KABUL: Thousands of Afghans held protests on Friday to condemn the violence against the Muslims of Rohingya. The protesters blamed the world for failing to stop the abuse that has claimed thousands of lives and forced hundreds of thousands to flee Myanmar over the past two weeks.
The protests were the largest thus far and were held in at least six towns and cities, including the capital, Kabul.
There were no immediate reports of violence from any of the protests which coincide with rising anti-Western sentiments in Afghanistan. Many Afghans see the West as ignoring abuses against Muslims all over the world, and also blaming the US for waging war in a number of Muslim countries.
“The silence of the West is questionable. We are witnessing a genocide and Western leaders, who normally raise voice against abuses affecting non-Muslims, are silent about the killings of Muslims in Myanmar,” said Ahmad Ultaf, a 28-year old man in Kabul.
The marchers, which included a group of women in Kabul, went by the main UN compound and submitted a resolution demanding the guilty be punished and that a fact-finding mission be dispatched from Muslim countries and the UN.
The abuses against Rohingya Muslims have been dominating discussions among Afghans, some of whom even called for the Taliban and Daesh to go to Myanmar to save Muslims there instead of fighting in Afghanistan.
Both the Afghan government and the Taliban, who lead the insurgency against the government and US-led troops, have condemned the violence in Myanmar and those responsible for it. Apparently preoccupied by the standoff in North Korea, Western leaders have so far appeared reluctant to speak out strongly about the abuse.
“Do not connive in the genocide in Myanmar. It is time to act, to save humanity, regardless of religion and ethnicity,” said another Kabul protester Shah Mahmoud.
Afghans question world’s silence over Rohingya crisis
Afghans question world’s silence over Rohingya crisis
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North Korean leader Kim watches cruise missile tests with his daughter
- KCNA said the missiles hit target islands off North Korea’s west coast
SEOUL, South Korea: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his teenage daughter observed tests of strategic cruise missiles fired from a warship, state media reported Wednesday, as North Korea threatened responses to US-South Korean military drills.
Images sent by the Korean Central News Agency showed the two in a conference room looking at a screen showing weapons being fired from the Choe Hyon, a year-old naval destroyer.
Kim Jong Un watched the missiles launches via video on Tuesday and underscored the need to maintain “a powerful and reliable nuclear war deterrent,” KCNA reported in a dispatch that did not mention his daughter.
The girl, reportedly named Kim Ju Ae and about 13, has accompanied her father at numerous prominent events including military parades and weapons launches since late 2022. South Korea’s spy agency assessed last month Kim Jong Un was close to designating her as his heir.
KCNA said the missiles hit target islands off North Korea’s west coast. It quoted Kim Jong Un as saying the launches were meant to demonstrate the navy’s strategic offensive posture and get troops familiarized with weapons firings.
Kim Jong Un observed similar cruise missile launches from the Choe Hyon in person last week, but his daughter was not seen at that appearance.
Tuesday’s missile firings came after the start of the springtime US-South Korean military drills that North Korea views as an invasion rehearsal.
On Tuesday, Kim Jong Un’s sister and senior official, Kim Yo Jong, warned the drills reveal again the US and South Korea’s “inveterate repugnancy toward” North Korea. She said North Korea will “convince the enemies of our war deterrence.”
The 11-day Freedom Shield drill that began Monday is largely a computer-simulated command post exercise and will be accompanied by a field training program. North Korea often reacts to the two sets of training with its own weapons tests.
