PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday warned against verbal “escalation” with Moscow, after US President Joe Biden called Russian leader Vladimir Putin a “butcher” over his invasion of Ukraine.
Macron told broadcaster France 3 that he saw his task as “achieving first a cease-fire and then the total withdrawal of (Russian) troops by diplomatic means.”
“If we want to do that, we can’t escalate either in words or actions.”
Paris has kept diplomatic channels to Moscow open throughout Russia’s military buildup on Ukraine’s borders and invasion of its neighbor.
The stance has been criticized by some other leaders and commentators but defended by Macron as vital to limiting damage from the war.
He nevertheless accused Putin Sunday of wanting to return to “a Europe of empires, of domination, without respect for the integrity of borders and nations’ right to decide for themselves.”
Biden’s Saturday remarks were far more muscular, with the US chief executive using a visit to Poland to dub Putin “a butcher” who “cannot remain in power.”
The White House later scrambled to deny he was seeking “regime change” in Moscow, while the Kremlin said Biden’s words could harm bilateral relations.
Macron said that he would call Putin on Monday or Tuesday to discuss a proposal from France, Greece and Turkey to evacuate Ukrainians from besieged port city Mariupol.
“There is a lot of cynicism from the Russian side on this question,” Macron said.
“We’re looking with the Ukrainian authorities in the city of Mariupol at how to organize the evacuation of everyone who wants to flee.”
He added that “we have to do it quickly, in the very next days” given the intensity of combat and bombardments in the city.
France’s Macron fears ‘escalation’ after Biden calls Putin a ‘butcher’
https://arab.news/r7cws
France’s Macron fears ‘escalation’ after Biden calls Putin a ‘butcher’
- The White House later scrambled to deny US leader was seeking ‘regime change’ in Moscow
- Kremlin said Joe Biden’s words could harm bilateral relations
Homeless Muslims in southern Philippines observe Ramadan as month of trial
- Thousands lost their homes when parts of Bongao in Tawi-Tawi were burnt to ashes
- Many trying to fully observe the fasting month say they are grateful to be alive
Manila: As Annalexis Abdulla Dabbang was looking forward to observing the month of Ramadan with her family, just days before it began they lost everything when an enormous fire tore through whole neighborhoods of their city in the southernmost province of the Philippines.
Bongao is the capital of Tawi-Tawi, an island province, forming part of the country’s Muslim minority heartland in the Bangsamoro region. The city experienced its worst fire in years in early February, when flames swept through the coastal community, leaving more than 5,000 people homeless.
“We were swimming for our lives. We had to swim to escape from the fire ... We swam in darkness, and (even) the sea was already hot because of the fire,” Dabbang, a 27-year-old teacher, told Arab News.
“Everything we owned was gone in just a few hours — our home, our memories, the things we worked hard for, everything turned to ashes.”
Trying to save their 2-year-old daughter and themselves, she and her husband left everything behind — as did hundreds of other families that together with them have since taken shelter at the Mindanao State University gymnasium — one of the evacuation centers.
Unable to secure a tent, Dabbang’s family has been sleeping on the bleachers, sharing a single mat as their bed. When Ramadan arrived a few days after they moved to the makeshift shelter, they welcomed it in a different, more solemn way. There is no family privacy for suhoor, no room or means to welcome guests for iftar.
“Ramadan feels different now. It’s painful but at the same time more real. When we lost our home, we began to understand what sacrifice really means. When you sleep in an evacuation center, you understand hunger, discomfort in a deeper way,” Dabbang said.
“We don’t prepare special dishes. We prepare our hearts.”
While she and thousands of others have lost everything they have ever owned, she has not lost her faith.
“Our dreams may have turned to ashes, but our prayers are still alive,” she said.
“This Ramadan my prayers are more emotional than ever. I pray for strength, not just for myself, but for my family and for every neighbor who also lost their family home. I pray for healing from the trauma of fire. I pray that Allah will replace what we lost with something better. I pray for the chance to rebuild not just our house, but our sense of security.”
Juraij Dayan Hussin, a volunteer helping the Bongao fire victims, observed that many of them were traumatized and the need to cleanse the heart and mind during Ramadan was what kept many of them going, because they are “thankful that even though they lost their property, they are still alive.”
But the religious observance related to the fasting month is not easy in a cramped shelter.
“It’s hard for Muslims to perform their prayers when they do not have their proper attire because they usually have specific clothes for prayer,” he said. “Sanitation in the area is also an issue ... when you fast and when you pray, cleanliness is essential.”
For Abdulkail Jani, who is staying at a basketball court with his brother and more than 70 other families, this Ramadan will be spent apart from their parents, whom they managed to move to relatives.
“The month of Ramadan this year is a month of trial ... there will be a huge change from how we observed Ramadan in the past, but we will adjust to it and try to comfort ourselves and our family. The most important thing is that we can perform the fasting,” he told Arab News.
“Despite our situation now, despite everything, as long as we’re alive, we will observe Ramadan. We’ll try to observe it well, without missing anything.”
