UNITED NATIONS: Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has assailed India’s Hindu nationalist government and its moves to cement control of Muslim-majority Kashmir, calling India a state sponsor of hatred and prejudice against Islam.
Khan said Friday that Islamophobia prevails in India today and threatens the close to 200 million Muslims who live there.
“They believe that India is exclusive to Hindus and others are not equal citizens,” Khan said in a prerecorded speech to the UN General Assembly, which is being held virtually amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Khan has frequently criticized the decision by the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in August 2019 to strip Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood, scrap its separate constitution and remove inherited protections on land and jobs. India’s security clampdown has sparked protests, and UN-appointed independent experts have called on the Indian government to take urgent action.
India accuses Pakistan of arming and training insurgents fighting for Kashmir’s independence from India. Pakistan denies the charge and says it offers only diplomatic and moral support to the rebels.
The Kashmir region is split between India and Pakistan, which have fought two wars over the territory.
Khan, as he did in his speech before the world body last year, also condemned the targeting of Muslims in many countries and provocations and incitement “in the name of free speech.”
Despite Khan’s outcry at the treatment of Muslims worldwide, Pakistan has not criticized China’s assault on its Muslim minority Uighur population. Pakistan’s silence, like that of other influential Muslim nations, is linked to its economic ties to China. Pakistan is heavily indebted to China and the two countries have a long history of cooperation both economically and militarily.
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Pakistani leader denounces India over Kashmir
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Pakistani leader denounces India over Kashmir
- Khan said Friday that Islamophobia prevails in India today and threatens the close to 200 million Muslims who live there
- “They believe that India is exclusive to Hindus and others are not equal citizens,” Khan said
South Korea court sentences former first lady to jail term for bribery
- Prosecutors had sought a 15-year jail term for the wife of ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol
- Kim Keon Hee has been detained since August and denied all charges
SEOUL: A South Korean court sentenced former first lady Kim Keon Hee on Wednesday to one year and eight months in jail after finding her guilty of accepting Chanel bags and a diamond pendant from Unification Church officials in return for political favors.
The court cleared Kim, the wife of ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol who was ousted from office last year, on charges of stock price manipulation and violating the political funds act.
Prosecutors will appeal against the two not-guilty verdicts, media reports said.
The ruling, which can also be appealed by the former first lady, comes amid a series of trials following investigations into Yoon’s brief imposition of martial law in 2024 and related scandals involving the once-powerful couple.
The position of first lady does not come with any formal power allowing involvement in state affairs, but she is a symbolic figure representing the country, the lead judge of a three-justice bench said.
“A person who was in such a position might not always be a role model, but the person must not be a bad example to the public,” he said in the ruling.
The court ordered her to pay a 12.8 million won ($8,990) fine and ordered the confiscation of the diamond necklace. Kim has been held in detention since August while she was being investigated by a team led by a special prosecutor.
Prosecutors had demanded 15 years in jail and fines of 2.9 billion won over all the accusations she faced.
The court cleared Kim on charges of manipulating stock prices and violating political funding laws.
Kim had denied all the charges. Her lawyer said the team would review the ruling and decide whether to appeal the bribery conviction.
Kim, clad in a dark suit and wearing a face mask, was escorted by guards into the courtroom at the Seoul Central District Court and sat quietly while the verdict was delivered.
Supporters of Yoon and Kim, who braved freezing temperatures outside the court compound, cheered after the not-guilty verdicts on two of the charges were delivered.
The Unification Church said the gifts were delivered to her without expecting anything. Its leader Han Hak-ja, who is also on trial, has denied that she directed it to bribe Kim.
Shaman, political broker
Kim had drawn intense public scrutiny even before her husband was elected president in 2022 over questions about her academic records and lingering suspicion that she had been long involved in manipulating stock prices.
Her alleged association with a political broker and a person known as a shaman also drew public criticism that the two may be unduly influencing the former first couple.
Yoon, who was ousted from power last April, also faces eight trials on charges including insurrection, after his failed bid to impose martial law in December 2024.
He has appealed against a five-year jail term handed to him this month for obstructing attempts to arrest him after his martial law decree.
At a separate trial this month, prosecutors have sought the death penalty for Yoon on the charge of masterminding an insurrection. The court will rule on the case on February 19.
Yoon has argued it was within his powers as president to declare martial law and that the action was aimed at sounding the alarm over the obstruction of government by opposition parties.
The court cleared Kim, the wife of ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol who was ousted from office last year, on charges of stock price manipulation and violating the political funds act.
Prosecutors will appeal against the two not-guilty verdicts, media reports said.
The ruling, which can also be appealed by the former first lady, comes amid a series of trials following investigations into Yoon’s brief imposition of martial law in 2024 and related scandals involving the once-powerful couple.
The position of first lady does not come with any formal power allowing involvement in state affairs, but she is a symbolic figure representing the country, the lead judge of a three-justice bench said.
“A person who was in such a position might not always be a role model, but the person must not be a bad example to the public,” he said in the ruling.
The court ordered her to pay a 12.8 million won ($8,990) fine and ordered the confiscation of the diamond necklace. Kim has been held in detention since August while she was being investigated by a team led by a special prosecutor.
Prosecutors had demanded 15 years in jail and fines of 2.9 billion won over all the accusations she faced.
The court cleared Kim on charges of manipulating stock prices and violating political funding laws.
Kim had denied all the charges. Her lawyer said the team would review the ruling and decide whether to appeal the bribery conviction.
Kim, clad in a dark suit and wearing a face mask, was escorted by guards into the courtroom at the Seoul Central District Court and sat quietly while the verdict was delivered.
Supporters of Yoon and Kim, who braved freezing temperatures outside the court compound, cheered after the not-guilty verdicts on two of the charges were delivered.
The Unification Church said the gifts were delivered to her without expecting anything. Its leader Han Hak-ja, who is also on trial, has denied that she directed it to bribe Kim.
Shaman, political broker
Kim had drawn intense public scrutiny even before her husband was elected president in 2022 over questions about her academic records and lingering suspicion that she had been long involved in manipulating stock prices.
Her alleged association with a political broker and a person known as a shaman also drew public criticism that the two may be unduly influencing the former first couple.
Yoon, who was ousted from power last April, also faces eight trials on charges including insurrection, after his failed bid to impose martial law in December 2024.
He has appealed against a five-year jail term handed to him this month for obstructing attempts to arrest him after his martial law decree.
At a separate trial this month, prosecutors have sought the death penalty for Yoon on the charge of masterminding an insurrection. The court will rule on the case on February 19.
Yoon has argued it was within his powers as president to declare martial law and that the action was aimed at sounding the alarm over the obstruction of government by opposition parties.
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