SRINAGAR, India: Indian police in disputed Kashmir have raided dozens of bookshops and seized hundreds of copies of books by an Islamic scholar, sparking angry reactions by Muslim leaders.
Police said searches were based on “credible intelligence regarding the clandestine sale and distribution of literature promoting the ideology of a banned organization.”
Officers did not name the author but store owners said they had seized literature by the late Abul Ala Maududi, founder of the Islamist political party Jamaat-e-Islami.
Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since their independence from British rule in 1947, and both claim the Himalayan territory in full.
Rebel groups, demanding Kashmir’s freedom or its merger with Pakistan, have been fighting Indian forces for decades, with tens of thousands killed in the conflict.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist government banned the Kashmir branch of Jamaat-e-Islami in 2019 as an “unlawful association.”
New Delhi renewed the ban last year for what it said were “activities against the security, integrity and sovereignty” of the nation.
Plainclothes officers began raids in the main city of Srinagar on Saturday, before launching book seizures in other towns across the Muslim-majority region.
“They (police) came and took away all the copies of books authored by Abul Ala Maududi, saying these books were banned,” a bookshop owner in Srinagar, who asked not to be identified, told AFP.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said it was “the latest step in a series of measures to crush dissent and to intimidate the local people.”
“They must be given freedom to read the books of their choice,” spokesman Shafqat Ali Khan said.
Police said the searches were conducted “to prevent the circulation of banned literature linked to Jamaat-e-Islami.”
“These books were found to be in violation of legal regulations, and strict action is being taken against those found in possession of such material,” police said in a statement.
The raids sparked anger among supporters of the party.
“The seized books promote good moral values and responsible citizenship,” said Shamim Ahmed Thokar.
Umar Farooq, Kashmir’s chief cleric and a prominent leader advocating for the right to self-determination, condemned the police action.
“Cracking down on Islamic literature and seizing them from bookstores is ridiculous,” Farooq said in a statement, pointing out that the literature was available online.
“Policing thought by seizing books is absurd — to say the least — in the time of access to all information on virtual highways,” he said.
Critics and many residents of Kashmir say civil liberties were drastically curtailed after Modi’s government imposed direct rule in 2019 by scrapping Kashmir’s constitutionally enshrined partial autonomy.
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Indian police seize books by Islamic scholar in Kashmir
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Indian police seize books by Islamic scholar in Kashmir
- Officers did not name the author but store owners said they had seized literature by the late Abul Ala Maududi
- Plainclothes officers began raids in the main city of Srinagar on Saturday
Indonesia’s president reaches a trade deal with US while in Washington for Trump’s Board of Peace
- The White House is calling it a “great deal” that will “help both countries to strengthen economic security”
- Indonesian and US companies also reached several business deals this week
WASHINGTON: The White House announced a reciprocal trade agreement with Indonesia on Thursday while President Prabowo Subianto was in Washington to attend the first meeting of President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace.
Under the agreement, Southeast Asia’s largest economy will eliminate tariffs for 99 percent of American goods while the US will maintain tariffs on most Indonesian goods at 19 percent, the White House said. That is the same rate the US has set for Cambodia and Malaysia. Indonesia also agreed to address non-tariff barriers to US goods and to remove restrictions on exports to the US for critical minerals and other industrial commodities, the White House said.
Indonesian and US companies also reached 11 deals this week worth $38.4 billion, including purchases of US soybeans, corn, cotton and wheat, cooperation in critical minerals and oil field recovery, and joint ventures in computer chips.
“We have negotiated very intensively over the last few months, and I think we have reached solid understandings on many issues,” Prabowo told business executives Wednesday at the US Chamber of Commerce.
A White House statement called it a “great deal” and said it “will help both countries to strengthen economic security, promote economic growth, and thereby continuously lead to global prosperity.”
The agreement was later signed by US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and his Indonesian counterpart, Airlangga Hartarto.
Hartarto told a news conference from Washington that both governments cast the agreement as marking the start of a “new golden age” in bilateral economic ties and Indonesia will introduce measures designed to keep trade flows secure and prevent misuse of sensitive goods.
Indonesia’s pledge for Gaza stabilization force
The agreement was announced the same day that Prabowo, leader of the world’s most populous Muslim country, reiterated his pledge at the Board of Peace meeting to send 8,000 troops or “more if necessary” for an international stabilization force in Gaza.
Indonesia was among the first to make a firm commitment to a critical element of Trump’s postwar Gaza reconstruction plan.
“President Prabowo of Indonesia, thank you very much,” Trump said at the Board of Peace meeting. “It’s a big country you have, and you do a great job.”
Prabowo praised Trump in return. “We are very optimistic with the leadership of President Trump, this vision of real peace will be achieved,” Prabowo said. “There will be problems, but we will prevail.”
Cambodia and Vietnam are the two other Southeast Asian countries that joined the board, which was originally envisioned as overseeing the Gaza ceasefire but has taken shape with wider ambitions to broker other global conflicts.
Their leaders also came to Washington for the inaugural meeting. Cambodia has already inked a trade deal with the US, while Vietnam has reached a framework agreement.
Critical minerals play into Indonesia deal
Indonesian companies agreed this week to buy 1 million tons of soybeans, 1.6 million tons of corn and 93,000 tons of cotton from the US They also pledged to buy up to 5 million tons of US wheat by 2030.
The countries agreed to cooperate on critical minerals, though details were not immediately available.
Washington is seeking Indonesia’s agreement to lift restrictions on critical mineral exports, which the Trump administration argues could safeguard US manufacturers from supply‑chain disruptions. The administration has sought to defend against China’s stranglehold on the key elements needed for everything from fighter jets to smartphones.
At the Chamber of Commerce event, Prabowo said Indonesia can serve as a “bridge” and “honest broker” between great powers, apparently referring to the US-China competition.
Vietnam’s leader makes first visit to the US since being reelected
At the Board of Peace meeting, Trump called Vietnam “incredible as a country and as a force” and told leader To Lam that it was “a really great honor to have you.”
Lam’s visit to the US is his first since he was reelected as the head of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party last month. Typically, China is an initial stop in a nod to the countries’ ideological ties and Beijing’s status as Vietnam’s largest trading partner. Lam did visit China in August 2024 before traveling to the US during his first term.
Analysts say Lam’s visit to the US before traveling to Beijing this time around is a notable shift in sequencing. Hanoi describes its foreign policy as independent and balanced among major powers.
Trade negotiations between Vietnam and the United States are ongoing following the Trump administration levying 20 percent tariffs on Vietnamese exports. The latest, sixth round of talks concluded in early February.
Under the agreement, Southeast Asia’s largest economy will eliminate tariffs for 99 percent of American goods while the US will maintain tariffs on most Indonesian goods at 19 percent, the White House said. That is the same rate the US has set for Cambodia and Malaysia. Indonesia also agreed to address non-tariff barriers to US goods and to remove restrictions on exports to the US for critical minerals and other industrial commodities, the White House said.
Indonesian and US companies also reached 11 deals this week worth $38.4 billion, including purchases of US soybeans, corn, cotton and wheat, cooperation in critical minerals and oil field recovery, and joint ventures in computer chips.
“We have negotiated very intensively over the last few months, and I think we have reached solid understandings on many issues,” Prabowo told business executives Wednesday at the US Chamber of Commerce.
A White House statement called it a “great deal” and said it “will help both countries to strengthen economic security, promote economic growth, and thereby continuously lead to global prosperity.”
The agreement was later signed by US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and his Indonesian counterpart, Airlangga Hartarto.
Hartarto told a news conference from Washington that both governments cast the agreement as marking the start of a “new golden age” in bilateral economic ties and Indonesia will introduce measures designed to keep trade flows secure and prevent misuse of sensitive goods.
Indonesia’s pledge for Gaza stabilization force
The agreement was announced the same day that Prabowo, leader of the world’s most populous Muslim country, reiterated his pledge at the Board of Peace meeting to send 8,000 troops or “more if necessary” for an international stabilization force in Gaza.
Indonesia was among the first to make a firm commitment to a critical element of Trump’s postwar Gaza reconstruction plan.
“President Prabowo of Indonesia, thank you very much,” Trump said at the Board of Peace meeting. “It’s a big country you have, and you do a great job.”
Prabowo praised Trump in return. “We are very optimistic with the leadership of President Trump, this vision of real peace will be achieved,” Prabowo said. “There will be problems, but we will prevail.”
Cambodia and Vietnam are the two other Southeast Asian countries that joined the board, which was originally envisioned as overseeing the Gaza ceasefire but has taken shape with wider ambitions to broker other global conflicts.
Their leaders also came to Washington for the inaugural meeting. Cambodia has already inked a trade deal with the US, while Vietnam has reached a framework agreement.
Critical minerals play into Indonesia deal
Indonesian companies agreed this week to buy 1 million tons of soybeans, 1.6 million tons of corn and 93,000 tons of cotton from the US They also pledged to buy up to 5 million tons of US wheat by 2030.
The countries agreed to cooperate on critical minerals, though details were not immediately available.
Washington is seeking Indonesia’s agreement to lift restrictions on critical mineral exports, which the Trump administration argues could safeguard US manufacturers from supply‑chain disruptions. The administration has sought to defend against China’s stranglehold on the key elements needed for everything from fighter jets to smartphones.
At the Chamber of Commerce event, Prabowo said Indonesia can serve as a “bridge” and “honest broker” between great powers, apparently referring to the US-China competition.
Vietnam’s leader makes first visit to the US since being reelected
At the Board of Peace meeting, Trump called Vietnam “incredible as a country and as a force” and told leader To Lam that it was “a really great honor to have you.”
Lam’s visit to the US is his first since he was reelected as the head of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party last month. Typically, China is an initial stop in a nod to the countries’ ideological ties and Beijing’s status as Vietnam’s largest trading partner. Lam did visit China in August 2024 before traveling to the US during his first term.
Analysts say Lam’s visit to the US before traveling to Beijing this time around is a notable shift in sequencing. Hanoi describes its foreign policy as independent and balanced among major powers.
Trade negotiations between Vietnam and the United States are ongoing following the Trump administration levying 20 percent tariffs on Vietnamese exports. The latest, sixth round of talks concluded in early February.
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