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Did Prophet Muhammad beat his wife, Aisha?

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Some missionary haters of Islam lie that Holy Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him, actually did beat his wife ‘Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her. Let us analyze the actual narration, they use and see what it really implies.

The narration they use comes from Sahih Muslim and it goes as;

Muhammad b. Qais said (to the people): Should I not narrate to you (a hadith of the Holy Prophet) on my authority and on the authority of my mother? We thought that he meant the mother who had given him birth. He (Muhammad b. Qais) then reported that it was ‘A’isha who had narrated this: Should I not narrate to you about myself and about the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him)? We said: Yes. She said: When it was my turn for Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) to spend the night with me, he turned his side, put on his mantle and took off his shoes and placed them near his feet, and spread the corner of his shawl on his bed and then lay down till he thought that I had gone to sleep. He took hold of his mantle slowly and put on the shoes slowly, and opened the door and went out and then closed it lightly. I covered my head, put on my veil and tightened my waist wrapper, and then went out following his steps till he reached Baqi’. He stood there and he stood for a long time. He then lifted his hands three times, and then returned and I also returned. He hastened his steps and I also hastened my steps. He ran and I too ran. He came (to the house) and I also came (to the house). I, however, preceded him and I entered (the house), and as I lay down in the bed, he (the Holy Prophet) entered the (house), and said: Why is it, O ‘A’isha, that you are out of breath? I said: There is nothing. He said: Tell me or the Subtle and the Aware would inform me. I said: Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be ransom for you, and then I told him (the whole story). He said: Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said: Yes. He struck me on the chest which caused me pain, and then said: Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you? She said: Whatsoever the people conceal, Allah will know it. He said: Gabriel came to me when you saw me. He called me and he concealed it from you. I responded to his call, but I too concealed it from you (for he did not come to you), as you were not fully dressed. I thought that you had gone to sleep, and I did not like to awaken you, fearing that you may be frightened. He (Gabriel) said: Your Lord has commanded you to go to the inhabitants of Baqi’ (to those lying in the graves) and beg pardon for them. I said: Messenger of Allah, how should I pray for them (How should I beg forgiveness for them)? He said: Say, Peace be upon the inhabitants of this city (graveyard) from among the Believers and the Muslims, and may Allah have mercy on those who have gone ahead of us, and those who come later on, and we shall, God willing, join you.

The wording used:

Consider the second highlight in the narration. This is the wording they seek evidence with. Now the Arabic wording for this is;

فَلَهَدَنِي فِي صَدْرِي لَهْدَةً أَوْجَعَتْنِي

“He struck (lahad) me on the chest which caused me pain.”

Now for the meaning of the word, ‘lahad’, let’s refer to Lane’s lexicon. He writes;

Edward William Lane, Arabic-English Lexicon p. 2676

So it simply means, ‘to push.’ Therefore the most appropriate translation ought to be, ““He pushed me [hard] on the chest which caused me pain.”

The context:

Although the narration is self explanatory but usually people miss the parts which explain the thing.

1- The Prophet, may Allah bless him, was with ‘Aisha, may Allah bless her that night. Archangel Gabriel came to him and asked to him to move to Baqi’ graveyard.

2- The Prophet, may Allah bless him, went out of the bed and moved to Baqi’.

3- ‘Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, curious as to where he had done, followed him and once he turned back she hastened before him and thus was out of breath.

4- When ‘Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, on being questioned told the Prophet, may Allah bless him, the whole story, he pushed her hard on her chest.

5- Although this pressing of the chest caused ‘Aisha, may Allah bless her, some pain but it was not intended as beating rather, it was only to ward off the wrong thought that had come to her heart. This is clear from the words of the Prophet, may Allah bless him; “Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you?” i.e. Allah will ask his Messenger to spend the night of Aisha’, may Allah bless turn, with some other wife.

Holy Prophet used to do it to ward off wrong thoughts:

There are more reports showing that Holy Prophet, may Allah bless him, used to do the same pushing and striking on chest to ward off wrong thoughts.

See the following two examples;

فَسَقَطَ فِي نَفْسِي مِنْ التَّكْذِيبِ وَلَا إِذْ كُنْتُ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ فَلَمَّا رَأَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَا قَدْ غَشِيَنِي ضَرَبَ فِي صَدْرِي فَفِضْتُ عَرَقًا وَكَأَنَّمَا أَنْظُرُ إِلَى اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فَرَقًا

“Ubbay said: There occurred in my mind a sort of denial which did not occur even during the Days of Ignorance. When the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him, saw how I was affected, was affected (by a wrong idea), he struck my chest. I broke into a sweat and felt as if I were looking at Allah in fear.” (Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1356)

Clearly the Prophet, may Allah bless him, did it to ward off the evil thoughts that occurred in the mind of Ubayy, may Allah be pleased with him.

Another narration goes as;

أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ضرب صدر عمر بن الخطاب بيده حين أسلم ثلاث مرات وهو يقول : « اللهم أخرج ما في صدره من غل وأبدله إيمانا

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him, hit the chest of Umar bin Khattab with his hand three times when he embraced Islam and he said, ‘O Allah remove the malice from his heart and replace it with faith.’” (Mustadrak al-Hakim, Hadith 4492. Hakim authenticated it)

Now obviously, his reversion to Islam was a great event and it is inconceivable that Prophet, may Allah bless him, would ‘beat’ him then. Even though the narration uses the word ‘dharab’ meaning ‘hit/strike’ no reasonable person that Holy Prophet, may Allah bless him, beat him. And clearly the context proves the Prophet did it to for the same reason as in the example above and in the Hadith in question.

Did Sayyidah Aisha think she was beaten?

If someone is still obstinate on his erroneous and dishonest assertion or is still confused, let us read as to what ‘Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, herself think. In the same compendium of Hadith, Sahih Muslim, there is a narration;

عَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ مَا ضَرَبَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ شَيْئًا قَطُّ بِيَدِهِ وَلَا امْرَأَةً وَلَا خَادِمًا إِلَّا أَنْ يُجَاهِدَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ

“Aisha reported that Allah’s Messenger, may Allah bless him, never beat anyone with his hand, neither a woman nor a servant, but only, in the case when he had been fighting in the cause of Allah …” (Sahih Muslim, Hadith 4296)

One can see, Sayyidah Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, is saying that Prophet, may Allah bless him, never beat any woman or a servant. After such a clear testimony from her, is it anything but intellectual dishonesty to assert to the contrary?

 

Indeed Allah knows the best!

Source:ICRAA.org

An Open Letter from Al Jazeera

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Doha-based network responds to a Saudi-led bloc’s attempt to shut down its global media operations.

Al Jazeera English is seen in more than 130 countries around the world [Reuters]

Over two decades ago, Al Jazeera Arabic was launched with a simple mission: to provide reliable information to viewers across the Arab world. Ten years later, in 2006, Al Jazeera English began broadcasting with the same mission – to provide people around the world with accurate, balanced and impartial information.

When Al Jazeera Arabic went on air in 1996, it was unique in the Arab world. Most media in the region at the time were state-controlled and often unchallenged mouthpieces for the different rulers and governments in the region. Al Jazeera was different, a truly independent voice, with a mission to hear and report the human stories that were otherwise ignored; to cover events with balance and integrity; and to hold power to account.

Al Jazeera Arabic quickly gained a huge and loyal audience across the region. The information we provided became a lifeline to millions of people who wanted to know what was really going on around them.

 

most watched news channel in the Arab world throughout its history. Al Jazeera Arabic channel has more viewers than the combined total of our main competitors.

Al Jazeera English is seen in more than 130 countries around the world, and is watched by tens of millions of people who respect our journalism.

The global audiences are loyal to the Al Jazeera brand because of our continuous commitment to journalism; our dedication to covering stories impartially; and our determination to tell stories with no agenda and with total integrity.

We at Al Jazeera believe in our mission: People have a right to be informed. They have a right to get news that is not controlled by the narrative of authorities.

They have a right to know what is going on in their world. Equally, people have a right to have a voice. To have their stories told when they deserve and need to be heard.

Freedom of speech – and the freedom for journalists to carry out their responsibilities – may be an accepted norm in many parts of the world, but it is a right, which is so often challenged for political gain in parts of the Arab world.

The right to be informed by reliable information is one of the foundations of a healthy society.

Al Jazeera Arabic first aired in 1996, followed 10 years later by its English-language affiliate [Al Jazeera]

‘Voice for the voiceless’

Throughout our long history, we have remained resolute in our commitment to storytelling, to balanced journalism, and to finding and covering stories. We have given a voice to the voiceless. We have shone a spotlight on the people and stories that would otherwise have remained in the dark. And we’ve always done so with responsibility and integrity.

Journalists from all regions of the world have joined Al Jazeera because they believe in the mission of good journalism, and the responsibility that goes with it. Every day we cover stories from around the Arab world, Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America.

We have more than 3,000 staff who are among the most talented and diverse in the world. Their commitment makes Al Jazeera what it is today.

We have bureaus in more than 70 locations around the globe, including our headquarters in Doha and broadcast centres in London and Washington, DC, staffed by journalists whose courage and work ethic is unwavering

They report on events first-hand. They report with integrity. They carry out their jobs with passion, and with responsibility. Their commitment to hear the voices of those caught up in events is available for all to see.

Our staff are our “fabric”. They ensure our journalism is of the highest quality, is impartial, and has integrity.

Our millions of viewers are a testament to the quality of our work. Every minute of every day, in tens of countries, on every distribution platform, millions of people choose Al Jazeera as their source of information.

If we did not have integrity, if we were not reliable, our audience are intelligent enough to judge and would switch us off. For more than 20 years they have remained loyal to Al Jazeera, and we have always remained loyal to them and true to their demands for information.

We have been accused of bias, of catalysing the Arab Spring, of having an agenda, and of favouring one group over another. We reject these allegations and our screens are a testament to our integrity.

All our coverage is on show online and on TV for anyone to see and scrutinise. By covering events such as the Arab Spring, we don’t create those events. And as is the role of good journalism, we don’t take sides, instead, we hold the powerful to account for the decisions they make.

Muzzling Al Jazeera

We were once accused of bias because Al Jazeera Arabic was the first Arabic channel to have Israeli politicians and commentators on the air. But what we were doing was ensuring we heard and challenged all relevant voices in a quest for good journalism.

We were accused of extremism when we interviewed members of the Taliban, but in fact we were asking the hard questions and ensuring we were challenging all sides of the story.

We defend the freedom of expression and believe in people’s right to knowledge. We take no sides. We are no one’s messenger or spokesperson and we never have been.

Al Jazeera – like all credible media organisations – has been challenged throughout its history. We have been criticised because our journalism shows what is really going on, and sometimes governments, corporations or individuals don’t want what they are doing to be seen.

Our offices have been closed in the past by certain countries who didn’t want the truth to be seen. Most recently by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Egypt.

The satellite TV and online signals distributing our channels have been blocked by governments to prevent their people from seeing our content.

Al Jazeera’s staff have been threatened, locked up, and killed as a consequence of carrying out their duties as journalists. Our colleagues in Iraq, Syria and elsewhere have paid the ultimate price while doing their jobs.

We have also reported on critical and perhaps embarrassing issues in Qatarwhen they arose, including the plight of workers on construction sites and accusations of rights violations.

We have covered stories that have been attacked by Bahrain, the UAE and Saudi Arabia because we showed what was really going on.

Egypt not only attacked Al Jazeera for its coverage, but also, shockingly, imprisoned and sentenced our colleagues, whose only crime was their commitment to great journalism.

Countries such as Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the UAE may silence their own media and their own people’s freedom to speak out, but because Al Jazeera is watched by so many people in the Arab world, they want us gone.

Al Jazeera says the ultimatum to close the network in 10 days would not affect its daily operation [Al Jazeera]

Reliable journalism

Despite the pressure being exerted on Al Jazeera by these countries, and their calls for our closure, we have covered the region and events with balance and with impartiality, and we will continue to do so.

We are a network that exists to cover all peoples; to hear human stories from all corners of the world; and to ensure that our information stands up to scrutiny in every country and from every person who watches or reads our news.

The attempt to silence Al Jazeera is an attempt to silence independent journalism in the region, and to challenge everyone’s freedom to be heard and to be informed. This must not be allowed to happen.

We are deeply proud of our journalism. We respect – and give thanks to – everyone we report about, and everyone we inform.

We remain resolute in carrying out our responsibility of providing reliable information, and giving those we cover a voice.

We are unwavering in our resolve to continue doing so, and we will proceed to tell the stories of the world from Kabul to Caracas and from Mosul to Sydney.

We will continue to do our job with integrity. We will continue to be courageous in the pursuit of the truth. And we will continue to respect people’s rights to be heard.

Source: Al Jazeera News

Remains found of kidnapped journalist Salvador Adame

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Salvador Adame, director of a local TV station, was abducted on May 18 in Mexico’s western state of Michoacan.

In May, there were 2,186 total number of murder probes in Mexico [Reuters]

A Mexican journalist who was kidnapped in May in the western state of Michoacan has been found dead, the sixth reporter killed this year in the country, officials announced.

A body discovered on June 14 was identified with DNA tests as that of Salvador Adame, a local television journalist who had been missing since he was abducted by gunmen last month, Jose Godoy, Michoacan chief prosecutor, told journalists on Monday.

Mexico has been the deadliest country for reporters in 2017, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

When Adame disappeared on May 18, CPJ issued a statement calling for his immediate release.

According to the news website Expansion, armed men forced Adame into an SUV vehicle and was driven away.

Adame worked as the director of the local television station 6TV, and had been working as a journalist for 20 years, when he was abducted.

In April, Adame and his wife, Frida Urtiz, were detained by police while covering a demonstration, according to CPJ. He also told CPJ that police beat him and his wife, while municipal officials looked on.

Adame’s wife, Frida Urtiz, spoke to reporters on June 1 regarding the abduction [Reuters]

Series of murders

Also in May, Javier Valdez, an award-winning reporter who specialised in covering drug trafficking and organised crime, was murdered in the state of Sinaloa.

In April, veteran reporter Maximino Rodriguez Palacios was “shot and killed” in the Baja California peninsula. Palacios also covered the police and crime beat.

Three other journalists covering organised crime in Mexico have been killed since March 3 – in Chihuahua, Guerrero and Veracruz states, according to officials and media groups.
Silencing journalists in Mexico

In early April, newspaper Norte de Ciudad Juarez announced it would cease publishing after 27 years in existence because of increasing insecurity.

Several journalists have also been wounded in armed attacks while others have fled their homes due to threats, the CPJ said.

In a 2017 report titled “No Excuse”, journalist Adela Navarro Bello wrote for the CPJ that “covering corruption in Mexico means living with impunity”.

“Between 2006 and 2016, 21 journalists were murdered with complete impunity in Mexico, putting the country sixth on CPJ’s annual index that measures cases where perpetrators remain unpunished,” Bello wrote.

“The system seems to be corrupt down to its very foundation; either that or it’s simply incapable of achieving justice.”

The overall number of murder investigations in Mexico also hit record levels in May as criminal violence increased dramatically since last year.

There were 2,186 murder probes last month, the highest for any month going back to 1997, according to government statistics.

Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies

Boko Haram attacks blamed for deaths in Nigeria, Chad

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Nine civilians are killed in suicide attacks in Nigeria’s Maiduguri, while eight troops die in raid in next-door Chad.

More than 20,000 people have been killed since Boko Haram launched its arm campaign [File: Reuters]

Suspected Boko Haram suicide bombers have struck the northeastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri, killing at least nine civilians, as the same armed group was also blamed for the death of eight soldiers in fierce fighting in neighbouring Chad.

The multiple attacks Maiduguri also left 13 wounded, police told the Reuters news agency on Monday, the latest in a spate of attacks in the region.

No group has officially claimed responsibility for the blasts in Maiduguri, but the use of suicide bombers in the region is a hallmark of Boko Haram.

Borno police said a male suicide bomber killed a security guard after entering the University of Maiduguri, near the city centre at 2120 GMT on Sunday.

READ MORE: Boko Haram – Behind the Rise of Nigeria’s Armed Group

Four female suicide bombers then killed eight people around an hour later on the outskirts of the city in Zannari community, after detonating devices in residential buildings.

Two female suicide bombers were the only people to die in two blasts at the University of Maiduguri on Monday morning at around 03:20 GMT.

“In all, 16 persons including the suicide bombers died in the multiple explosions while 13 persons were injured,” said the Borno Police commissioner, Damian Chukwu.

A number of suicide bomb attacks by suspected members of Boko Haram has taken place in the capital of Borno state and its neighbouring areas in the last few weeks, including blasts that killed 12 people on June 19 and a June 7 raid which left 14 dead.

On Friday, Nigeria’s state security agency also said it had foiled plans to detonate explosives in four northern cities – Maiduguri, Kano, Sokoto and Kaduna – during celebrations to mark the end of Islam’s holy month of Ramadan.

More than 20,000 people have been killed and over two million have fled their homes since Boko Haram launched an armed campaign in 2009 to create an Islamic state in northeast Nigeria.

Nigeria’s army, with the help of troops from neighbouring countries, pushed the group out of most of a swathe of land around the size of Belgium which it controlled until early 2015.

Nigeria’s army and UN troops have pushed Boko Haram from their territory in 2015 [File: Reuters]

Suicide attack, gun raids

But suicide bombings and gun raids in mostly busy public areas, such as mosques and markets, have continued in northeast Nigeria and neighbouring Cameroon and Niger.

The frequency of suicide bombings has increased in the last few weeks, although a large proportion of the attacks result in only the bombers being killed.

In neighbouring Chad, eight soldiers were killed when suspected Boko Haram fighters launched an attack over the weekend on islands on Lake Chad, the army told the Associated Press news agency on Monday.


Our forces attacked Boko Haram elements on five islands near Nigeria on June 24 and 25,” said Chad army spokesman Colonel Azem, indicating eight soldiers had died and another 18 were wounded.

He also said troops had killed 162 fighters and destroyed six vehicles along with many of the motorcycles often favoured by the group in their raids.

The claim of the military could not be independently verified.

Lake Chad  borders four countries on the edge of the Sahara: Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Nigeria.

Chad is part of a five-nation regional force – also comprising Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Benin – fighting Boko Haram.

On Sunday, Chad’s President Idriss Deby threatened to pull the country’s troops out of peacekeeping operations in Africa because of a lack of foreign financial support.

Chad has contributed 1,390 soldiers, the third-largest contingent to MINUSMA, the UN peacekeeping mission deployed in Mali in response to violence.

Source: News agencies

US Supreme Court agrees to hear Trump Muslim ban case

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Justices grant parts of administration’s request to put order into effect immediately while legal battle continues.

The Court said it will hear arguments in the case in October[File: EPA]

The Supreme Court of the United States says it will allow a partial enforcement of President Donald Trump’s ban on travellers from six Muslim-majority countries and all refugees until it reviews it in October.

The action on Monday was hailed as a win by the right-wing leader, who has insisted the ban is necessary for national security, despite severe criticism that it singles out Muslims in violation of the US constitution.

The justices at the highest US court narrowed the scope of lower court rulings that had completely blocked Trump’s March 6 executive order. They also agreed to hear the government’s appeals in the cases.

OPINION: The Muslim ban and the ethnic cleansing of America

Trump’s executive order suspends new visas being issued to people from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen for at least 90 days. It also partly allows a 120-day ban on all refugees entering the US to go into effect.

Both bans are now due to partly go into effect in 72 hours, based on a memorandum issued by the Trump administration on June 14.

In agreeing to hear the case later this year, the Supreme Court is allowing parts of the order to go ahead.

Specifically, the court said the executive order would be enforced on foreign nationals who did not have a “credible claim of a bona fide relationship” with a US person or organisation.

In effect, that means that individuals from the designated countries who have never been to the US before, or lacked a relationship with an American or American organisation could still have their visa denied during the three-month period.

But what a “bona fide relationship” exactly constitutes is a matter of dispute.

OPINION: How Muslim Ban incites vigilante Islamophobic violence

In a dissenting opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas warned that requiring officials to differentiate between foreigners who have connection to the US and those who do not will prove “unworkable”.

“Today’s compromise will burden executive officials with the task of deciding – on peril of contempt – whether individuals from the six affected nations who wish to enter the United States have a sufficient connection to a person or entity in this country”.

He added that the decision would result in a “flood of litigation” until the court issued its ruling.

Shortly after the court issued its opinion, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said on Twitter it would “head back into court to fight the fundamentally unconstitutional Muslim ban this October”.

Omar Jadwat, the director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project who had argued the case in court, said in a statement the travel ban “violates the fundamental constitutional principle that government cannot favor or disfavor any one religion”.

“Courts have repeatedly blocked this indefensible and discriminatory ban. The Supreme Court now has a chance to permanently strike it down,” he said.

Lara Finkbeiner, from the International Refugee Assistance Project, which also sued the administration over the ban, said she was “incredibly disappointed with the decision”.

“We are a nation that values acceptance and diversity, and in making this decision and putting this executive order back into effect, the Supreme Court is sending a very clear message and it’s putting the executive’s discriminatory policy back into effect.”

OPINION: The US Muslim ban and the story of my Iraqi father

But Trump praised the decision, saying in a statement it allowed his travel ban “to become largely effective”.

“Today’s unanimous Supreme Court decision is a clear victory for our national security,” Trump said, adding that the ruling allowed him “to use an important tool for protecting our nation’s homeland”.

Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett, reporting from Washington, DC, said that Trump was portraying the decision as a clear victory – even though this was a view that was not shared by everyone.

“The president in his statement is celebrating a victory. The court really upheld the cracks of the government’s case, although saying it will be looking at this case in October,” she said.

“The court upheld a 1952 law that gives the president broad powers about immigration when there are concerns about national security.”

Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies

US Supreme Court agree to hear Trump Muslim ban case

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Justices grant parts of administration’s request to put order into effect immediately while legal battle continues.
The Court said it will hear arguments in the case in October.

The Supreme Court of the United States says it will allow a partial enforcement of President Donald Trump’s ban on travellers from six Muslim-majority countries until it reviews it later this year.

The action on Monday is seen as a win for the right-wing leader, who has insisted the ban is necessary for national security, despite criticism that it singles out Muslims in violation of the US constitution.

The justices granted parts of Trump’s administration’s emergency request to put the March 6 executive order into effect immediately while the legal battle continues.

The court narrowed the scope of lower court rulings that blocked the ban and agreeing to hear the government’s appeals in the cases.
It said it would hear arguments in the case in its next term, which starts in October.

The court said that the travel ban is in effect “with respect to foreign nationals who lack any bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States”.

The court also said it would partly allow a 120-day ban on all refugees entering the US to go into effect.
More to follow.

Iraq Iraq says ISIL bomber blocked in Mosul

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Iraq says ISIL bomber blocked in Monsul

Iraq’s armed forces say they have blocked a major wave of attacks by suicide bombers from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) outside the Old City of Mosul.

Sunday’s attacks targeted Hay al-Tanak, a poor neighbourhood west of the Old City, the last stronghold of the fighters in Mosul.

It is the first wave of attacks reported outside the Old City since the battle to capture the historic district from ISIL started a week ago.

It came just days after suicide bombers killed at least three people in a series of attacks on a shopping district in east Mosul.

A policeman was killed in the first attack which struck the Muthanna neighbourhood late on Friday as residents shopped in advance of the Eid al-Fitr holiday marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

The area had been retaken from the ISIL group a few months ago.

A second bomber managed to enter a shopping arcade and blew himself up among civilians, killing at least two and wounding nine, a senior policeman said. A third suicide bomber was killed by police before he could detonate his vest.

It was among the bloodiest attacks since Iraqi forces retook the eastern side of Mosul in January as part of a massive offensive to wrest back the country’s second city from ISIL.

There had been growing calls in east Mosul before Friday night’s attack for the families of ISIL members to be, among other measures, banished for 10 years.

On Thursday, Iraq’s prime minister said Mosul’s “liberation” from ISIL would be announced in a few days.

“It’s a matter of a few days and we will announce the total liberation of Mosul,” Haider al-Abadi was quoted as saying by Baghdad-based Sumaria TV.

The announcement came as Iraqi forces were continuing the battle against ISIL fighters in the city’s old town – a densely populated quarter with narrow, winding alleys.

Up to 150,000 civilians are believed to be trapped in there, where conditions have been described by the UN as desperate. 

Iraq says ISIL suicide bombers blocked in Mosul

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Attacks targets neighbourhood west of Old City, ISIL’s last stronghold in city where 150,000 civilians remain trapped.

ISIL is estimated to only control about seven percent of Iraq.

Iraq’s armed forces have blocked a major wave of attacks by suicide bombers from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) outside the Old City of Mosul, according to the Iraqi military.

Sunday’s attacks targeted Hay al-Tanak, a poor neighbourhood west of the Old City, the last stronghold of the fighters in Mosul.

It is the first wave of attacks reported outside the Old City since the battle to capture the historic district from ISIL started a week ago.

It came just days after a suicide bomber killed at least three people while attacking a shopping district in east Mosul that was retaken from the ISIL group a few months ago, according to Iraqi medical and security officials.

The attack struck the area’s Muthanna neighbourhood late on Friday as residents shopped in advance of the Eid al-Fitr holiday marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

A second bomber managed to enter a shopping arcade and blew himself up among civilians, killing at least two and wounding nine, according to the same officer and a medic at Al-Khansaa hospital. A third suicide bomber was killed by police before he could detonate his vest, the sources said.

It was among the bloodiest attacks since Iraqi forces retook the eastern side of Mosul in January as part of a massive offensive to wrest back the country’s second city from ISIL.

There had been growing calls in east Mosul before Friday night’s attack for the families of ISIL members to be, among other measures, banished for 10 years.

On Thursday, Iraq’s prime minister said the “liberation” of the city of Mosul from ISIL would be announced in a few days.

“It’s a matter of a few days and we will announce the total liberation of Mosul,” Haider al-Abadi was quoted by Baghdad-based Sumaria TV as saying.

The announcement came as Iraqi forces were continuing the battle against ISIL fighters in their last stronghold in western Mosul, the city’s old town – a densely populated quarter with narrow, winding alleys.

Up to 150,000 civilians are believed to be trapped in there, where conditions have been described by the UN as desperate.

US-backed SDF force advance in Raqqa

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ISIL fighters lose western Raqqa neighbourhood of Qadisia to the SDF, a coalition of Arab and Kurdish fighters.

SDF fighters are supported by airstrikes of the US-led coalition.

A US-backed Syrian coalition of Kurdish and Arab groups has captured a western district of Raqqa, the de-facto capital of the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) group.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) took the al-Qadisia district, they said.

The progress came after three days of intense fighting, the group said in a statement posted on social media.

After launching an assault three months ago, the SDF has pushed ISIL from large areas of northern Syria over the past 18 months.

Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters have also taken territory from it and the Syrian army has this year advanced against it in desert areas.

The US-backed coalition has supported SDF advances against ISIL throughout the Raqqa campaign with artillery and air strikes, including some against the group’s leaders.

However, coalition air raids have also caused large numbers of civilian casualties, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).

It said on Saturday that coalition air strikes in and around Raqqa had killed nearly 700 civilians so far this year.

After the war

In a separate development, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that countries which promised to get back weapons supplied to the Kurdish YPG armed group in northern Syria were trying to trick Turkey and would eventually realise their mistake.

Turkey was infuriated by a US decision last month to arm the YPG, which the US sees as a vital ally in the battle against ISIL.

Turkey considers it an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

The PKK, designated a “terrorist” group by the US, the EU and Turkey, has been waging an insurgency in southeastern Turkey since the 1980s.

Turkish defence ministry sources said on Thursday that the US had pledged that weapons provided to the YPG would be taken back once ISIL was defeated.

Erdogan dismissed those assurances, saying Turkey’s friends and allies were cooperating with “terrorists”.

“The ones who think they are tricking Turkey by saying they are going to get back the weapons that are being given to this terrorist organisation will realise that they are making a mistake eventually,” he said.

“But it will be too late for them,” he added, saying that if violence spilled over Syria’s border into Turkey,
Turkey would hold to account anyone who supplied arms to the YPG.

US President Donald Trump decided to arm the YPG fighters despite Turkey’s objections and a direct appeal from Erdogan at a White House meeting last month.

Irish naval ship 'rescues 712 people' off Libyan coast

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More than 65,000 refugees and migrants have made the trek from Libya to Italy so far this year, says the IOM.
Refugees and migrants have passed through Libya in tens of thousands en route to Italy.

An Irish naval ship has rescued 712 people, including pregnant women and infants, off the coast of the Libyan capital of Tripoli as part of an international migrant-rescue effort, Ireland’s Defence Forces say.

The Le Eithne ship led the rescue of multiple vessels in distress 40km north-west of Tripoli throughout Sunday.
Six migrants, including one baby, were revived from states of unconsciousness.

The ship will transport the people, including 14 pregnant women and four infants below the age of four months, to a designated “port of safety” to be handed over to Italian authorities.
“I’m very proud to say all lives were saved, no lives were lost. It was a complex operation where lives were at stake at every turn over a full eight-hour period,” Commander Brian Fitzgerald told national broadcaster RTE from the ship.

“Overall, they were really in a wretched condition but in all cases healthy enough to undertake the journey to a port of safety.”
Earlier this month, at least 126 refugees drowned in the Mediterranean Sea after the motor of their boat was stolen, causing it to sink, the UN migration agency has said.

According to testimony from four survivors brought to Italy, the refugees – mainly Sudanese – left from Libya trying to make the dangerous crossing to Europe, Flavio Di Giacomo, spokesperson for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), said at the time.

Gangs in Libya have built a lucrative trade out of packing refugees into rickety boats heading for Italy, where more than 65,000 have arrived so far this year.

As of June 14, 1,828 people are believed to have died trying to reach Europe, according to IOM figures.

Debate over dealing with the refugee influx is becoming increasingly bitter in Italy, whose economy is lagging behind its European peers ahead of national elections next year.
Most of the people attempting the perilous journey originally come from Nigeria, followed by Bangladesh and other sub-Saharan countries.

Slave markets

According to the International Organization for Migration, 20,000 refugees and migrants are held by criminal gangs in irregular detention centres in Libya and growing numbers of migrants are traded in what they call slave markets before being held for ransom, forced labour or sexual exploitation.

The IOM recently said that hundreds of African refugees and migrants passing through Libya have been bought and sold in modern-day slave markets before being held for ransom or used as forced labour or sexual exploitation.

People are bought for between $200 and $500 and are held on average for two to three months, Othman Belbeisi, head of the IOM’s Libya mission, said in Geneva earlier this year.

“Migrants are being sold in the market as a commodity,” he said.
“Selling human beings is becoming a trend among smugglers as the smuggling networks in Libya are becoming stronger and stronger.”

Along the way, they are prey to an array of armed groups and people-smuggling networks that often try to extort extra money in exchange for allowing them to continue.

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