was Hajar.

Sarah was seeing Ibrahim’ s hair getting white, and it grieved her to see his chance of having any child slipping away. She offered Hajar her servant as a wife to her husband, and prayed Allah to bless Hajar and Ibrahim with a child. And so came Ismail, a baby boy born to Hajar. How unselfish Sarah was! For her, the need to have an offspring who would carry the Message after Ibrahim was greater than her pride. Fourteen years later Allah rewarded Sarah with a son, Ishaq in spite of her old age.

Young Ismail and his mother

alone in the desert of Makkah

Ibrahim woke up one day and asked Hajar to prepare herself and baby Ismail for a long travel. Ibrahim and Hajar kept walking, crossed a fertile land followed by barren mountains till they arrived at the Arabian desert. Ibrahim brought Hajar to a high hill called al-Marwa, made her and her baby sit under a tree, placed a bag of dates and some water near her, and set out homeward.

Hajar ran after him and said: “Are you going to leave us in this desert where there is no one to keep us company?” She repeated this many times but he would not look back at her. She asked: “Has Allah ordered you to do so?” He said yes. “Then He will not neglect us.” She said. Ibrahim walked away until he got out of their sight, he raised his hands and prayed Allah: “O our Lord! I have made some of my offspring dwell in a valley with no cultivation, by Your Sacred House, in order that they may offer prayers.

So fill some hearts among men with love towards them, and provide them with fruits, so that they may give thanks.”

Zamzam

Hajar went on nursing Ismail and drinking from the water until it was all used up. She became very thirsty and the child was crying. She left him on the al-Marwa hill and hurried to the nearest hill, as-Safa.

She stood there and started looking at the valley keenly so that she might see somebody, but she could not see anybody. She

descended from as-Safa, crossed the valley running and reached al-Marwa hill.

She stood and started looking but could see nobody. She kept running between asSafa and al-Marwa seven times. When she reached al-Marwa for the last time, she was exhausted, she sat next to the baby. Then she heard a voice. She stood up and said: “O whoever you might be! Have you got something to help me?’ She saw an angel, Angel Jibreel, digging the earth until water flowed ! She built a little basin around it.

She scooped water with her hands, drank, filled her water-skin, and nursed her baby.

The place from which water flowed was Zamzam. Muslims till this day drink from the holy water of Zamzam, and during Hajj they walk between as-Safa and al-Marwa seven times to commemorate this event.

SOURCE: ISLAMICITY

8

Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

f A I T H

Short Biography of Ali ibn Talib (R.A.)

By: Kamal Ahmad (From book Ali Ibn Abi Talib) Born: 13th of Rajab, (599 C.E)17, Ramadan, 40H (25th January, 661 CE).

Praise be to Allah, and prayers and peace be upon the Prophet Mohammad (S.A.W.) and his sanctified and dedicated Companions (R.A.), as well as all their followers till the Day of Judgment.

In this article, we present a brief-biography of the fourth caliph of Islam Ali ibn Abi Talib (R.A.).His Ancestry, Family and Attributes: His full name is Ali Ibn Abu Talib Bin Abdul-Muttalib Bin Hashim. He came from the most respectable family of Quraish tribe, the family of Banu Hashim, and he was the cousin of the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.).

His mother was Fatimah and she embraced Islam early and migrated to Madinah. His father Abu Talib was a chief of Banu Hashim tribe and he was the custodian of the Kaaba.

Abu Talib was uncle of the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.). Abu Talib was a descendant of the Prophet Ishmael (A.S.), the son of Ibrahim (A.S.).

The documents indicated that Ali (R.A.) was born in Makkah on Friday, 13th of Rajab, thirty years after the incident of the Elephant, corresponding 17th of March, 599 CE. Ali Ibn Abu Talib (R.A.) was one of the ten men given the tidings of Paradise, he married the Prophet’s daughter Fatimah and he embraced Islam so early. He was a prominent scholar, a courageous soldier, a notable ascetic, and a remarkable orator. Further, he was occupied with the collection of the Holy Quran and revising it over with the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.).

His Early life and Acceptance of Islam: When Ali (R.A.) was at the age of five, Quraish was struck with a drought that affected the economical status in Makkah.

Hence, the Prophet (S.A.W.) appealed to his uncle Al-Abbas to help Abu Talib during the crisis. They offered Abu Talib to care for his children, as Al-Abbas chose to care for Jafar and the Prophet (S.A.W.) took Ali (R.A.) and gave him every kindness and affection in his early childhood, which influenced him for the rest of his life. He grew up in the household of the Prophet (S.A.W.), and when the Prophet received his mission, Ali (R.A.) was the first to become Muslim from early childhood.

Once Ali ibn Abu Talib (R.A.) came back

home while the Prophet (S.A.W.) and his noble wife Khadijah (R.A.) were praying.

Ali (R.A.) asked about the prayer, then the Prophet (S.A.W.) told him that it is the right religion from Allah, that demands worshiping no god but Allah. Ali (R.A.) said that he has never heard about this before, and has to tell his father Abu Talib about it, but the Prophet (S.A.W.) asked him to keep the matter in secret. The next morning Ali (R.A.) came to the Prophet (S.A.W.) and declared his Islam. At the beginning, he kept his Islam a secret, fearing from his father, but when Abu Talib recognized him, he approved his and asked him to sustain to it while Abu Talib refused to depart the religion of his late fathers till he passed away.

His Role in Prophet’s (S.A.W.) Migration to Madinah: The Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) remained in Makkah waiting for Allah’s permission to migrate to Madinah while his Companions migrated early. When disbelievers of Makkah plotted to kill the Prophet (S.A.W.), the Angle Gabriel (A.S.) revealed to him the details of that evil conspiracy and asked him (S.A.W.) not to sleep in his bed that night.

So, the Prophet (S.A.W.) asked Ali (R.A.) to sleep in his bed to impersonate him, while the Prophet (S.A.W.) left his house safely at night and migrated to Madinah.

The Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) was wellknown as the most trustworthy of men, although they did not accept his mission, the people of Makkah continued to keep their trusts of cash and gold in his safe-keeping.

It was Ali (R.A.) whom the Prophet (S.A.W.) trusted to return the possessions to their owners when he left for Madinah. Thereafter, Ali (R.A.) also migrated to Madinah to join the Prophet (S.A.W.). Ali (R.A.) had suffered immensely in his journey to Madinah, as he spent that long journey walking on his feet. As he reached Madinah, the Prophet (S.A.W.) met him gladly, sending faithful prayers to Allah seeking goodness and blessings for Ali Ibn Abu Talib (R.A.).

With the migration to Madinah, the Prophet (S.A.W.) laid down the foundations of the Islamic country. He (S.A.W.) started with creating bounds of brotherhood among his Companions, built the mosque, endorsed a treaty with the Jews in Madinah, started sending detachments, and overall consti-

tuted a new society. Ali (R.A.) was extremely active in serving the Prophet (S.A.W.), being so close to him, following his orders and learning from his guidance.

His Marriage with Fatimah (R.A.): Ali (R.A.) married the Prophet’s (S.A.W.) most beloved daughter Fatimah (R.A.), one of the best women all over, her mother was Khadijah Bint Kuwailid (R.A.). The blessed marriage took place in Madinah after the Battle of Ohud, as Fatimah (R.A.) was fifteen years old. Thus, Ali (R.A.) had the additional honor of being the father of the Prophet’s (S.A.W.) progeny through his sons from Fatimah (R.A.), Al-Hasan (R.A.), Al-Husayn (R.A.), Zainab (R.A.), and Umm Kulthoom (R.A.).

Ali (R.A.) During Prophet Muhammad’s (S.A.W.) Era: Ali (R.A.) was so reliable and trustworthy that the Prophet (S.A.W.) designated him as one of the scribes who would write down the text of the Holy Quran, which had been revealed to the Prophet (S.A.W.) during his lifetime. As Islam began to spread throughout Arabia, Ali (R.A.) helped to establish the new Islamic order by carrying the massages and declaring the Islamic guidelines. Further, Ali (R.A.) was instructed to write down the Treaty of Hudaybiyah, the peace treaty between the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) and Quraish. Ali (R.A.) was sent to Yemen to spread the teachings of Islam. He was also charged with settling several disputes and putting down the uprisings of various tribes.

He was well versed in the knowledge of lineages, proverbs and the history of importantevents. He travelled to Syria and Ethiopia and mixed with non-Arab people, learning things about their lives and customs that no one else knew. He took care of the business that he had inherited from his father and his wealth grew. He was regarded as one of the men of Banu Umayyah clan who were held in high esteem by all of Quraish. Thus, Uthman (R.A.) was regarded as being of high status among his people and he was loved dearly.

His Bravery and Struggle to Support Islam: Ali (R.A.) was well known of his bravery.

He participated in almost all the battles against the unbelievers during the time of the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.), except for the Battle of Tabuk in the year 9th Hi-

jri, as the Prophet (S.A.W.) had placed Ali (R.A.) in charge of the city.

As well as being the standard-bearer in those battles, Ali (R.A.) led parties of warriors on raids into enemy lands. At the Battle of Badr, he defeated the Umayyad champion Walid Ibn Utba as well as twenty other polytheist soldiers. Ali (R.A.) was prominent at the Battle of Uhud, when the bearer of the Islamic standard was martyred, it was Ali (R.A.) who raised it up, but challenged by the unbeliever Talha Ibn Uthman, promptly Ali (R.A.) Attacked him and he fell to the ground. It was Ali (R.A.) too, who drew around the Prophet (S.A.W.) with other Companions, in the battle of Uhud, when the archers deserted their spots in quest of booty, and in the chaos which ensued when almost all took flight, Ali (R.A.) whom Allah Had protected, stood steadfast beside the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.).

In the Battle of the Trench, Ali (R.A.) bravely defeated a prominent leader of the unbelievers called Amr Ibn Wudd. In the Battle of Khaybar, Ali (R.A.) defeated the great Jewish commander Marhab. When the Muslim army failed to conquer the Jewish fortress twice, the Prophet (S.A.W.), offered the command and the standard to Ali (R.A.).

The fortress fill to the onslaught of the Muslims and victory attained. Additionally, Ali (R.A.) was one the Companions who stood unwavering beside the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) in the Battle of Hunain.

Ali (R.A.) During Caliphate of Abu Bakr (R.A.): After the death of the Prophet (S.A.W.), all the Companions (R.A.) pledged their allegiance to Abu Bakr (R.A.), except Ali (R.A.), who did so later due to the fact that he was engaged in arranging the Prophet’s (S.A.W.) funeral. Besides, he had an oath upon the Prophet’s (S.A.W.) death that he would not engage in anything except prayer until he

To be Continued at page 9

7 Remarkable Things About Khadija, Wife of Prophet Muhammad

Continued from page 5

acter, it seems Khadija faced a consistent campaign of men seeking her hand in marriage.

She was married twice before her wedlock to the Prophet. Both of these marriages produced children and both left her widowed. Her keen sense of character left her picky; and she was less than eager to suffer another painful loss of a husband. She resigned herself to being a widowed woman, taking care of herself and her family.

3)She asked the Prophet to marry her.

Love comes when you are not looking, or so I have heard (and experienced). Khadija learned of the stellar character of Muhammad, as well as his experience managing caravans on the trade routes accompanying his uncle, Abu Talib. She hired him into her conglomerate.

Marriages at this time were typically necessary for survival and not always about love as we know it in today’s world. But Khadija didn’t need a husband to take care of her financially.

And Muhammad did not have the means to seek a wife.

She fell in love with him, and through a friend, she asked him to marry her. He said yes.

4) She was 15 years older than Muhammad.

If Khadija’s story hasn’t broken stereotypes about Islam yet, it might intrigue you to know

that she was 40 years old when she married condition is a test. Khadija gave her earnings to the poor and to the orphans, to the widows and Muhammad. He was 25.

5) She was an ideal wife; theirs was a the sick. She helped poor girls get married and provided their dowry. true love story.

“Your wives are a garment for you, and you are Khadija was one of history’s most remarkable women. Prophet Muhammad once said that a garment for them” (Quran 2: 187).

Taking multiple wives was a common practice, the four greatest women of mankind were: yet Khadija and Muhammad’s marriage was mo- Khadija bint Khuwaylid, Fatima bint Muhammad (his youngest daughter,) Mary bint Emran nogamous until her death 25 years later.

Muhammad’s prophethood began during his (the Virgin Mary) and Asiya bint Muzahim marriage to Khadija, when he received the first (the wife of Pharaoh.) Khadija continues to inof God’s revelations through the Angel Gabriel spire people to this day who revere her for takthat left him frightened, strained and feeling ing great care of the Prophet of Islam and for alone when no one believed in him. Khadija showing the world, through her behavior, what comforted her husband and encouraged him a pious, modest and courageous woman can during the most difficult days of his life. She accomplish. The example she left for mankind bore him six children. He loved no one more remains timeless. *[This article was originally published by The than Khadija during his lifetime.

Huffington Post.]

6) She was the first Muslim.

The views expressed in this article are the auKhadija, the mother of Islam, was the first thor’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair person on earth to accept Muhammad as the Observer’s editorial policy. final prophet of God and accept the revelations Source: fairobserver.co that culminated into the Holy Quran. She was greeted with “salam” (peace) by God himself Death as well as the Angel Gabriel. She bequeathed Mausoleum Khadijah, Jannatul Mualla cemher worldly goods and put herself in the face of etery, in Mecca, before its destruction by Saud danger to stand by the Prophet Muhammad as Khadijah died in “Ramadan of the year 10 after the Prophethood”,[39] i.e., in November AD Islam became established in the land.

619. Muhammad later called this tenth year 7) She spent her worldly riches on the poor.

In Islam, whether rich or poor, one’s financial “the Year of Sorrow”, as his uncle and protector Abu Talib also died at this time.[40] Khadijah is

said to have been about 65 years old at the time of her death.[41] She was buried in Jannat alMu’alla cemetery, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.[42]

Children: Sons

1: Qasim ibn Muhammad, died in AD 601, after his third birthday 2: Abd-Allah ibn Muhammad, died in childhood in AD 615 1: Fātimah al-Zahrā s.a bint Muhammad (605–632) 2: Zaynab (599–629).

3: Ruqayyah (601–624).

4: Umm Kulthum (603–630).

Another report Muhammad bin Ishaq said,” Abu Talib and Khadija bint Khuwaylid died in the same year. This was three years before the emigration of the Messenger of Allah to Madina.

Khadija was buried in al-Hajun. The Messenger of Allah buried her in her grave. She was twenty-eight years old when the Messenger of Allah married her” Source: en.wikipedia.org

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Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

f A I T H

Continued from page 8

completed compiling the Quran. Ali (R.A.) gave his pledge of loyalty to Abu Bakr (R.A.) and assisted him throughout his Caliphate.

After terminating the expedition of Usamah, Abu Bakr (R.A.) sent Ali (R.A.) with a group of the Companions to protect the borders of the city in that critical time. In addition, Abu Bakr (R.A.) consulted Ali (R.A.) before fighting apostasy and the Romans. Narrations revealed that judgeship was delegated to Ali (R.A.) during the time of Abu Bakr (R.A.).

Ali (R.A.) During Caliphate of Umar ibn Al-Khattab (R.A.): Umar Ibn Al-Khattab (R.A.) was elected as the second Caliph after Abu Bakr’s (R.A.) death. Ali (R.A.) pledged his allegiance to Umar (R.A.) and helped him as a trusted advisor. During the caliphate of Umar (R.A.), the Islamic army conquered the Roman Emperor in Syria, Egypt and north Africa. Additionally, the Islamic army conquered the Persian Emperor in Iraq, Persia, Khurasan, extending to the borders of Turkey and India. All the way through, Umar (R.A.) used to consult the wise Companions of the Prophet (S.A.W.) such as Ali (R.A.), and seek their suggestions in political issues.

It was narrated that Ali (R.A.) was the one who advised Umar (R.A.) to set Hijra as the beginning of the Islamic calendar. It was Ali (R.A.) who gave advice to Umar

Short Biography of Ali ibn Talib (R.A.)

(R.A.) to go to Jerusalem in order to receive the Holy Mosque from the Romans, while Umar (R.A.) placed Ali (R.A.) in charge of Madinah. Ali (R.A.) was one of the electoral council to choose the third caliph which was appointed by Umar (R.A.). Uthman (R.A.) and Ali (R.A.) were the two major candidates.

Ali (R.A.) During Caliphate of Uthman ibn Affan (R.A.): Uthman Ibn Affan (R.A.) was elected as the third Caliph. Ali (R.A.) pledged his allegiance to Uthman (R.A.) and remained in Madinah supporting him. Ali (R.A.) represented a considerable role during the incitement to rebellion against Uthman (R.A.).

Ali supported Uthman (R.A.) and defended him by offering advice and facing the provincial opposition coming from Egypt and Iraq. They aimed at displacing Uthman (R.A.) with Ali (R.A.), but the latter resolutely rejected their demands. Thus, they pretended to be retreating, but after three days, they came back to Madinah to besiege Uthman (R.A.) and his family. Ali (R.A.) and his sons defended Uthman (R.A.) ardently and they were intended to fight the rebellious, but Uthman (R.A.) refused killing people for his sake. It was an intricate tribulation in Islamic history, marked by the murder of Uthman (R.A.).

Ali Ibn Abi Talib (R.A.): The Fourth Caliph: After the killing of third Caliph Uthman (R.A.), Prophet’s Companions approached Ali (R.A.) asking him to be Caliph, he has declined the responsibility of this great office first, suggesting to be a counselor instead of a chief. But finally, he decided to put the matter before the Muslim public in the Prophet’s Mosque, as a result, the overwhelming majority of the Companions in Madinah considered Ali (R.A.) to be the most suitable person to be Caliph after

Thank You Frontline Workers

W

By: Khadija Nadeem Gr 8 hen people think of what they want for their future, they usually think of what will make them happiest, and rightfully so. But not a lot of people really think about what they can do to benefit others. I myself am personally in a place in my life where I’m starting to think about what I want to do in the future.

Like many others. I want to decide what type of life I want to lead, and this pandemic has really affected that choice. It makes me question my judgement. With every option I look at, I ask myself, will this help others? Will this make a difference in someone else’s life?

There are people risking their own lives, for the chance to help others. These people aren’t special, or better than all of us, but they are different. They might not have even gone in to this field for the same reason but right now, they all have a common goal.

To help others. All these people have lives, they have family and loved ones and everything else that we have. Yet the difference is, they’re out there and we aren’t. Our world is just starting to acknowledge how much our essential workers do for us. How much they are giving up for us, how much they are los-

ing for us. For people they don’t even know.

This crisis has brought upon us the harsh truth that when it comes to benefiting and helping the world, there really are only a few that come when we need it the most. I am grateful that I am living in a time where I get to witness exactly how our society works.

Where, when our society is attacked, it falls upon the shoulders of our essential workers to defend us. This includes not only our healthcare workers but our daycare workers, food and agriculture service providers, law enforcers and so many others.

For the sacrifices you make every day and especially during this pandemic.

Your dedication, commitment and courage deserve our deepest gratitude and admiration. Your service to our country and all around the world is saving countless lives and making thousands of differences.

Thank you.

Uthman (R.A.). Thus, he agreed to take the responsibility. On 25th of Dhul-Hijjah 35H (24th June, 656 CE), pledges of loyalty were sworn to Ali (R.A.).

Several problems faced the new Caliph when he took power. Firstly, he has to establish peace in the state and to ameliorate the deteriorating political situation. Secondly, he needed to take action against the assassins of Uthman (R.A.).

The political state of Madinah was disturbed by the presence of Abdullah ibn Saba and his illegal party, supported by slaves – fled from their bosses- and village dwellers. Ali (R.A.) asked all the followers of Ibn Saba to leave Madinah and return to their regions.

The illegal party headed by Abdullah ibn Saba did not obey the Caliph’s order and pretended to be staying there as his friends.

Their purpose in staying was to create mischief and troubles among Muslims. When the orders of the Caliph were disobeyed, Ali (R.A.) offered entire freedom to the Companions, including Talha and Al-Zubair, who requested to avenge the death of Uthman (R.A.). Soon they believed that it is impossible to detect the killers in such critical circumstances.

The reign of Ali (R.A.) was notably marked by the occurrence of ordeals and troubles among Muslims. A careful reading in Islamic history revealed that the main cause of those troubles were the Sabites party, supported by fled slaves and village dwellers. Their leader Abdullah ibn Saba was a jew but pretended conversion to Islam during the reign of Uthman ibn Affan (R.A.).

The main goal of Ibn Saba was to split the Muslims and spread anarchy in the Islamic society. He Provoked Muslims to kill Uthman (R.A.) since he assumed that Uthman (R.A.) had occupied the seat of Ali (R.A.).

He was the main source of mischief and

revolution during the reign of Ali (R.A.).

The reign of Ali (R.A.) did not comprise new conquer, but characterized with civil and cultural accomplishments such as; police organization, constructing the court of arbitration and building jails. Besides, Ali (R.A.) transferred the capital of Caliphate from Madinah to Kufah in Iraq, due to its strategic position in the mid of the Islamic country at that time. Kufah thrived as the schools of jurisprudence and grammar were established. In addition, Ali gave his orders to furnish the letters of the Holy Quran with vowel signs for the first time.

His Martyrdom: On the night that Ali (R.A.), Ibn Al-Tiyah came to him to call him for the prayer when the dawn appeared. At this time, Ali (R.A.) was reclining heavily. So he returned the second time while Ali (R.A.) was still in the same position and again he returned the third time. After the third time, Ali (R.A.) rose and walked to the mosque. When he got to the small door, Ibn Muljam sprang out and struck him.

Ali (R.A.) died in 17th of Ramadan, 40H (25th January, 661CE). His Caliphate continued for five years.

An elder from the Quraishi reported that when Ali (R.A.) was struck by Ibn Muljam, Ali (R.A.) said: “I have succeeded by the Lord of the Kabah.”

When Ali (R.A.) was struck, he advised his sons and then he never said any other words except: “No God but Allah” until his soul was taken. He was washed by his sons Hasan (R.A.) and Hussain (R.A.) and Abdullah Ibn Jafar (R.A.). Al-Hasan (R.A.) led the funeral prayer for him.

May Allah have mercy on Ali Ibn Abu Talib and be pleased with him and assemble us among his company.

Source: islamicfinder.org

10

Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

B C

g O V T

From haircuts to dinner parties: B.C. unveils plan for easing COVID-19 restrictions VANCOUVER -- The next phase of British Columbia’s COVID-19 response will allow residents to host a small group of friends for dinner, get a professional haircut, and play low-contact sports.

The plans unveiled by B.C. Premier John Horgan on Wednesday make it possible for a wide variety of businesses and services to reopen as early as mid-May, including pubs and restaurants, retail stores, salons and barbershops, libraries, museums and art galleries.

Crucially, they also promise to bring back elective surgeries, and let dentists, physiotherapists, registered massage therapists, speech therapists and others in the health services sector return to work.

Addressing the province from the B.C. legislature, Horgan acknowledged that relaxing restrictions might make some people nervous, but said the government will be ready to reverse course if COVID-19 cases begin to spike.

“Today we take our first steps,” the premier said. “We’re going to be doing it cautiously, based on the science.”

Increased socializing Included in the plans are guidelines for British Columbians to begin expanding their social circle beyond their own household for the first time since the province’s strict physical distancing rules were imposed almost two months ago.

But officials stressed that should be done in a limited and thoughtful way to avoid caus-

ing new outbreaks, which could reverse B.C.’s fragile progress fighting the pandemic. Horgan urged people to keep their “social circles tight.”

Starting on the Victoria Day long weekend, officials said residents will be allowed to have up to half a dozen people over for dinner or a backyard barbecue, and won’t need to stay two metres away from their guests.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry even went so far as to say people could hug extended family members, provided they aren’t among the groups considered at higher risk of severe complications from COVID-19.

Officials said people will have to make their own risk assessments when it comes to hugging, and that other types of visits, such as coffee dates with neighbours, should be less intimate.

Modelling unveiled by the government on Monday indicates British Columbians can resume 60 per cent of their pre-pandemic social interactions while keeping the number of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations at a manageable level – but going beyond that would cause a sharp increase in infections that could quickly overwhelm health care resources.

Dr. Henry said people who live with a senior or someone with a chronic health condition should be especially cautious about increasing the number of people they socialize with, as each new contact increases the risk of bringing the virus home.

Getting back to business

When it comes to revving up the economy, the government said different sectors will be responsible for preparing and submitting industry-specific guidelines for keeping staff and customers safe, with support from WorkSafeBC. Individual businesses will also have to prove they can implement those guidelines before reopening, meaning some restaurants or salons will reopen before others.

Horgan said it’s important for customers to feel confident that they’ll be protected when leaving the house.

“We can’t just say businesses are open, let’s come and spend,” Horgan said.

Child care facilities, which are currently operating in a very limited capacity, will also be able to begin taking in more children soon provided they follow a strict set of safety protocols.

The province said staff and kids will be screened every day for symptoms, facilities will be cleaned more frequently and there will be clear policies in place to ensure nobody enters a child care facility while sick.

Looking further ahead, the province said hotels and resorts could be allowed to reopen in June, and that the film industry might be able to resume work on domestic productions as early as June or July.

Those developments will depend on whether B.C. is keeping its COVID-19 transmission rate low, however.

Core guidelines for the public

Surrey, BC – At last night’s Regular Council Meeting, City Council approved the Surrey Economic Action and Recovery Plan. The objective of the plan is to help Surrey’s economy move towards a faster recovery through a series of initiatives centered on encouraging and supporting residents, businesses, investments, and job creation opportunities in the City. By taking these proactive steps, the goal is to recover as soon as possible from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“While the safety of our people is first and foremost, City Council has taken a forwardthinking approach when it comes to keeping our local economy afloat during this time of pandemic,” said Mayor Doug McCallum. “With the Surrey Economic Action and Recovery Plan, the City is taking care of its economic house while keeping a keen eye on how we can ease the financial burden of our residents and businesses during this challenging time.”

The Surrey Economic Action and Recovery Plan is focused around our residents, businesses and development sector. Key highlights include: • 90-day extension on late payment penalties for residential and commercial property tax payments. Late payment charges will now come into effect on October 1, 2020, instead of July 3.

• Effective immediately, new and in-stream projects that have a construction value of greater than $25 million will benefit from a 50% reduction of many fees relating to the development.

• Business licence late payment penalties have been deferred during the current Provincial State of Emergency. Late penalty fees will be applied 30 days after the Provincial State of Emergency comes to an end.

• Parking fees have been waived for Cityoperated parking spaces around Surrey Memorial Hospital (SMH), including new areas to the north of SMH, in order to provide free overflow parking for health care workers, commuters, and hospital visitors.

On-street pay parking around City Hall has been suspended to support patrons of City Hall and municipal employees providing essential services.

• Increase the supply of appropriate and

Assalamualaikum Warahamatulahe Wabarakatu, y dear brothers and sisters, the last three months have been a very difficult time for all of us. A new phenomenon of staying home, being safe and washing hands on an hourly basis or as need arises and practicing social distance. Yes,” we are all in it together” as the slogan goes. Can you imagine when Prophet Noah was asked by Allah Subhanwatala to build the biggest ARCK put species of each animal, plants, people etc. and prepare for the biggest flood. This Pandemic seems like that. We are all in it together.

As Muslims, it is our duty to help those who are most vulnerable. Many have lost their daily jobs which fed their families. Many industries have shut down and may not reopen. Families have been devasted and there is little hope in sight for sometime.

Our Governments from all levels from coast to coast to coast have come to the aid of its

citizens. Digging deep to support each and every citizen, especially those who have been highly affected. Billions of dollars are being spent on its subjects for their livelihood. Employers and businesses have come forward to help where ever they are able to. The life we lived in December 2019 and January 2020 will not return. The fear of getting infected until an effective vaccine has been found which is almost 18 to 24 months away, or sooner, Inshallah. The only comfort we can have as Muslims is our HOPE in Allah Subhanwatala who will look after us and protect all of us, inshallah.

With this Pandemic at its heights, there are individuals who never give up in stepping out to help feed the homeless and those in dire need.

The current chair of the Muslim Business Council Br Bob Ibrahim and Br Aseem Khan Director of the Fiji Islamic Centre always stand out when there is a need. Collecting donations to cook food and sell in a

affordable housing for our homeless and most vulnerable populations. Projects that are currently in process include five modular housing projects that will provide 250 housing units and the transitional housing facility at Green Timbers which will accommodate up to 130 people.

• The Surrey Makes PPE program supports Surrey-based manufacturers to produce critical personal protective equipment (PPE) and helps to identify buyers for their products. Launched last month, companies are already benefiting from orders from other levels of government and private businesses.

• Store to Door connects local businesses to the customer through on-line sales and deliveries. Since its advent in March, 166 companies have signed up to Store to Door and over 30,000 online connections have resulted.

• Surrey was one of the first cities to launch online fitness classes and library read along storytimes. This resource will continue to be offered with new online videos.

• Surrey Libraries, in partnerships with seniors’ organizations, will procure Chromebooks to distribute to isolated seniors, offering instructions on accessing free resources such as eBooks, eAudio, and how to connect ontimely manner to raise funds for the Food Bank and Masjid Al Salam for the iftar project is commendable. These are small steps to take to do bigger things to make a difference. I am wondering loudly as to where are the larger organizations who have the resources to do much more on a larger scale.

Feeding the hungry is one of our first duties.

Sharing of bread is a duty upon all Muslims.

During these extraordinary times, it is more important than ever to mobilize our collective efforts to make a meaningful difference.

Our sisters can be asked to help in making Masks, cooking, baking, packaging, collecting good clothes and supporting the frontline volunteers who are doing what needs to be done to make a difference. This needs leadership and organization.

I am calling upon all Muslim Organizations in British Columbia to become engaged and support the small efforts that are being made by many volunteers not only to help our own community but to engage in supporting the efforts of all those who are contributing to the welfare of our larger society.

This is a prime time to organize our young

While the relaxed restrictions announced

by Horgan on Wednesday are sure to be celebrated by many socially isolated British Columbians, the government warned it won’t hesitate to tighten the rules again if the virus begins to spread too quickly.

To help keep the caseload low, health officials also issued a set of guidelines that reiterate much of the same advice they have been giving to the public since early March.

Physical distancing is still recommended when outside of the home, and people are encouraged to continue washing their hands frequently, covering their mouth when they cough, and avoiding handshakes.

Most importantly, British Columbians are still strongly urged to stay home when even mildly sick, whether they are suffering symptoms of COVID-19, a common cold or the flu. That means not going to work, and not going to the grocery story if at all possible.

Source: bc.ctvnews.ca

Council approves COVID-19 Surrey Economic Action and Recovery Plan

A Little Effort Goes A Long Way

M

line with family and friends.

• To support job seekers, Surrey Libraries will host virtual job fairs and online learning to enhance critical job skills such as resume and cover letter writing.

• Surrey Civic Theatres is programming a series of pre-recorded and live-streamed performances featuring local musicians and a series of radio plays produced in partnership with local theatre companies.

• Surrey Art Gallery is offering a series of online artmaking video lessons and artist talks, virtual exhibitions, and tours featuring local artists and artworks.

“Despite the impact of COVID-19, Surrey is on solid footing and has not stood still during this time,” said Mayor Doug McCallum.

“To date, building permit values have exceeded $455 million, adding 1300 single detached and multi-family homes to Surrey’s housing stock. Work on the Surrey Police Department (SPD) has been progressing with the recent hire of an Executive Director for the Surrey Police Board. Applications for the Surrey Police Board has closed, and the interview process is underway to select the members for SPD’s Police Board.

We will get through this and, when we do, Surrey will be all the stronger for it.”

By: Oliver Lum Communications Manager men and women when we are all at home and can fill out times with meaningful contribution.

I take this opportunity to thank all the Doctors, Nurses, all hospital workers, truckers for transporting food and essentials, store keepers and their frontline employees, for all they are doing to supply foods and essentials.

Our appreciation should also be given to the Government of British Columbia and Premier John Hogan for supporting its citizens and a very big thank you to our chief medical officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and the Minister of Health Adrian Dix, for their composure and advice that they have been dishing out every day to educate all of us the importance of being calm, practicing social distance and washing our hands and staying home.

The Muslim Community salutes you Dr Bonnie Henry, you have made a huge difference in the lives of all British Columbians.

Feroz Dean

Advisor- Muslim Business Council.

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12

Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

Politics

Feds spending $252 million to address food supply issues, safety at processing plants OTTAWA -- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced the federal government is providing $252 million in new federal assistance for Canadian farmers and others in the agri-food sector whose livelihoods have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, to help redistribute food and better protect workers in processing plants.

Though, already, some industry stakeholders are saying this new funding falls “well short” of what’s needed.

As part of this the government will be spending: $77.5 million to help food processors purchase protective equipment for workers, adapt to health protocols like physical distancing and expand domestic processing capacity to increase the amount of food made in Canada; $125 million to help cattle and hog producers who are raising more animals than can currently be processed because of COVID-19 and as a result are seeing their costs increase because

they are keeping these animals longer; and $50 million on a food surplus purchasing program that will see the government buy large quantities of surplus products and redistribute them to areas where food insecurity is an issue, to avoid throwing out food and to allow the producers to still be compensated.

In addition to this the government says it intends to increase the Canadian Dairy Commission’s borrowing limit by $200 million to cover costs related to having to store excess cheese and butter, though this initiative will need legislation to implement and talks are beginning with opposition parties on moving ahead with a new emergency aid bill to make that happen.

Among the challenges for those working to feed Canadians are changing demands due to many restaurants being closed, having the staff to work the current planting season, and the closures of some processing plants due to COVID-19 outbreaks leading to reduced production

and other supply issues.

The government says it is also working with provinces and territories to increase payments to producers who face revenue declines, up to 75 per cent from the current 50 per cent, as well as possibly expanding an insurance program to protect against lost production due to not having enough workers.

“It is not a perfect situation by any stretch. But we’re doing what we can to try and make sure that people are rewarded for their hard work, and that others aren’t going hungry,” Trudeau said in making the announcement from Rideau Cottage.

Thanking those who are working to ensure grocery shelves are stocked, the prime minister said that Canadians are spending more time in the kitchen, whether “trying to make sour-

For those who have claimed CERB payments since the beginning, this is the halfway mark.

As the end date for the benefit looms closer, many Canadians are wondering what will happen next. However, the Treasury Board President has promised that no matter what, the government “will continue to be there for Ca-

nadians.”

Back in March, the federal government launched the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, otherwise known as CERB. The $2,000 per month cash is available to Canadian workers who have been laid off due to the pandemic, and those who are working heavily reduced hours.

The benefit is available from March 15, 2020 to October 3, 2020, but can only be claimed for a maximum of 16 weeks.

This means that those who have been claiming the money since mid-March, are now reaching the halfway point, and will only be able to claim

the funding until the beginning of July.

For those who may not be able to return to work before their benefits are cancelled, the federal government has promised to have their back.

This week, Treasury Board President Jean-Yves Duclos was asked if they’d consider extending the benefit, to help those whose payments are coming to an end.

While Duclos didn’t commit to an extension, he didn’t rule it out either.

“We obviously knew from the start that we needed to implement the Canada Emergency Response Benefit quickly in order to make sure that Canadians could stay healthy while being able to put food on the table,” he said.

“7.5 million Canadians have received support from the CERB and we’ll continue to be there for Canadians,” Duclos added.

As of May 5, more than $28 billion had been

paid out through the program.

Earlier this week, Concervative leader Andrew Scheer called for a gradual decrease in CERB payments, in order to encourage Canadians to return to the workforce.

Speaking in an address on Monday, Scheer explained, “it’s always better off for Canadians to work.” Conversely, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh has called on the federal government to make the CERB universal, so that anybody that needs to can access it. For now, the federal government hasn’t confirmed any official changes to the benefit, and are yet to discuss an extension of the payment.

Canadians claiming the benefit must reapply every month to continue receiving money.

It’s also worth remembering that all CERB payments are taxable.

Source: ctvnews.ca

thrive. But that’s true all over the world, so what explains the Canadian numbers?

One explanation actually reflects well on Canada’s overall handling of the pandemic.

Having the highest rate of COVID-19 cases in long-term care homes means we have the lowest rate of cases outside those facilities – though that makes the relatively high rates in long-term care homes stand out even more.

“Even the little community transmission we’ve had has been able to get in and spread around and spread between homes,” Sinha said. “That’s where the tragedy really lies for Canada.”

Sinha’s explanation for how COVID-19 could be so destructive in long-term care homes while the rest of the country has avoided such a severe hit echoes that of many others who have closely studied the issue. He said Canada’s senior-care sector has long struggled with underfunding and neglect, leading to consequences that include workers being employed at multiple homes and frequently moving between them, making it easier to spread a virus from one facility to another.

Additionally, he said, those employed by long-term care homes are often paid significantly less than they would be to perform the same functions at hospitals, and may not receive benefits or paid sick days – meaning they may be less likely to stay away from work even when they feel sick.

‘A GAME OF CATCH-UP’ Neglect of long-term care homes is a concern across the country, but the impact COVID-19 is having at seniors’ residences varies considerably in different parts of Canada.

According to the National Institute of Ageing at Ryerson University in Toronto, more than 80 per cent of COVID-19 deaths in On-

tario can be linked to long-term care homes.

Quebec has a similar figure, and 35 of the 41 deaths in Nova Scotia are connected to one long-term care home in Halifax. Death tolls in long-term care homes in all three provinces are rising, even as the curve seems to be flattening outside the homes.

Ontario and Quebec have even called in the military to help bolster the ranks of frontline workers in their hardest-hit long-term care homes.

On the other side of the country, though, long-term care homes seem to have been somewhat spared. In B.C., there had been 74 deaths linked to such facilities as of Tuesday – still a high proportion of the total deaths, but nowhere near as many per capita as in the Eastern provinces.

B.C. was the site of the first declared COVID-19 outbreak at a long-term care home in Canada, on March 5, and the first death linked to a long-term care home, on March 8. After that, Sinha said, the province moved fast to protect those living and working in long-term care homes long before COVID-19 took hold elsewhere in the country.

“They actually were the most decisive and quick to act,” he said, noting that requirements for caregivers to wear surgical masks and prohibitions on working at multiple homes went into effect in B.C. in March.

Ontario and Quebec were slower to take similar actions, Sinha said, and Nova Scotia was slower still.

“Those provinces are all playing a game of catch-up,” he said.

“This is a tricky virus that we need to take seriously. We can’t take half-measures when we’re trying to fight COVID-19.”

Source: ctvnews.ca

dough” or cooking for an elderly neighbour.

“These days especially, cooking and baking is about more than nourishment. It’s also about relieving stress, finding a community, supporting each other, and creating memories. You help make that possible,” Trudeau said. “This is an initial investment and if we need to add more, we will.” Source: ctvnews.ca

CERB Payments Are Almost Up For Some People But The Government Says They’ll “Be There”

‘Where the tragedy really lies’: The crisis in Canada’s long-term care homes

By: Ryan Flanagan TORONTO -- The novel coronavirus pandemic is hitting long-term care homes in Canada disproportionately harder than in other countries that make such data readily available, according to new research.

A report released Sunday by the International Long-Term Care Policy Network (ILTCPN) found that those who live in long-term care homes comprise 62 per cent of Canada’s COVID-19-related deaths – the highest share in any of the 13 countries it studied. The report does not include the U.S., the U.K. or Italy, where researchers said deaths are not broken down in this way in public data, but does include the hard-hit nations of Germany and France.

Other indicators, however, suggest the ILTCPN report may only be capturing part of the crisis playing out at Canadian senior care facilities. The Public Health Agency of Canada said Tuesday that COVID-19 outbreaks at long-term care homes are respon-

sible for 82 per cent of coronavirus-related deaths in Canada.

“We’re seeing that the real epicentre of this epidemic has been long-term care homes across the country,” Dr. Samir Sinha, director of geriatrics at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, told CTV’s Your Morning on Wednesday.

WHY ARE THEY MORE VULNERABLE? Long-term care homes are particularly susceptible to viral diseases for plenty of obvious reasons, including that their elderly residents are more likely to be immunocompromised and extra-vulnerable to viruses.

Federal statistics back that up, showing that those 60 years of age or older make up 36 per cent of Canada’s total COVID-19 caseload, but 67 per cent of all hospitalizations and 95 per cent of all deaths.

Beyond that, though, keeping a large number of people in a confined space creates conditions that make it easier for a virus to

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Epidemic Vs. Pandemic

6 of the Worst Pandemics in History

Five of them have happened in the last killed 20% of London’s population, according to History.com. The death toll was so century alone. high that mass graves appeared, and thouBy Korin Miller January 28, 202

I

n late December 2019, the world was introduced to a novel coronavirus— SARS-CoV-2—a pathogen that causes COVID-19. Just over two months later, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, meaning the virus had spread across several countries and sickened a large number of people.

Realistically speaking, the next pandemic wasn’t a far-fetched idea—in part, because it’s already happened multiple times before: “When we talk about another flu pandemic happening, it’s not a matter of if, but when,” said Dennis Carroll, PhD, director of USAID’s Emerging Threats Unit, in the trailer for the Netflix docuseries, Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak. (FYI: Coronavirus is not influenza, though the symptoms may sometimes look similar.)

Our extremely interconnected world is largely to blame. “Viruses used to spread at the speed of a steamboat; now they can spread at the speed of a jet. In that sense, we’re more at risk,” infectious disease expert Amesh A. Adalja, MD, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, tells Health. There are also more densely populated cities now than ever before, Dr. Adalja points out, and that can create an environment that’s ripe for the rapid spread of pandemic diseases. On the flip side, there’s a “very sophisticated” healthcare system in place, both in the U.S. and globally, Dr. Adalja says. “We have antivirals, vaccines, and pharmaceutical companies that can develop countermeasures for new emerging diseases,” he says.

In talking about future pandemics, the Netflix series also dives briefly into a few of the worst flu pandemics of the past, particularly the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918. Here’s a look at some of the worst pandemics—both flurelated and not, though excluding the current coronavirus pandemic—in modern history.

The Great Plague of London

The bubonic plague technically made its first appearance in pandemic levels in the 14th century, with The Black Death, but it surfaced for a second time in London in 1665 for the Great Plague of London, which

sands of cats and dogs, who were believed to be the cause of the source, were slaughtered.

The outbreak eventually tapered off in 1666.

Surprisingly, the bubonic plague is still around today—sometimes occurring in rural areas in the Western United States, though it’s more common in parts of Africa and Asia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Humans typically contract the plague—which is broken down into the bubonic plague, septicemic plague, and pneumonic plague, depending on transmission—through contact with an infected flea or animal.

Symptoms of the bubonic plague in particular include a sudden onset fever, headache, chills, weakness, and one or more swollen, tender and painful lymph nodes. Luckily, per the CDC, modern-day antibiotics are successful in treating the plague.

The Spanish Flu

virus’ pathogenicity, or its ability to cause disease and harm a host. The work, led by Terrence Tumpey, PhD, a microbiologist and chief of the Immunology and Pathogenesis Branch (IPB) of the CDC’s Influenza Division, showed that the 1918 influenza virus was a “uniquely deadly product of nature, evolution and the intermingling of people and animals,” per the CDC, and may help with future possible pandemics.

trigger the body’s immune response. Ultimately, those antigenic shifts, is why people can get the flu more than once, according to the CDC, and why a yearly flu vaccine is necessary for the best protection against the virus and its ever-changing nature.

2009 Flu Pandemic

Asian Flu

Another flu pandemic, the “Asian Flu” began in East Asia in 1957, according to the CDC. That specific influenza virus was an H2N2 strain, which was first detected in Singapore in February 1957. From there, the virus made its way to Hong Kong in April 1957, and in coastal cities in the United States in the summer of 1957. An estimated 1.1 million people died of the Asian flu worldwide, with 116,000 of them in the United States.

1968 Flu Pandemic

The Spanish flu was an influenza pandemic that spread around the world between 1918 and 1919, according to the CDC. It was caused by an H1N1 virus, with an avian (bird) origin, though it’s unclear exactly where the virus originated. The CDC estimates that about 500 million people (or one-third of the world’s population) became infected with the virus. It ultimately caused least 50 million deaths worldwide with about 675,000 deaths happening in the U.S. The 1918 flu was especially virulent, per the CDC. While much remains undocumented about the Spanish flu, the CDC notes that one well-documented effect was rapid and severe lung damage. “In 1918, victims of the pandemic virus experienced fluid-filled lungs, as well as severe pneumonia and lung tissue inflammation,” according to the CDC. Scientists also worked to replicate the 1918 flu virus, beginning in 2005, to evaluate the

The flu pandemic of 1968—also called the Hong Kong Flu—originated in China in July 1968, according to Encyclopaedia Britannica. Caused by an influenza A virus (H3N2), it was the third pandemic flu outbreak to occur in the 20th century, killing one million people worldwide and about 100,000 people in the US alone.

According to Encyclopaedia Brittanica, it’s believed that 1957’s Asian Flu pandemic may have given rise to the 1968 pandemic through a process called “antigenic shift,” in which there are small changes to the genes of a flu virus which can lead to changes in the surface proteins of a virus—HA (hemagglutinin) and NA (neuraminidase)—which

ease Control and Prevention (CDC): Sporadic: When a disease occurs infrequently and irregularly.

Endemic: A constant presence and/or usual prevalence of a disease or infection within a geographic area. (Hyperendemic is a situation in which there are persistent, high lev-

Two examples come to mind: HIV and typhoid fever (stay with us here). HIV is clearly a huge problem, but, says Dr. Jones, it’s not necessarily an epidemic in the US right now.

“Since there have been 50,000 new cases of HIV each year in the US, and this number has been pretty stable for decades, there’s

els of disease occurrence.)

Epidemic: A sudden increase in the number of cases of a disease—more than what’s typically expected for the population in that area.

Pandemic: An epidemic that has spread over several countries or continents, affecting a large number of people.

As far as epidemics go, they’re considered such on a case-by-case basis, says Dr. Jones.

not really an HIV epidemic in the US — because we are getting the ‘expected’ number of cases,” he says.

Typhoid fever, on the other hand, sickened 51 people in Long Island in 1906. It’s an extremely small number, comparatively speaking, but at the time and in that specific area, 51 cases of typhoid fever was a dramatic enough spike to be considered an epidemic.

Sometimes, an epidemic stays contained to

The most recent flu pandemic in the US, initially known as “swine flu,” occurred in 2009 with a novel influenza virus, H1N1, not previously identified in either animals or humans, per the CDC. The virus was actually first detected in the US, and spread quickly cross the US and the world. According to the CDC, between April 12, 2009 and April 10, 2010, there were 60.8 million cases, 274,304 hospitalizations, and 12,469 deaths (range: 8868-18,306) in the US due to the virus. The CDC also estimated that up to 575,400 people died worldwide.

According to the CDC, the 2009 flu pandemic primarily affected children and middle-aged adults (older adults had immunity, likely from a previous exposure to a similar H1N1 virus). And while the pandemic officially ended on August 10, 2010, the (H1N1) pdm09 virus continues to circulate as a seasonal flu virus, causing illness, hospitalization, and deaths worldwide every year.

HIV/AIDS

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) were first discovered in the early 1980s. AIDS was first detected in American gay communities but it’s thought to have developed from a chimpanzee virus from Africa in the 1920s. Now, according to the most recent data from the CDC from 2006, it’s grown to pandemic proportions, with an estimated 65 million infections and 25 million deaths worldwide. New treatments, however, have allowed more people to live with HIV, and about 1.1 million Americans currently have the disease, according to government data. An estimated 38,000 new HIV infections still happen in the U.S. each year.

Source: health.com

Epidemic Vs. Pandemic: What Exactly Is the Difference?

They’re both pretty terrifying—here’s what to know about each.

By Kasandra Brabaw (March 13, 2020) he worldwide coronavirus outbreak has officially been declared a pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced March 11 during a media briefing. According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, the decision to classify COVID-19 as a pandemic was not easy but resulted from concern for “the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction.”

That word—pandemic—is enough to induce widespread panic, and with good reason: According to the WHO, a pandemic is the worldwide spread of a new disease.

“A pandemic is when an epidemic spreads between countries,” says David Jones, MD, PhD, a professor of the culture of medicine at Harvard University. In the case of COVID-19 specifically, the WHO said that it’s the first pandemic caused by a coronavirus.

In the grand scheme of things, a pandemic is the highest possible level of disease, or a measure of how many people have gotten sick from a particular disease and how far it has spread—but before a common illness reaches pandemic proportions, it has to exceed a few other levels, according to the Centers for Dis-

T

a specific area—but when it extends into other countries or continents, and epidemic turns into a full-blown pandemic. That was the case in 2009 when the WHO declared the swine flu (caused by the H1N1 flu virus) a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern”—aka a pandemic.

When an epidemic crosses over into pandemic, the biggest difference is that more governments are involved in attempting to prevent the progression of the disease and, potentially, treat the people who have it.

According to the CDC, the FDA may begin issuing “emergency use authorizations” (EUAs) during a pandemic, which allows doctors to use medications outside of the FDA-approved use. During the swine flu pandemic, the FDA issued EUAs for two antiviral drugs to attempt to prevent the flu in young children and to treat patients who’ve had symptoms for more than two days (which Tamiflu is not prescribed for).

Still, the edges of these definitions are a bit blurred. Technically, an epidemic only refers to infectious diseases, but it’s also been applied to non-diseases, like gun violence and opioids. Similarly, what constitutes a pandemic is also a bit unclear. If we were to stick stringently to the definition, every illness that crosses the border from one country into another is a pandemic. Source: health.com

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M I D D LE

EAST

Who is Mustafa al-Kadhimi, Iraq’s new prime minister?

Al-Kadhimi is viewed as pragmatic as well as having good relations with main players across Iraqi political spectrum.

Iraq’s new Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi took office after the country’s parliament approved a new government on Wednesday following nearly six months of political wrangling.

The parliament approved 15 ministers out of a prospective 22-seat cabinet in a vote of confidence. Five candidates were rejected while voting on two ministers was postponed, leaving seven ministries still empty, including the key oil and foreign affairs po-

sitions.

Two previous nominees for the role of prime minister - Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi and Adnan al-Zurfi - failed to secure enough support among cabinet ministers.

This led to President Barham Salih appointing al-Kadhimi as prime minister-designate last month as the third candidate to form a cabinet, amidst a backdrop of anti-government protests.

The protests began in October 2019 after thousands of Iraqis took to the streets and called for the overhaul of what they said was the country’s political and corrupt ruling

elite. Heavy-handed responses by the government security forces, which killed hundreds of protesters, forced then Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi to resign, although he remained in a caretaker role until Allawi was appointed in early February.

Before the voting session on the new cabinet on Wednesday, al-Kadhimi said his government would be a “solution-based, not a crisis government”. He promised early elections and rejected the use of Iraq as a battleground by other countries. rationalising spending and negotiating to The prime minister also pledged to address restore Iraq’s share of oil exports. the repercussions of the economic crisis by Source: aljazeera.com

Israeli defence minister says construction approved in settlement of Efrat could accommodate 7,000 housing units.

Israel has announced a plan for thousands of new Jewish settlement homes in the occupied West Bank as Washington voiced readiness to back de facto Israeli annexations there.

United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo plans to visit Israel next week, a source said, a sign that he is weighing in on a territorial issue that has been a centrepiece of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s

coalition-building efforts. Netanyahu wants to ally with political rival Benny Gantz and start cabinet discussions on July 1 about declaring Israeli sovereignty over settlements and the strategically key Jordan Valley in the West Bank. The unity government deal has been contested in Israel’s top court.

Fresh construction for the settlement of Efrat was approved on land that could accommodate around 7,000 housing units, Defence Minister Naftali Bennett’s office said on Wednesday. “The building momentum in the country must not be stopped, even for a second,” tweeted Bennett, a religious-nationalist in Netanyahu’s current caretaker government.The settlements are deemed illegal by most world powers and condemned by the Palestinians, who see all the West Bank, which Israel captured in a 1967 war, as part of their future state. The US has offered to recognise Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank as part of a proposal US President Donald Trump unveiled in February, which also envisages talks on founding a Palestinian state in up to 70 percent of the

territory.

Pompeo planned to visit Israel for one day next week and meet Netanyahu, a conservative, as well as the centrist Gantz, a person briefed on the trip said, without elaborating on the agenda. The US Department of State had no immediate comment.

The newspaper Israel Hayom quoted US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman as saying that sovereignty in the West Bank and the Jordan Valley was “an Israeli issue” and adding: “We are ready”.

In separate remarks to the Jerusalem Post newspaper, Friedman reiterated a call for Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking: “The expectation is that the prime minister will agree to negotiate and, if the Palestinians show up, he will negotiate in good faith based on this [Trump] plan.”

The Palestinians say the plan is biased against them, and have boycotted Washington’s mediation efforts since it recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in late 2017.

“The Trump Administration’s Annexation

plan endorses everything that the illegal Israeli colonial-settlement enterprise is about: A racist narrative, violations of international law and the perpetuation of the denial of Palestinian rights,” Palestinian official Saeb Erekat said. Al Jazeera’s Nida Ibrahim, reporting from Ramallah, said Palestinians on the ground no longer view the US as an honest broker in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

“Israel is now using its special relationship with the US President Donald Trump to try to get away with whatever they can in terms of violating international laws. The Palestinians have been saying they want an international conference where different players take part in ending the conflict as they don’t trust US being an honest,” she said.

“Palestinians are saying that they’ve been left alone and not only on the official level but the Palestinians on the ground have been saying that they’ve seen settlements growing and settler attacks have also been on the rise.”........

Source: aljazeera.com

President says restrictions to be lifted ‘calmly, gradually’ but warns Iranians should also prepare for ‘bad scenarios’.

Iran will reopen mosques in areas consistently free of the new coronavirus on Monday as the sanctions-hit country starts to ease restrictions aimed at containing the spread of the pandemic.

Health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said 47 people died of the virus over the past 24 hours, the lowest daily count in 55 days. He told a news conference he hoped “the trend will continue in the upcoming days”. President Hassan Rouhani said in a televised statement on Sunday that 132 counties, about one-third of the country’s administrative divisions, will “reopen their mosques as of tomorrow”.

“Social distancing is more important than collective prayer,” he continued, arguing

that Islam considers safety obligatory, while praying in mosques is only “recommended”.

With mosques closed and religious gatherings banned since mid-March, ordinary Iranians have turned to drive-in theatres for ceremonies during the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

State TV and videos on social media showed people in their cars watching a religious ceremony on a big screen in a car park in the capital, Tehran.

Downward trend Iran is one of the worst-hit countries in the Middle East.

Iran restaurant industry hit hard by COVID-19 But the health ministry said on Saturday the trajectory of infections had started a “gradual” downward trend in Iran, where the death toll is 6,203 and the total number of diag-

nosed cases has reached 97,424.

Rouhani said hospital visits over potential infections were “much lower” compared to recent weeks.

Experts and officials both in Iran and abroad have cast doubts over the country’s officials figures, saying the real number of cases could be much higher than reported.

Iran has already lifted a ban on inter-city trips and malls, with large shopping centres resuming activities despite warnings by some health officials of a new wave of infections. School and university closures were maintained, and cultural and sports gatherings are also still banned, though Rouhani said the plan was for some schools to reopen soon.“The schools in the white and low-risk areas will reopen from May 16... However, we will continue to review the situation,” he said. Only “high-risk” businesses such as

gyms and barber shops remain closed.

“We will continue the reopenings calmly and gradually,” Rouhani said. Yet he warned Iran should also prepare for “bad scenarios”, saying “this situation may continue into the summer”. Source: Al Jazeera And News Agencies (aljazeera.com)

Around 80 percent of Yemen’s population, or 24 million people, rely on aid, and 10 million are facing famine. The United States on Wednesday announced it would provide $225m in emergency aid to Yemen to support food programmes, and called on the Houthis to do more to allow aid operations to operate “independently and neutrally”.

US Secretary of Mike Pompeo told a news conference that the funding Washington is committing would go to the UN World

Food Programme’s (WFP) emergency food operation in southern Yemen, as well as its reduced operation in northern Yemen. The WFP said it was going to halve the aid it gives to people in parts of Yemen controlled by the Houthi movement from mid-April after donors cut funding over concerns the Houthis are hindering aid deliveries.

Yemen is already grappling with the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis caused by a war between the Saudi-led coalition seeking to restore the internationally recognized government, and the Houthi movement that drove the government from power in Sanaa in late 2014. In a conference call with reporters, officials with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US State Department said while there has been some limited progress in aid operations recently, Houthis still needed to do more for funding to return.

The steps included “concrete actions to re-

move impediments including approvals, or travel permits to deliver aid, on partner agreements halting interference in the selection of beneficiaries and allowing agencies to operate independently and neutrally on the basis of need,” said Richard Albright, a deputy assistant secretary at the US State Department. “Certain barriers have been beginning to move, but it’s been much more in the theoretical and talking stage, and we haven’t seen a lot of action,” said Matt Nims, deputy director of USAID’s Office of Food The WFP said it was going to halve the aid it gives to people in parts of Yemen controlled by the Houthi movement from mid-April after donors cut funding over concerns the Houthis are hindering aid deliveries.

Yemen is already grappling with the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis caused by a war between the Saudi-led coalition seeking to restore the internationally recognized government, and the Houthi movement that

drove the government from power in Sanaa in late 2014.

In a conference call with reporters, officials with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US State Department said while there has been some limited progress in aid operations recently, Houthis still needed to do more for funding to return. The steps included “concrete actions to remove impediments including approvals, or travel permits to deliver aid, on partner agreements halting interference in the selection of beneficiaries and allowing agencies to operate independently and neutrally on the basis of need,” said Richard Albright, a deputy assistant secretary at the US State Department. “Certain barriers have been beginning to move, but it’s been much more in the theoretical and talking stage, and we haven’t seen a lot of action,” said Matt Nims, deputy director of USAID’s Office of Food for Peace. Source: aljazeera.com)

Israel plans thousands of new settlement homes

Coronavirus: Iran set to reopen mosques in low-risk areas

US announces $225m in emergency food aid to Yemen

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Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

india

Why Arabs are speaking out against Islamophobia in India?

Anger in Gulf region as right-wing Hin- with more than 1,000 deaths. dus target Muslims, accusing them of a Arabs flag hateful posts Following the Jamaat issue, a wave of Is‘conspiracy’ to spread coronavirus.

I

By Bilal Kuchay n the past couple of weeks, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the Kuwait government, a royal princess of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as well as a number of Arab activists have called out Islamophobic hate speech by Indians seen to be accusing the country’s Muslims of spreading the novel coronavirus.

A barrage of tweets and statements from individuals and institutions in the Gulf expressing their outrage over the hateful social media posts forced the Indian government to respond, including a Twitter post by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which he stressed that “COVID-19 does not see race [or] religion”.

It started with right-wing Hindus accusing Muslims of a “conspiracy” to spread the coronavirus after dozens of cases were linked to a congregation of Tablighi Jamaat, a Muslim missionary movement, at their headquarters in New Delhi in the middle of March.

Hashtags such as #CoronaJihad trended for days on Twitter and panellists in TV debates called them “human bombs”, while many called for a ban on Jamaat. Its New Delhi office has been sealed. On April 19, India’s Ministry of Home Affairs said more than 4,000 of the nearly 15,000 cases detected until that day were linked to the Jamaat, whose chief Mullah Saad Kandhalvi was charged with “culpable homicide” and money laundering and is likely to be arrested.

On Thursday, the total number of coronavirus cases in India was more than 33,000,

lamophobic posts was unleashed on social media by right-wing Hindus, some of them employed in Gulf countries.

Dubai-based Indian, Saurabh Upadhyay, asked Muslims to “accept they were the source of the pandemic” and called for the death of Jamaat members, describing them as “terrorists”. He deleted his tweets after social media users in the Gulf and India called him out. An old tweet by Tejasvi Surya, a young member of parliament belonging to Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), also resurfaced, provoking further outrage.

In his 2015 post, Surya had quoted a Canadian-Pakistani writer as claiming that “95 percent of Arab women have never had an orgasm in the last few hundred years”.

“ Such Islamophobic comments are particularly hurtful when originating from individuals who have lived and worked in the Gulf .”

“The level of hubris of the Hindutva fascists shocked people throughout the world, changing previously held opinions,” Dr Farhan Mujahid Chak, who teaches political science in the Gulf Studies programme at Qatar University, told Al Jazeera.

Princess Hend al-Qassimi, a member of the UAE royal family, warned “openly racist and discriminatory” Indians in the Gulf that they “will be fined and made to leave” the country.

In the past month, at least six Hindus working in the Gulf region have lost their jobs or have been charged for their social media posts. About 8.5 million Indians live and

UPCOMING EVENTS

MFB Warehouse, 104-12941 115th Street, Surrey BC

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work in Gulf countries, a significant number of them Hindus.

India’s trading relations with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE - has transformed considerably over the years, with the bilateral trade volume surpassing the $100b mark.

“Every year, more than $55bn are transferred to India from the Gulf countries, and more than 120 billion annually from all Muslim countries. Indians (mostly Hindus) are treated well in these countries,” Kuwait-based activist Abdur Rahman Nassar tweeted.

“In return, how are Muslims treated in India?” he asked.

Another Kuwait national, lawyer and director of International Human Rights group, Mejbel al-Sharika, tweeted that he will “adopt the cause of Muslims in India” at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva “for free”.

Diplomatic tensions

On Monday, in what was a clear sign of the issue escalating in the Arab world, Kuwait expressed its “deep concern” over the treatment of India’s Muslims and asked the Organisation of International Cooperation (OIC) to intervene.

“Did those who commit crimes against humanity against Muslims in India and violate their rights think that Muslims in the world will remain silent about these crimes and do not move politically, legally and economically against them?” a statement by the general secretariat of the Kuwait Council of Ministers said.

Earlier, on April 18, the OIC had issued a statement, urging India to take urgent steps to “stop the growing tide of Islamophobia” in the country.

A day after the OIC statement, Modi tweeted: “COVID-19 does not see race, religion, colour, caste, creed, language or borders before striking. Our response and conduct thereafter should attach primacy to unity and brotherhood. We are in this together.”

In the week after Modi’s call for communal harmony, at least three Indian embassies in the Gulf region - Qatar, the UAE and Oman - tweeted about the shared values of “tolerance” and “pluralism” between India and the Arab world.

‘Country of particular concern’ ● ● ● ● ●

Princess al-Qassimi, who has emerged as one of the most prolific Arab voices against Islamophobia in India, last week wrote a column for the Gulf News, in which she said: “The world doesn’t need another Hitler, but it needs another hero like Martin Luther,

Nelson Mandela, or Gandhi.”

“Killing your brethren doesn’t make you a hero, it makes you a dictator and murderer.

A snowballing movement has been started, which has reverberated across the Arab world,” she wrote in her piece, titled I pray for an India without hate and Islamophobia.

On Sunday, Mohan Bhagwat, the chief of the far-right Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), in an apparent reference to the Jamaat congregation in New Delhi, said in an online speech from the group’s headquarters in Nagpur that it was “not right to blame the entire community for the mistakes of few individuals”. The RSS is the ideological mentor of Modi’s BJP. Sultan Barakat, director of the Centre for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies at Qatar’s Doha Institute, told Al Jazeera that people in the Gulf countries “felt outraged” over the way Indian Muslims were being blamed for the coronavirus pandemic.

“Such stupid assertions angered people here, not only because it is Islamophobic but more importantly, because it is counterproductive to a global pandemic that is blind to religion and recognises no borders,” he said.

“Millions of Indians have been living in Arab countries for decades with hardly any discrimination against Indians - Hindu, Muslim or any other. Such Islamophobic comments are particularly hurtful when originating from individuals who have lived and worked in the Gulf.”

India’s former ambassador to the UAE, Talmiz Ahmed, called the Indians who posted comments against the Arabs and Muslims in India “extremely foolish individuals with very limited knowledge of politics or international affairs”.

However, BJP spokesman GVL Narasimha Rao told Al Jazeera the issue will not have a negative effect on India’s relationship with the Arab countries. “Because it is part of a propaganda and not real,” he told Al Jazeera.

“This is part of anti-India and anti-Hindu propaganda by inimical elements.”

Rao’s optimism appeared to be shortlived.

On Tuesday, in its worst rating since 2004, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom urged the State Department to designate India as a “country of particular concern” over “severe violations” of religious freedom.

Although India rejected the US report, calling it “biased”, it will be hard for the country’s Hindu nationalist government to ignore a growing global concern over the targeting of India’s Muslims. Source: aljazeera.com

16

Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

K A S H M IR / M . E A S T

‘Normalcy’ in Kashmir will be ‘peace of the graveyard’

By: SANJAY KUMAR India trying to change the demography of the region, says journalist Geelani NEW DELHI: Gowhar Geelani has become the second Srinagar-based journalist to be charged under India’s anti-terrorism law in the past few days, fueling concerns among Kashmiri reporters that authorities in the Indian-administered region are stepping up attempts to silence all critical voices.

“India wants to establish the peace of a graveyard in Kashmir by silencing indigenous voices and demonstrating a false sense of normalcy in the region,” Geelani told Arab News in an exclusive interview on Thursday.

“The larger aim seems to be to silence the articulate civil voices in Kashmir — it is not an attack on me or any other journalist, it is an assault on the institution of journalism and civility,” he said.

On April 22, Geelani was booked by Srinagar police under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), which allows authorities to designate individuals as terrorists.

Police said in a statement that they had received information from sources that: “An

individual named Gowhar Geelani was indulging in unlawful activities through his writings on social media.”

“Is asking question or expressing opinion in democracy an act of terror? It is bizarre and concocted and motivated,” said the journalist, who has been recognized for his book “Kashmir: Rage and Reason,” which was released last year.

On April 21, Srinagar-based photojournalist Masrat Zahra was booked under UAPA for engaging in “anti-national activities” on social media. In the same week, another Kashmiri journalist, Peerzada Ashiq, who works for prominent national daily The Hindu, was booked on charges that one of his recent stories was “factually incorrect and could cause fear or alarm in the minds of the public.” According to Geelani, the silencing of journalists will not be limited to Kashmir but will spread across the whole country. “The authoritarian mindset cannot act democratically and will use the instrument of the state to muzzle opinions and the press elsewhere in the country also,” he said.

Questioning of journalists has intensified following India’s decision to revoke Article

370 of the Indian constitution, a 70-year-old provision that had given autonomy to the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

New Delhi took away the state’s special status on Aug. 5, 2019, leading to a subsequent curfew and a complete lockdown in the area.

“Such acts show nervousness on the part of the government which took away the semiautonomous status of Kashmir, and despite all the harsh measures it is not able to restore normalcy in the state,” Geelani said, adding that there was “a larger design in pursuing such political agenda” when the world was preoccupied with containing the danger of the coronavirus pandemic.

“The government is bringing new domicile law making provisions for outsiders to settle in the region, changing names of places and attempting delimitation of legislative constituencies in the state that will change the political centrality of Kashmir,” he said, explaining that such interventions only boost radical voices at the cost of moderate ones.

“People have not accepted the changes that New Delhi brought in. How long will you suppress the voice of the people through troops on the ground? There is anger. The moment there is some space available, people will react. It is the lull before the storm.”

Source: aljazeera.com

Saudi Arabia dollar bonds pressured after Moody’s downgrade

Saudi Arabia dollar bonds pressured after Moody’s downgrade Saudi Arabian government dollar bonds posted losses on Monday after the finance minister said Riyadh would have to take painful measures to deal with the impact of the coronavirus and Moody’s downgraded the country’s ratings outlook.

Moody’s cut Saudi Arabia’s outlook to negative from stable on May 3, citing higher fiscal risks due to the crash in oil prices and uncertainty about the government’s ability to offset oil revenue losses and stabilise its debt in the medium term. By 07:36 GMT on Monday, Saudi Arabia’s 35-year bonds due in 2055 had lost 1.4 cents to trade at 89.8 cents on the dollar, while its 40-year bonds due in 2060 shed 1.6 cents to trade at 98.2 cents on the dollar, Refinitiv data showed.

The country saw steep losses on its other bonds as well, while most other sovereign bonds in the Gulf region saw smaller losses in early trade and some even strengthened

marginally.

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed alJadaan said on Saturday the government “must reduce budget expenditures sharply” and that the effect of the new coronavirus on Saudi Arabia’s state finances would be felt from the second quarter of the year.

Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc (MUFG), in an analyst report on Monday, said large fiscal deficits could put pressure on the country’s credit rating and borrowing costs.

MUFG said it expected Saudi Arabia’s economy as measured by real gross domestic product (GDP) to contract 3.2 percent this year, its worst performance since 1999. It also forecast public debt would rise to 31.6 percent of the GDP - the highest since 2005 - and foreign reserves would fall by up to $47bn.

Saudi Arabia’s large capital buffers will allow it to weather low oil prices over the medium term, the bank said in its note, also

commending the kingdom’s forward guidance to markets regarding its policy responses to the economic shock.

Saudi Arabia has imposed strict measures to stem the spread of the new coronavirus, including halting flights and imposing curfews. As of Sunday, the kingdom had reported 27,011 cases of the new coronavirus and 184 deaths, both the highest among the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

MUFG said the Saudi riyal’s peg to the US dollar remained “bullet-proof ” despite market fears over its long-term stability.

“While we expect the peg to be maintained, large fiscal deficits is likely to put pressure on the sovereign’s credit ratings and cost of funds, which could build vulnerabilities over the medium term,” the bank said.

An S&P Capital IQ model based on CDS

prices currently shows markets pricing Saudi Arabia as BBB-, just one notch above “junk”, or sub-investment grade as it is formally known.

Saudi Arabia is rated A by Fitch, A2 by Moody’s and A- by S&P. Saudi Arabia increased its debt ceiling to 50 percent of the GDP from a previous 30 percent in March and has already raised $12bn in international bonds this year.

Source: Reuters News Agency(aljazeera.com)

Which Middle East states have begun easing lockdown restrictions?

UAE, Jordan and Iran among countries On Sunday, President Hassan Rouhani said

132 counties, about one-third of the country’s administrative divisions, will “reopen their mosques as of tomorrow”. ”Social distancing is more important than collective prayer,” he continued, arguing that Islam considers safety obligatory, while praying in mosques is only “recommended”. Jordan On Sunday, Jordan lifted all restrictions on economic activity in the latest easing of coronavirus lockdown rules to help jump-start the cash-strapped economy.

Minister of Industry and Trade Tariq HamIran Iran - one of the worst-hit countries with mouri said businesses and industries would more than 6,200 official deaths - announced now be able to resume production. it will reopen mosques in areas consistently Public transport will be allowed to return to normal service with safety guidelines. Unifree of the coronavirus. in Middle East that have partially lifted coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

Many countries have started easing lockdown restrictions that were put in place to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

In the Middle East, several Gulf states have now relaxed their restrictions, including reopening malls with limited capacity.

Precautionary measures, such as wearing face masks and gloves while maintaining social distancing remain in place.

versities and schools will remain closed and Dubai police have said.

Saudi Arabia a night curfew will continue.

Bahrain On April 26, Saudi authorities confirmed Bahrain has made it mandatory to wear that wholesale and retail trade stores will be masks outdoors after easing some restric- allowed to resume activities during the twotions at the start of the Muslim fasting week period from April 29 until May 13, inmonth of Ramadan. It had previously an- cluding inside shopping centres and malls. nounced that shopping malls and some Retail stores and shopping malls reopened stores will reopen on April 9. last Wednesday on April 29 from 9am to United Arab Emirates 5pm local time.

Malls in the United Arab Emirates’s capital, Lebanon Abu Dhabi, began reopening to a restricted On Monday, Lebanon allowed restaurants to number of customers. open at 30 percent capacity during the day.

On Saturday, three malls in Abu Dhabi reo- But many business owners say they will not pened at 30 percent customer capacity after reopen because they would be losing more adopting safety measures, including install- money if they operate under such restricing thermal inspection devices, the govern- tions during a faltering economy. ment media office tweeted.

Cafes have been ordered to stay shut until The following day, commercial establish- June, along with clubs and bars. ments, including malls, salons and eateries Israel reopened in Sharjah.

On Sunday, a partial reopening of schools Commercial centres will operate from took place in Israel for the first time in seven 12pm to 9pm local time, while food stores weeks. and pharmacies will work around the clock. According to the education ministry, 80 Shoppers are required to wear face masks percent of schools in Israel reopened, but and gloves at all times. schools in Arab localities have not with According to state media agency WAM, some asking to delay the return until after members of the same family are allowed to Ramadan. travel in the same vehicle without getting Source: Al Jazeera News (aljazeera.com) fined for violating the three-people limit,

17 l i f e sty l e ‘How did we become enemies?’: Racism and reconciliation in Canada Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

many adversities encountered by Indigenous people.

“There’s no question the effects of colonisation are still happening. I think when you want to see it, you will begin to see it - with a bit of understanding. I see it more than ever,” he says.

Harmony through reconciliation

In one rural town with a history of racism, small efforts at reconciliation are underway - but will they be enough?

By: Brandi Morin (1 May 2020)

St Paul, Alberta - When Amil Shapka, 62, reflects on his hometown being referred to as racist, he grows defensive. St Paul, Alberta, is dear to his heart. The people here, he says, are closely connected and it is a good place to raise a family.

He is sitting at the kitchen table in his custom-built home on 500 sprawling acres parallel to a lake. Life here is good for Amil.

“I’m a proud St Paulonian; I sing its praises!” he declares with a bright smile. “I’m proud of our community, despite its warts and blemishes.”

Then he bows his head a little and sighs.

“We have real issues here,” he says.

“Every second day in the local media you read about it. All the communities are up in arms. Properties are being broken into.

They’re chasing people down the back roads and all the vehicles end up on the reserves … things are escalating.”

Among non-Indigenous residents of the area, he says, residents of Saddle Lake Cree Nation and other nearby Indigenous communities are being blamed for rising rates of property crime.

“Visibly, a lot of these events that are happening are by Indigenous-looking people,” he says.

But Amil does not hold any anger toward local Indigenous people. ’Our own worlds’ Growing up in the area, Amil had a couple of First Nations friends, but really did not know much about the Indigenous people living nearby.

“They [First Nations] lived on the reserves, we lived in town and our worlds never mingled,” he recalls.But he knew what most townspeople thought of the First Nations.

“Sometimes our parents would threaten that if you didn’t behave, ‘we’re going to take you to the Indians’,” he says.

“The opinions of Indigenous people we had were of the ones that had addiction problems that ended up living in St Paul and they were on the street. They would be asking for money or drunk - they would not be viewed as a positive and were not welcome.”

But when he was in his 30s, the physicianturned-dentist began what he describes as a journey of spiritual transformation. He approached Cree elders and was stunned to discover how welcoming they were. He started participating in ceremonies, including the sweat lodge, on Saddle Lake Cree Nation.“I found a beautiful, simple spirituality that just made sense to me,” he explains. “It was just me and the creator.” He also forged friendships that have lasted to this day. The process of reconciliation that unfolded for Amil on the reservation accelerated after the release of Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) Final Report in 2015.

The TRC was intended to uncover the truth about what had happened in Canada’s residential schools.

Learning about the colonial roots of local history helped Amil better understand the

For the past four years, Amil has attended monthly meetings at the St Paul Mannawanis Native Friendship Centre (MNFC) with a small group of Indigenous and nonIndigenous community members searching for a way to create harmony through reconciliation.

The process has not been easy, he says. It is uncomfortable and awkward, for everyone.

“These are deep-rooted conflicts with no immediate solutions ... At our meetings, we try to break down why St Paul is racist. It’s a feeling of helplessness: What do we do?

Where do we start?”

Amil believes St Paul is no different to Winnipeg, Regina or other urban centres in Canada when it comes to issues of racism.

I think it’s anywhere there’s contact between the Indigenous communities and the colonials, it’s across the board,” he says, adding that it is important for people in positions of leadership to be involved in the reconciliation process.

A ‘heartbreaking’ journey

St Paul’s mayor, Maureen Miller, has worked toward reconciliation since she was first elected in October 2017.

Miller attended several anti-racism community meetings held in town and on the Saddle Lake reserve following an incident in the summer of 2017. Pamela Quinn, who is now a Saddle Lake band councillor, was crossing a road with her mother when a young man called them a “squaw”. Quinn confronted the man and his friends while recording it live on Facebook.

Tensions unfolded among townspeople and outraged Indigenous residents when the post went viral.

Miller met with chiefs, elders and community members over several months to help defuse the situation.

Since then the topic of reconciliation has been at the top of her priority list. She describes her journey toward understanding reconciliation as “heartbreaking”.

When Miller first moved to St Paul from Ontario in 1996, she says she was grabbed on Main Street by a First Nations man who wanted her necklace. Even though she was frightened, she says she defused the situation and the man let her go. When she found him not long after and learned that he was a residential school survivor, her eyes were opened. “He was a good person, just fell on bad times,” she says.

Still, Miller, small in stature but feisty and outspoken, is quick to defend the townspeople from accusations of racism.

“It’s an unfair assessment. It isn’t all racist.

Everyone can’t be painted with the same brush,” she insists, describing St Paul as “welcoming, vibrant and multicultural.”

Miller is proud of a reconciliation walk that took place three years ago, following a series of racist incidents like the one targeting Pamela. Hundreds of young people, adults and elders from St Paul and the surrounding area took part.

The town now provides Indigenous cultural training to local government employees and local businesses. Miller participates in Indigenous ceremonies when invited and advocates for outside support from the federal government to help Saddle Lake with issues like infrastructure.

She holds the federal government responsi-

ble for housing issues, poverty and violence on the reserve.

“I feel our [federal] government has failed at multiple levels. Ottawa needs to do better; we need to do better; we need to do this together,” she says.

Championing reconciliation, however, has also brought her her fair share of critics. She is aware that may affect her chances of being re-elected in the autumn of 2021, but says she does not worry about that.

“We need to get past the knee-jerk reaction of this. Our community is completely linked to our Indigenous communities around us, and you start with that education,” Miller explains.

But being an ally can be hard: she has limited resources as a municipal leader and is often scrambling for funding, and reconciliation requires money. Money for programming, events and awareness. She is, however, determined to keep the momentum going.

“We’re all together in this,” she stresses.

‘Righting the wrongs’

On the second Thursday of every month a dozen or so people share a potluck dinner while sitting together in the shape of a circle.

A sharing circle is considered a safe place for unity, dialogue and respect in Cree culture.

A few Metis, a couple of First Nations, some townspeople of Filipino, Ukrainian and French heritage introduce themselves and say where they are from and why they are there. A couple of jokes break the ice but the conversation quickly turns intense.

“How did we become enemies?” contemplates 67-year-old, first-time attendee Anthony Tkachyk, a farmer from the nearby hamlet of Ashmont who has lived in the area his whole life.

He is here because a friend who has attended several meetings encouraged him to come and because he is interested in unpacking the intricate layers of reconciliation.

Anthony is firm in his opinions, but amiable in his willingness to help bring change. A respectful silence settles upon the room as he speaks.

“My belief,” he says, “is that the healing won’t be imposed from above - from levels of government like Ottawa or Edmonton, the county office or the town office - it will be from the people. “It will be one on one and it will move up towards those higher political offices.

“It won’t be imposed on the people; the people will impose it on the politicians.” Stories, opinions and suggestions are eagerly exchanged in the circle. There are business owners, mothers, fathers, farmers, a homeless man named Howard, a teacher and even the local priest participating. But not everyone is at the same stage of understanding or reconciling. For lawyer and St Paul resident Pierre Lamoureaux it is about “righting the wrongs”. “It’s important to give a message of peace, not of pity,” says Pierre, almost pleadingly, in a bid to convince others to embrace the task earnestly.

He delivers an impassioned speech.

“We give a message of solidarity. Walking together, learning together. We need to open our hearts, mouths, eyes and get past our fears. To learn from the past to know how to better live together.” Sometimes at the end of the meetings, which normally last for about two hours, hugs are exchanged and friendships formed during informal chats.

The group hopes to catch on.

“Meeting each other as humans at this table and treating each other as humans, I think that’s the measure of success. We need people who would never want to come here, to come here,” Pierre reflects.

‘Feel the pain’

Meanwhile, Hinano Rosa, the executive director of the Mannawanis Native Friendship Centre Society in St Paul, says he is not convinced the group is making progress.

“What’s going on in Canada is the biggest kept secret on the planet!” he declares, sitting among others at the MNFC. “The continuing oppression of Indigenous peoples and reconciliation is a colonial package.”

Hinano, 61, is Indigenous to Hawaii and says he is familiar with the oppression Canada’s Indigenous people face. He would like to see non-Indigenous Canadians go beyond “superficial” acts of reconciliation, like community walks and monthly meetings, he says. It is time to “feel the pain,” he explains, reaching his arms out in front of him and bringing them back toward his heart.

“Indigenous peoples have been muzzled for a long time. So, when we get in these kinds of meetings they [Indigenous] want to say their piece - and it’s heavy. But then the others [non-Indigenous] want to shut the meeting down because they don’t want to go there. They don’t want to hear it. They don’t want to get hurt. The truth is, they only got to feel the hurt - there are people here that had to live the hurt … but we will help them [non-Indigenous] - they won’t feel the hurt alone.” Some in the group are optimistic, others are cautious and a few want reconciliation to happen overnight.

Many Indigenous elders, residents and nonIndigenous allies, however, say that reconciliation may not happen in this generation or the next on the Canadian prairies. Still, in St Paul small efforts are underway.

‘Still starving our people’

Back on the reserve, Saddle Lake Chief Eric Shirt believes reconciliation is connected to equality. He believes the word is used too loosely and with too little action to back it up. The Province of Alberta, for instance, should distribute a cut of natural resource development revenues back to Indigenous tribes, he says.

Alberta has earned billions from industries such as oil and gas, mining and forestry since it was established in 1905, the chief explains. It is the richest per-capita province in the country, and has helped build the wealth of Canada. But most First Nations are struggling here.“These are resources that come from our lands. Reconciliation means we have access to those resources and to profit,” he adds, reiterating the urgent housing, food and economic needs of his community.

There other obstacles to reconciliation as well. On March 27, two Metis men were killed while hunting near Glendon, which is about 60km away from Saddle Lake. A local non-Indigenous man has been charged with two counts of second degree murder and while the Alberta RCMP has said the shootings were not racially motivated, Indigenous people in the area say there has been a long history of tensions over race and hunting rights.

For the chief, reconciliation seems like a farce. Canada’s policy of genocide against the Indigenous rages on, he says.

“We are seeing the policy today via a lack of funding ... the government is still starving our people out.”

Source: aljazeera.com

18

Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

SOCIAL

What happens if a coronavirus vaccine is never developed?

It’s happened before

By Rob Picheta, CNN

A

s countries lie frozen in lockdown and billions of people lose their livelihoods, public figures are teasing a breakthrough that would mark the end of the crippling coronavirus pandemic: a vaccine.

But there is another, worst-case possibility: that no vaccine is ever developed. In this outcome, the public’s hopes are repeatedly raised and then dashed, as various proposed solutions fall before the final hurdle.

Instead of wiping out Covid-19, societies may instead learn to live with it. Cities would slowly open and some freedoms will be returned, but on a short leash, if experts’ recommendations are followed. Testing and physical tracing will become part of our lives in the short term, but in many countries, an abrupt instruction to self-isolate could come at any time. Treatments may be developed -but outbreaks of the disease could still occur each year, and the global death toll would continue to tick upwards.

It’s a path rarely publicly countenanced by politicians, who are speaking optimistically about human trials already underway to find a vaccine. But the possibility is taken very seriously by many experts -- because it’s happened before. Several times.

“There are some viruses that we still do not have vaccines against,” says Dr. David Nabarro, a professor of global health at Imperial College London, who also serves as a special envoy to the World Health Organization on Covid-19. “We can’t make an absolute assumption that a vaccine will appear at all, or if it does appear, whether it will pass all the tests of efficacy and safety.

“It’s absolutely essential that all societies everywhere get themselves into a position where they are able to defend against the coronavirus as a constant threat, and to be able to go about social life and economic activity with the virus in our midst,” Nabarro tells CNN. Most experts remain confident that a Covid-19 vaccine will eventually be developed; in part because, unlike previous diseases like HIV and malaria, the coronavirus does not mutate rapidly.

Many, including National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Dr. Anthony Fauci, suggest it could happen in a year to 18 months. Other figures, like England’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty, have veered towards the more distant end of the spectrum, suggesting that a year may be too soon.

But even if a vaccine is developed, bringing it to fruition in any of those timeframes would be a feat never achieved before.

“We’ve never accelerated a vaccine in a year to 18 months,” Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, tells CNN. “It doesn’t mean it’s impossible, but it will be quite a heroic achievement.

“We need plan A, and a plan B,” he says.

When vaccines don’t work?

In 1984, the US Secretary of Health and Human Services Margaret Heckler announced at a press conference in Washington, DC, that scientists had successfully identified the virus that later became known as HIV -- and predicted that a preventative vaccine would be ready for testing in two years.

Nearly four decades and 32 million deaths later, the world is still waiting for an HIV vaccine.

Instead of a breakthrough, Heckler’s claim was followed by the loss of much of a generation of gay men and the painful shunning of their community in Western countries.

For many years, a positive diagnosis was not

only a death sentence; it ensured a person would spend their final months abandoned by their communities, while doctors debated in medical journals whether HIV patients were even worth saving.

The search didn’t end in the 1980s. In 1997, President Bill Clinton challenged the US to come up with a vaccine within a decade.

Fourteen years ago, scientists said we were still about 10 years away.

The difficulties in finding a vaccine began with the very nature of HIV/AIDS itself. “Influenza is able to change itself from one year to the next so the natural infection or immunization the previous year doesn’t infect you the following year. HIV does that during a single infection,” explains Paul Offit, a pediatrician and infectious disease specialist who co-invented the rotavirus vaccine.

“It continues to mutate in you, so it’s like you’re infected with a thousand different HIV strands,” Offit tells CNN. “(And) while it is mutating, it’s also crippling your immune system.”

HIV poses very unique difficulties and Covid-19 does not possess its level of elusiveness, making experts generally more optimistic about finding a vaccine.

But there have been other diseases that have confounded both scientists and the human body. An effective vaccine for dengue fever, which infects as many as 400,000 people a year according to the WHO, has eluded doctors for decades. In 2017, a large-scale effort to find one was suspended after it was found to worsen the symptoms of the disease.

Similarly, it’s been very difficult to develop vaccines for the common rhinoviruses and adenoviruses -- which, like coronaviruses, can cause cold symptoms. There’s just one vaccine to prevent two strains of adenovirus, and it’s not commercially available.

“You have high hopes, and then your hopes are dashed,” says Nabarro, describing the slow and painful process of developing a vaccine.

“We’re dealing with biological systems, we’re not dealing with mechanical systems. It really depends so much on how the body reacts.”

Human trials are already underway at Oxford University in England for a coronavirus vaccine made from a chimpanzee virus, and in the US for a different vaccine, produced by Moderna.

However, it is the testing process -- not the development -- that holds up and often scuppers the production of vaccines, adds Hotez, who worked on a vaccine to protect against SARS. “The hard part is showing you can prove that it works and it’s safe.”

Plan B

If the same fate befalls a Covid-19 vaccine, the virus could remain with us

for many years. But the medical response to HIV/AIDS still provides a framework for living with a disease we can’t stamp out.

“In HIV, we’ve been able to make that a chronic disease with antivirals. We’ve done what we’ve always hoped to do with cancer,” Offit says. “It’s not the death sentence it was in the 1980s.”

The groundbreaking development of a daily preventative pill -- pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP -- has since led to hundreds of thousands of people at risk of contracting HIV being protected from the disease.

A number of treatments are likewise being tested for Covid-19, as scientists hunt for a Plan B in parallel to the ongoing vaccine trials, but all of those trials are in very early stages. Scientists are looking at experimental antiEbola drug remdesivir, while blood plasma treatments are also being explored. Hydroxychloroquine, touted as a potential “game changer” by US President Donald Trump,

has so found been found not to work on very sick patients.

“The drugs they’ve chosen are the best candidates,” says Keith Neal, Emeritus Professor in the Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases at the University of Nottingham. The problem, he says, has been the “piecemeal approach” to testing them.

“We have to do randomized controlled trials. It’s ridiculous that only recently have we managed to get that off the ground,” Neal, who reviews such tests for inclusion in medical journals, tells CNN. “The papers that I’m getting to look at -- I’m just rejecting them on the grounds that they’re not properly done.”

Now those fuller trials are off the ground, and if one of those drugs works for Covid-19 the signs should emerge “within weeks,” says Neal. The first may already have arrived; the US Food and Drug Administration told CNN it is in talks to make remdesivir available to patients after positive signs it could speed up recovery from the coronavirus.

The knock-on effects of a successful treatment would be felt widely; if a drug can decrease a patient’s average time spent in ICU even by by a few days, it would free up hospital capacity and could therefore greatly increase the willingness of governments to open up society.

But how effective a treatment is would depend on which one works -- remdesivir is not in high supply internationally and scaling up its production would cause problems.

And crucially, any treatment won’t prevent infections occurring in society -- meaning the coronavirus would be easier to manage and the pandemic would subside, but the disease could be with us many years into the future.

What life without a vaccine looks like?

If a vaccine can’t be produced, life will not remain as it is now. It just might not go back to normal quickly.

“The lockdown is not sustainable economically, and possibly not politically,” says Neal.

“So we need other things to control it.”

That means that, as countries start to creep out of their paralyses, experts would push governments to implement an awkward new way of living and interacting to buy the world time in the months, years or decades until Covid-19 can be eliminated by a vaccine.

“It is absolutely essential to work on being Covid-ready,” Nabarro says. He calls for a new “social contract” in which citizens in every country, while starting to go about their normal lives, take personal responsibility to selfisolate if they show symptoms or come into contact with a potential Covid-19 case.

It means the culture of shrugging off a cough or light cold symptoms and trudging into work should be over. Experts also predict a permanent change in attitudes towards remote working, with working from home, at least on some days, becoming a standard way of life for white collar employees. Companies would be expected to shift their rotas so that offices are never full unnecessarily.

“It (must) become a way of behaving that we all ascribe to personal responsibility ... treating those who are isolated as heroes rather than pariahs,” says Nabarro. “A collective pact for survival and well-being in the face of the threat of the virus.

“It’s going to be difficult to do in poorer nations,” he adds, so finding ways to support developing countries will become “particularly politically tricky, but also very important.” He cites tightly packed refugee and migrant settlements as areas of especially high concern.

In the short term, Nabarro says a vast program of testing and contact tracing would

need to be implemented to allow life to function alongside Covid-19 -- one which dwarfs any such program ever established to fight an outbreak, and which remains some time away in major countries like the US and the UK. “Absolutely critical is going to be having a public health system in place that includes contact tracing, diagnosis in the workplace, monitoring for syndromic surveillance, early communication on whether we have to reimplement social distancing,” adds Hotez.

“It’s doable, but it’s complicated and we really haven’t done it before.”

Those systems could allow for some social interactions to return. “If there’s minimal transmission, it may indeed be possible to open things up for sporting events” and other large gatherings, says Hotez -- but such a move would not be permanent and would continually be assessed by governments and public health bodies.

That means the the Premier League, NFL and other mass events could go ahead with their schedules as long as athletes are getting regularly tested, and welcome in fans for weeks at a time -- perhaps separated within the stands -- before quickly shutting stadiums if the threat rises. “Bars and pubs are probably last on the list as well, because they are overcrowded,” suggests Neal. “They could reopen as restaurants, with social distancing.” Some European countries have signaled they will start allowing restaurants to serve customers at vastly reduced capacity.

Restrictions are most likely to come back over the winter, with Hotez suggesting that Covid-19 peaks could occur every winter until a vaccine is introduced.

And lockdowns, many of which are in the process of gradually being lifted, could return at any moment. “From time to time there will be outbreaks, movement will be restricted -- and that may apply to parts of a country, or it may even apply to a whole country,” Nabarro says.

The more time passes, the more imposing becomes the hotly debated prospect of herd immunity -- reached when the majority of a given population, around 70% to 90%, becomes immune to an infectious disease.

“That does to some extent limit spread,” Offit says -- “although population immunity caused by natural infection is not the best way to provide population immunity. The best way is with a vaccine.”

Measles is the “perfect example,” says Offit -- before vaccines became widespread, “every year 2 to 3 million people would get measles, and that would be true here too.”

In other words, the amount of death and suffering from Covid-19 would be vast even if a large portion of the population is not susceptible.

All of these predictions are tempered by a general belief that a vaccine will, eventually, be developed. “I do think there’ll be vaccine -- there’s plenty of money, there’s plenty of interest and the target is clear,” Offit says.

But if previous outbreaks have proven anything, it’s that hunts for vaccines are unpredictable. “I don’t think any vaccine has been developed quickly,” Offit cautions. “I’d be really amazed if we had something in 18 months.” Source:: msn.com/en-ca

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womeN

Essential Steps

Finding the Balance

4. Write your success stories

While we may just want to become lazy during this time, it’s our habits that will keep us sane and connect us back to our regular lives. Starting a new habit (like reading or exercising) is easier if you designate a space for the specific activity. Leaving reminders around your house to make starting the habit easier (like keeping books near your bed, desk, or tv). Finally, even if you can only devote five minutes to a new habit every day, that’s a great way to start.

Having said that, taking a break from being productive to regroup your thoughts can make the whole quarantine situation a little more bearable. It breaks the monotony and it ensures that you am not neglecting your mental well being. I know it is too much to expect everyone to be cheerful these days or even put up a brave face. Our emotions are often not in our control. What is indeed in our control is to take a break whenever needed and to hit a pause on our thoughts.

This is the least we can do for ourselves, and for sure we all deserve it. Find a balance in your lockdown :) info at: asmashums@gmail.com

One reason we may not like ourselves is we are too focused on what we don’t have that we forget about what we have.

So make a list of your achievements; write your success stories. They do not have to be big, there are a lot of small but By: Asma Shums, By: Shabnam Khan, Family Counsellor important achievements in our life. For examt has been many weeks since we are all e often focus on building relationple, if you have some good friends, that’s already ships with others that we forget confined to our home. Currently, we an achievement. If you have a good family, that the essential first step: being a true don’t know how long this quarantine is also an achievement. friend to yourself. That is the crucial first step will last and when will we be finally be able if we are to have good relationships with oth- 5. Stop comparing yourself with others to head out. So lets try and make the best of You are unique.

You can never be like other ers. How can we have good relationships with the situation we have at hand. others if we don’t even have good relationship people, and neither can other people be like According to the experts at the World you.

The way you measure your success is not with yourself? determined by other people and what they Health Organization, one of the best things 1. Forgive yourself achieve.

Instead, it is determined by your own we can all do is stay healthy and fit. The viYou may have made those mistakes in the past, but is there anything you can do about them? life purpose. You have everything you need to rus can be lethal to people who have carYou can definitely learning from them. It’s true achieve your life purpose, so it’s useless to com- diovascular problems, obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure. Exercising and healthy that you are not perfect, but neither is anybody pare yourself with others. else. It’s normal to make mistakes, so do your- 6. Always be true to yourself eating can help with all these conditions You don’t like other people lying to you; simiself a favor by giving yourself forgiveness. larly, you won’t like yourself if you know that and better prepare us if we were to get sick.

2. Accept things you can’t change A lot of us are out of work or working at There are some things you cannot change, such you are lying to yourself. Whether you realize home and I believe this is the time to init or not, that gives your mind a reason not to as your background and your past. So learn to vest in the health of your body. It is a great accept them. You will feel much relieved if you like yourself. That’s why it’s important to always way to support our physical health, mental be true to yourself.

In whatever you do, be hontreat things you can’t change the way they deest and follow your conscience.

Remember health and to strengthen our immune sysserve: just accept them, smile, and move on. this quote by Abraham Lincoln: “I desire so to tems to handle this virus. There are many 3. Focus on your strengths Instead of focusing on your weaknesses, fo- conduct the affairs of this administration that youtube channels with home workouts that cus on your strengths. You always have some if at the end…I have lost every other friend on can be easily followed by everyone at home! strength which give you a unique combination earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and 2020 RELIEF: When you work at a bank and two guys with nobody else have. Recognize your strengths that friend shall be down inside of me” a mask come in, but they’re just robbing the bank info: shabnam@skcounselling.ca and build your life around them.

Nose & mouth are declared as the new private parts of the body until further orders, keep them covered in public Congratulations to everyone, you have completed two months without maids, junk food, shopping, life goes on without support system and now you are promoted to the next month.

I

W

Remembering the first woman to fly solo around the world

M

By: Rita Mock-Pike ost people have never heard the name Jerrie Mock, but the Ohio housewife was a world record setter and my grandmother.

Fifty-six-years ago today, a woman from Ohio became the first woman to fly solo around the world.

No, you are not doing the maths wrong. I am not talking about that other, much more famous, female American aviator. I am talking about Jerrie Mock, private pilot, housewife - and my grandmother.

When she left for her round-the-world adventure, she was dubbed The Flying Housewife by the media. She was a 38-year-old mother of three who had wanted to fly around the world since she was a little girl.

When she and her husband, Russell, discovered that no other woman had done it yet, they immediately started the process of filing the paperwork to officially seek the world record.

Jerrie and Joan

About six weeks later, however, another woman - a younger, professional pilot - attempted to file her own paperwork. That woman was Joan Merriam Smith.

Jerrie’s 750 hours of flying seemed unlikely to hold up against Joan’s thousands. Joan took off two days before Jerrie. But as Jerrie had filed the paperwork first and only one person

may officially attempt a record of this kind at any one time, assuming Jerrie made it, she would be the first on record. But if Joan beat her to it, she could still take the unofficial title.

“The newspapers liked to make a big deal about the race. It wasn’t really a race,” my grandmother told me on many occasions.

In 2012, I conducted several interviews with Jerrie, asking for details that she had not included in her book, Three-Eight Charlie.

“What would you do differently, Grandma?

What scenes would you add?” I asked.

“I would [show] more of what went on back home [while I was flying]. Russ talking on the phone and shouting at me wherever I was in Africa and him lying about what Joan had done,” she told me.

“She was ... stuck in South America. He told me she was doing all these things - but she wasn’t. She was stuck with leaky gas tanks.

He said, ‘She’s flying places every day. She’s going to beat you.’ He made me so angry I almost quit!”

Suspicions of sabotage On March 19, 1964, Jerrie left Ohio’s Port Columbus airport in Charlie, her 11-yearold single-engine plane.

Charlie had needed some new equipment to be ready for the flight ahead. There was new radio equipment and all but the pilot’s seat had had to be removed to make way for the additional fuel tanks needed to fly over the open ocean.

Jerrie was using some cutting-edge technology. Ken Richter had recently invented the Richter gauge for detecting ice in the carburettor. “There was a tendency to get carburettor ice, and that would freeze up and the engine would quit because it couldn’t get

gas,” she explained to me.

Richter sent Jerrie one of the gauges, which she had installed. But, being new technology, adjustments had to be made. “One of the mechanics there put it in … he put it [where] the old gauge [should go] and it wasn’t working. I had to go back ... and they put it in the right place.”

There were several other mishaps as Jerrie prepared Charlie for the flight.

“We were flying down to Cincinnati and [Russ] was in a rush to park. He turned around quickly and hit the fence with the tail. They put a piece of metal over the tail … It didn’t look so good,” she recalled. “[A newspaper] interviewed me and Charlie and took a picture of the tail Russ had bent.”

Then there was the problem with one of the radios, and another with the oil filter.

“There were minor odds and ends that didn’t get shipped … but the oil [filter], that was the one that would really have been a problem,” she told me.

“Russ was trying to get [the plane] to swing around … and in the process … all of a sudden oil starts pouring out of the plane. They took it apart and discovered that the new oil filter had been replaced by [an] old one. If I had taken off with that, I would have been killed. That was the most dangerous thing.”

She suspected someone had tampered with it in a bid to sabotage her efforts, but with no evidence and no idea who, when she shared stories of it with her family, she referred only to “the bad people”.

The flight But the preparations were the least of Jerrie’s worries. When she took off from Ohio, she had 21 stops and nearly 37,000km (22,860 miles) ahead of her. Her first leg was through the Bermuda Triangle. As she left radio range, she heard the operator say: “Well, I guess that’s the last we’ll see of her.”

“I wasn’t entirely sure he was wrong!” My grandmother often chuckled as she recounted the tale.

“I had never flown over open water before.

And I was going to fly all the way around the world. But hey, I accomplished two out of three lifelong dreams. That’s pretty good for ‘just’ a woman, [as they called me].”

The flight took her through the Azores, North Africa, the Middle East, Asia and back through the Pacific Islands. Along the way, she encountered people who could not comprehend a woman making this journey by herself; some who opposed it and others who, although surprised, received her with open arms.

She recalled how, when she landed in Saudi Arabia, the guards sent by Prince Faisal to inspect the plane, wondered: “Where is the man?”

When a search of the cockpit turned up no one else, the hundreds of people surrounding the tarmac cheered. They paraded her around so everyone could “see the lady pilot”.

In other places, they were not so impressed.

In Manila, the capital of the Philippines, she said her instructions on how to return the fuel tanks to their proper place were ignored, so they had to do it all over again.

“They didn’t believe that I knew what I was talking about.”

The flight took 29 days, ending on April 17, 1964. Source: www.aljazeera.com

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Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

health

People who are at high risk for severe illness from COVID-19

W

hile diseases can make anyone sick, some Canadians are more at risk of developing severe complications from an illness due to underlying medical conditions and age. If you are at risk for complications, you can take action to reduce your risk of getting sick from COVID-19.

Who is at high risk?

People with medical conditions including: Heart disease Hypertension (high blood pressure) Lung disease Diabetes Cancer People with weakened immune systems from a medical condition or treatment, such as chemotherapy Older adults

Be prepared

Learn about COVID-19 and stay informed by visiting www.canada.ca/coronavirus.

Visit your provincial/territorial and municipal health websites to keep up-to-date about COVID-19 in your community.

Stock up on the supplies you would need if you were to have to stay home for a few weeks, such as groceries, pet food and cleaning products.

Talk with your health care provider about how to protect yourself and ensure you have enough of your prescribed medications and medical supplies.

Prepare to stay connected with others by phone or email.

Ask family, a neighbour or friend to help with

essential errands (e.g., picking up prescriptions, buying groceries).

Identify which services are available to deliver food or medications to your home.

Monitor yourself for symptoms.

How to reduce your risk of COVID-19

If possible, only leave your home for medically necessary appointments.

Stay away from people who are sick.

Avoid contact with others, especially those who have travelled or been exposed to the virus.

If contact cannot be avoided, take the following precautions: keep at least 2 metres between yourself and the other person Give a friendly wave instead of a handshake, kiss or hug keep interactions brief Clean hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or, if not available, use alcohol-based hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol.

Avoid touching your mouth, nose, and eyes and/or food with your hands.

Carry alcohol-based hand sanitizer when you are outside of your home.

Avoid touching high-touch surfaces such as doorknobs, handrails and elevator buttons in public places.

If you need to touch surfaces in public places, use a tissue or your sleeve to cover your hand.

At least once daily, clean and disinfect surfaces that you touch often, like toilets, bedside tables, doorknobs, phones and television re-

motes.

To disinfect, use only approved hard-surface disinfectants that have a Drug Identification Number (DIN). A DIN is an 8-digit number given by Health Canada that confirms the disinfectant product is approved and safe for use in Canada.

When approved hard surface disinfectants are not available, for household disinfection, a diluted bleach solution can be prepared in accordance with the instructions on the label, or in a ratio of 5 millilitres (mL) of bleach per 250 mL of water OR 20 mL of bleach per litre of water. This ratio is based on bleach containing 5% sodium hypochlorite, to give a 0.1% sodium hypochlorite solution. Follow instructions for proper handling of household (chlorine) bleach.

If they can withstand the use of liquids for disinfection, high-touch electronic devices (e.g., keyboards, touch screens) may be disinfected with 70% alcohol at least daily.

Remind others who are sick, or may have been exposed to the virus, to stay away.

Avoid crowds and large gatherings.

Avoid cruises and non-essential travel outside of Canada.

If you develop a symptom, stay home and call your health care provider or local public health unit and tell them about your symptoms.

Always call ahead before going to see a health provider or health care facility so that they can keep others from being exposed.

The following symptoms should be considered urgent: significant difficulty breathing (e.g., can’t catch breath, gasping) chest pain or pressure new confusion or difficulty waking up What to do if you get a symptom of If you develop these urgent symptoms, call COVID-19 911 and inform them that you may have Symptoms of COVID-19 include: COVID-19 and are at high risk for a new cough or a chronic cough that gets complications. worse, or We can all do our part in preventing the a fever (greater or equal to 38°C or signs of spread of COVID-19. For more information: a fever like shivering, flushed skin, excessive Canada.ca/coronavirus or sweating), or contact 1-833-784-4397 difficulty breathing Source: www.canada.ca

Facts China is Trying to Suppress About the Origin of COVID-19

By Col. Lawrence Sellin (Ret.) May 3, 2020 A recently published scientific article states: “Due to the broad-spectrum of research conducted over almost 20 years on bat SARSCoV [severe acute respiratory syndrome coronaviruses] justified by their potential to spill over from animal to human, a possible synthetic origin by laboratory engineering of SARS-CoV-2 [COVID-19] is a reasonable hypothesis.”

China would like that hypothesis erased from the public consciousness.

The Chinese government, the media and some scientists are desperately trying to convince the public that COVID-19 is a naturally-occurring disease, which was transmitted from animals to humans in the Wuhan Seafood Market.

If COVID-19 leaked from a laboratory, the political and economic consequences for China are enormous.

If it was man-made and leaked from a laboratory, the implications are too grim for many to imagine.

The argument that COVID-19 is naturally-occurring is based nearly entirely on a single, but widely-cited Nature Medicine article entitled “The Proximal Origin of SAR-CoV-2.”

That conclusion stems primarily from a structural analysis comparing COVID-19 with bat and pangolin (scaly anteater) coronaviruses suggesting a natural evolutionary process in which COVID-19 mutated in an

animal population and acquired the ability to infect humans.

Such a scenario does occur and it appears to be the origin of a number of animal-borne coronavirus infections in humans.

Based on the evidence provided in the much-cited Nature Medicine article, however, that conclusion is not obvious.

Although COVID-19 bears a striking structural similarity to the bat coronavirus RaTG13, the critical receptor binding domain, which initiates attachment to human cells, is closer to pangolins.

It is highly unlikely that the bat RaTG13 coronavirus and the pangolin coronavirus combined naturally through a process called reassortment because it would require simultaneous infection of the two viruses in the same animal cell.

It could, however, have been accomplished in a laboratory.

As the recently-published scientific article notes, a new “chimeric” or combined RaTG13-pangolin coronavirus strain could have been created through an artificial recombinant event, using well-established bioengineering methods.

Another possible indication of genetic manipulation is the presence of a furin polybasic cleavage site in COVID-19 as represented by the PRRA amino acid insertion, which does not exist in any of the bat or pangolin close relatives and is completely “out of frame” compared to the bat RaTG13 and pangolin sequences.

Perhaps not coincidentally, the furin polybasic cleavage site in COVID-19 occurs in the precise location known to enhance pathogenicity and transmissibility in viruses.

Methods for the insertion of a olybasic cleavage site in infectious bronchitis coronavirus have been described by Chinese scientists and that artificial genetic alteration resulted in increased pathogenicity.

In parallel, animal models for the addi-

How did coronavirus get its name?

ATLANTA - It’s practically impossible viruses that cause diseases like SARS, to go even an hour without hearing the MERS and COVID-19.

As is often the case in the scientific world, word coronavirus.

T

hat’s all anyone has been able to talk coronavirus’ name is Latin. In the ancient about since it spread from mainland language, corona means crown.

According to Queensland Health, virions give China to five other continents.

But where did the name come from? off the appearance of a crown when the virus For starters, Cervecería Modelo is delighted is examined with an electron microscope. to tell you coronavirus did not come from its As for the new disease caused by the coronavirus, it was originally called novel coropopular Corona beer brand. navirus. In February, the World Health OrIt’s crucial to understand the difference between a virus and disease. Colloquially, ganization gave us the name COVID-19.

The CO stands for corona. VI is for virus. the phrases are used interchangeably.

In a more literal sense, viruses cause dis- And D means disease. eases. The word coronavirus is more of an The 19 is for 2019, the year the disease first appeared in China. Source: ktvu.com umbrella term that refers to a group of

tion of structures important to the function of coronaviruses, called O-linked glycans, have been used by Chinese scientists at the Chongqing Military Medical University, as well as animal models to specifically select for the human angiotensin converting enzyme-2 receptor, the entry step for COVID-19 infection.

There is no doubt that China has the knowledge and technology to have created COVID-19. Whether that actually was done is yet to be determined and should be undergoing vigorous scientific investigation.

Lawrence Sellin, Ph.D. is a retired U.S. Army Reserve colonel, who previously worked at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and conducted basic and clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. His email address is lawrence.sellin@gmail.com.

The views expressed in CCNS member articles are not necessarily the views or positions of the entire CCNS. They are the views of the authors, who are members of the CCNS. Source: ccnationalsecurity.org

21

Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

special

For Arab women and girls, the crisis is just beginning

By Lina AbiRafeh

The coronavirus presents an opportunity to help women overcome daily social injustices, but only if we take it.

The current pandemic has had an unprecedented global impact - we are all affected by this collective crisis. And yet, the virus and its aftermath will discriminate more strongly against those who were already marginalised, namely women and girls. In the Arab region, where I now work, women were vulnerable before the crisis. And their crisis is just beginning.

I have spent my career as a humanitarian aid worker in insecure environments around the world, supporting women to mitigate the risks they face in those settings - notably as a result of a more hidden global pandemic, violence against women. Everywhere I have worked - from Afghanistan to Mali to Haiti - women and girls suffer more. It does not matter whether this is due to a conflict, a natural disaster or an epidemic.

Already volatile prior to COVID-19 due to socioeconomic instabilities and protracted humanitarian crises, the Arab region is uniquely affected by this global pandemic, with more than 62.5 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.

In the Arab region, nearly half of the female population of 84 million is not connected to the Internet nor has access to a mobile phone. This, coupled with alarming literacy rates - approximately 67 percent of women and 81 percent of men - means that women are disproportionately unable to access accurate information about the virus to help them prepare, respond and survive.

Amid this crisis, and combined with the continuing conflicts and economic collapse, violence against women is increasing. For many women and girls, being quarantined safely is a luxury. Based on anecdotal evidence and reporting by several Non-Governmental

Organisations (NGOs) in Lebanon, under lockdown the number of reported cases of violence against women rose by 100 percent during the month of March.

Similarly, live-in migrant domestic workers (almost always women) are exposed to unique risks stemming from the nature of their jobs. The travel ban and other restrictions further harm their livelihoods and ability to support family members in their countries of origin. Additionally, they cannot leave the house and are therefore working around the clock often without the right to rest. The abuse they suffer - sexual, physical, psychological, economic - is heightened as a result of the additional stress of deteriorating economic conditions and health risks.

Refugees are another disproportionately affected group. Female refugees, in particular, are no strangers to discrimination. Lack of funding due to the pandemic has compromised their survival. Even more than before, refugees are considered a threat by host communities and are shunned due to fears that the virus will spread through the camps, placing the host country at greater risk.

Women in conflict zones face additional risks during this pandemic. In both Syria and Yemen, the healthcare infrastructure has been decimated by years of armed conflict - with 67 attacks on hospitals in Syria in over a year and constant attacks on health facilities and medical personnel in Yemen.

The informal and community-based nature of women’s work in conflict zones also means an inherent lack of financial stability and access to formal, professional roles in society. In Yemen, at least there is momentum and strong organising for feminist peacebuilding and the inclusion of women in official peace talks and conflict mitigation processes.

The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to result in the loss of 1.7 million jobs in the Arab

US could see 3,000 daily deaths as economy reopens : Live updates Data and modelling by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows infections could rise to 200,000 by June.

by Kate Mayberry , Farah Najjar & Ramy Allahoum.

The United States could see up to 3,000 deaths per day from the coronavirus by June 1, according to documents obtained by The New York Times. The United States could see up to 3,000 deaths per day from the coronavirus by June 1, according to documents obtained by The New York Times.

As the US government’s pushes to reopen the crippled economy, the US Centers for

Disease Control (CDC) data and modelling shows 200,000 infections could be the reality at the start of next month, leading to thousands of daily deaths.

The White House disputed the findings.

“This is not a White House document nor has it been presented to the Coronavirus Task Force or gone through interagency vetting,” said spokesman Judd Deere.

“This data is not reflective of any of the modeling done by the task force or data that the task force has analysed.”

Source: aljazeera.com

Coronavirus research updates: Even laypeople could use this new test to detect the coronavirus Nature wades through the literature on requires expensive lab equipment and scarce the new coronavirus — and summarizes reagents. The team’s CRISPR-based protocol can be performed by a layperson with ackey papers as they appear.

7 May — Even laypeople could use this new test to detect the coronavirus A test that uses a CRISPR gene-editing system can detect the new coronavirus in an hour, without the need for specialized equipment or trained personnel. Feng Zhang at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and his colleagues sought to develop a test for SARS-CoV-2 that would be quicker and simpler than the current procedure, which

cess to a sous vide cooker, a piece of kitchen equipment that is commonly available for less than US$40 (J. Joung et al. Preprint at https://go.nature.com/35csgqk; 2020). The test makes results available on paper strips similar to those used in pregnancy tests. The results have not yet been peer reviewed.

The team says the test could be used in doctors’ offices, workplaces and other settings where fast diagnosis is necessary.

Source: nature.com

region, including approximately 700,000 jobs held by women. But female participation in the labour market is already weak, with high unemployment among women reaching 19 percent in 2019, compared with 8 percent for men.

Projections indicate that the informal sector will be particularly impacted by the pandemic. In the Arab region, women perform nearly five times as much unpaid care work as men while approximately 61.8 percent of active women work in the informal sector and will, therefore, suffer disproportionately.

Women are the majority of the world’s healthcare practitioners and family caretakers, performing unpaid labour and exposing themselves to infection in order to care for a sick child, an elderly family member or a needy member of the community.

In Lebanon, 80 percent of nursing staff are female. More than half of these are now working with reduced salaries and longer hours, rather than being properly compensated and protected. In every emergency I have worked in, women are the ones whoknow who is in need, what they need and how to get it to them. They are the world’s social safety net.

If women are once again left out of leadership roles in the response to the pandemic, the patriarchal consolidation of power in these areas will have devastating effects on

women’s rights, equality and autonomy. This requires a robust feminist response, guaranteeing women’s right to information, to healthcare, to choose. Because when others decide for a woman, she faces discrimination and violence. In short, her own life is at risk.

A feminist response to this pandemic must work to undo rather than magnify oppression and the very systems that place women at higher risks in times of crisis, with the recognition that simply existing as a woman is a form of crisis. Simply, a woman’s right to decide must be at the heart of the response to this pandemic.

Life will undoubtedly be different in the aftermath of the pandemic. And, for the majority of women, their challenges do not end when the crisis is resolved. For women and girls, the crisis is just beginning.

In the Arab region, this presents an opportunity to implement feminist policies and ensure that women’s rights organisations and feminist activists have the tools and resources they need to advocate and act on behalf of women and girls.

Centring women in the response will enable the region to better withstand future shocks.

In short, when women lead, we all benefit.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

Source: aljazeera.com

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Ramdan 15, 1441H May 8, 2020

22 Pak i sta n 26-year-old doctor dies due to coronavirus in Rawalpindi A 26-year-old female doctor passed away from the coronavirus at Rawalpindi’s Holy Family hospital, it emerged on Saturday.

The hospital’s medical superintendent, Dr Shehzad, confirmed that the young doctor died due to Covid-19. He revealed that Dr Rabia Tayyab had complained about mild flu and cough symptoms on April 20 which the doctors declared as “normal fever”.

When her condition worsened after four days, she was brought to the Holy Family Hospital. She was put on a ventilator but died on April 30.

The doctor hailed from Gujjar Khan in Rawalpindi and was the daughter of renowned teacher Mohammad Tayyab. She graduated from the Quaid-i-Azam Medical College in Bahawalpur and was due to start her house job from May 1.

Rising infections among healthcare workers

Her death emerged a day after data shared by the National Emergency Operation Centre revealed that at least 191 more healthcare providers and medical workers tested positive for the coronavirus within a week. The total number of infected medical workers in the country has risen to 444.

Read: Infections amongst healthcare workers increase by 75pc in a week The report showed that 216 doctors, 67 nurses and 161 healthcare staff tested positive across the country. Of these, 204 were in isolation at homes, 138 were admitted to hospitals while 94 had recovered from the disease. According to the report, which contained data up until April 29, eight healthcare workers had died from the coronavirus so far. The first known Covid-19 fatality among the local medical community occurred in Gilgit-Baltistan where a young

doctor, Usama Riaz, succumbed to the disease in March.

Early last month, Dr Abdul Qadir Soomro from Sindh became the province’s first Covid-19 fatality from the medical community.

Last week, a senior doctor at Peshawar’s Hayatabad Medical Complex passed away

from Covid-19. He had been working in the hospital’s coronavirus ward.

According to the report, three healthcare workers died from the virus in Sindh, two in Gilgit-Baltistan and one each in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Islamabad.

Source: dawn.com

sion within 14 days by May 20. However, the chairman is expected to convene the session next week when the National Assembly will already be in session so as to provide an opportunity to the ministers to divide their responsibilities and ensure their presence in both the houses.

Last sitting of the Senate was held on March 2 when the members had succeeded in fulfilling the constitutional requirement of keeping the house in session for at least 110 days in a parliamentary year after they met continuously for seven weeks.

House may see fireworks over Centre-Sindh differences on handling the situation The Senate’s parliamentary year begins on March 12 and the requisitioned session will be the first sitting of the new parliamentary year.

After attending a meeting of the special NA committee on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had announced that the government and the opposition had reached an understanding for convening the physical session of the assembly from May 11 under strict adherence to health guidelines and standard operating procedures.

The minister said the NA sittings would be

held on alternate days for a limited duration and only to hold a discussion on the current situation due to spread of Covid-19 in the country and the steps taken by the government to fight the pandemic.

Mr Qureshi had stated that there would be no question hour during the session. Similarly, he said call-attention notices and privilege and adjournment motions would also not be taken up during the session. As far as the attendance of the members was concerned, the minister said the issue had been left on the parliamentary leaders of the parties as they would decide as to which member would attend the sitting on a particular day.

He also disclosed that an understanding had been reached that quorum would not be pointed out during the sittings.

When contacted, parliamentary leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) in the Senate Sherry Rehman said so far the opposition had made no agreement with the government on issues like suspension of the question hour and other business, attendance and quorum. She said these issues would be discussed in the meeting of the House Business Advisory Commit­tee on

Friday (tomorrow).

According to the agenda submitted with the requisition notice, the opposition me­­mbers have sought a de­­bate on “the grave situation arising out of the coronavirus epidemic in Pakistan”.

The Senate is also expec­ted to see some fireworks over the differences between the Centre and the PPP-led Sindh government over the handling of the coronavirus situation as one of the agenda items shows that the opposition also wants to have a discussion on “the federal government’s policy on uniting the country at a time of serious emergency for Pakistan and its implications on the democratic and constitutional governance of the federation, including the role of parliament and its ongoing efficacy in the time of crisis”.

Similarly, the opposition wants the government to explain its policy and efforts for saving the lives of people across the federation and international border crossings with decisions based on transparent sharing of medical data amidst an alarming rise in Covid-19 cases.

Source: dawn.com

Opposition requisitions Senate session with virus-related issues on top of agenda

ISLAMABAD: A day after the government announced summoning of the National Assembly session on May 11, the opposition parties in the Senate on Wednesday submitted a requisition notice for convening the session of the upper house of parliament.

The opposition members have submitted the requisition notice under Article 54(3) of the Constitution with a five-point agenda, mainly seeking discussion on the situation related to coronavirus and its impact on the country’s economy.

Under the Constitution, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani is bound to convene the ses-

Murad orders random testing to check quantum of Covid-19 exposure

KARACHI: Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Wednesday directed the health department to start random testing of people at grocery and vegetable shops so that local spread of coronavirus could be checked and contained.

In a video message released from the CM House, he said that cases of local spread were increasing equally in urban and rural areas. He added that a villager recently visited Hyderabad and got himself infected there. “When he returned to his village he infected others. We checked his 30 relatives/ connections, of them nine were infected by him.” The CM said that he had decided to start random testing at grocery shops, vegetable shops and other such places where

people frequently go. He said that the random checking was aimed at monitoring the local spread so that a new strategy could be formulated to contain the virus further.

People visiting grocery, vegetable shops will be randomly selected for testing; nine more patients die in Sindh due to coronavirus “I have issued the directive and hope that the people will cooperate with the field staff of our labs,” he said. 451 new cases in Sindh Sharing the situation report of coronavirus, the CM said that 3,671 samples were tested overnight and 451 of them, or 12.3 per cent of the total tests, were diagnosed positive.

He said nine more people lost their lives while struggling against the infection. He said that the number of tests conducted so

far came to 72,544 against which 8,640 tested positive.

He said that a total of 157 patients, or 1.8pc of the total patients, had died so far due to the coronavirus.

“Yes, we have good news also that 60 more patients have been cured and discharged and now the number of patients who defeated the virus and recovered has reached 1,731, which is 20 per cent,” he said.

He said that 5,528 patients, or 82pc of the patients, were in home isolation, 721, or 10pc, were at isolation centres and 503 were at different hospitals.

He added that 89 patients were in critical new cases 327 cases belonged to Karachi — condition and 14 of them were on ventila- 68 in Central, 74 in East, 25 in Korangi, 26 tors. The chief minister said that out of 451 in Malir, 87 in South and 47 cases in West.

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22 Coronavirus Cases:

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Pakistan Last updated: May 8, 2020,@10:00 am Pk T