Writing poetic stories requires a talent that differs from traditional writing, especially if it is directed to children. Since children have a stronger sense and intelligence that is different from adults, they are faster in absorbing and accepting those ideas. Therefore, Kuwaiti young writer Noorah Jamal Al-Ibraheem decided to use her talent in writing poetic stories to convey humanitarian issues and present them to children in an interesting way that motivates them to think and see new aspects of the world.

‘If Stars could Talk’ is a story series recently launched by Ibraheem, who is 27 years old and a mother. The main idea revolves around one point, that if the stars could talk, they would be witnesses to what is happening in the world. The first story in the series was about the issue of Palestine, while the writer named the main character of the story ‘Aqsa’, which symbolizes Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, Palestine. Kuwait Times met Ibraheem and talked more about the kids’ story series.

Kuwaiti writer Noorah Al-Ibraheem

Kuwait Times: Where did you get your inspiration to write the first story of the series from?

Noorah Al-Ibraheem: I got my inspiration after I met my friend ‘Aqsa’. In that time, I felt that this name commensurate with the goal of the story, especially that I wanted to be away from using usual names in the story. This name is a message that we do not recognize the existence of the Zionist entity, in addition to the fact that the name is consistent with the intent of the story.

Through the story, I tried to focus on the symbols that indicate the solidity and stability of the Palestinian cause. I liked to plant the Palestinian flag in the minds of children, so I used the colors of the Palestinian flag in describing the nature and plants, such as describing the color of roses as red, white and green, and birds as black.

KT: Which age group does the story series target?

Ibraheem: This series is directed to ages starting from 4 years and above. The poetic formula in writing the story because the use of a certain wording for children contributes to capturing and memorizing the topic more. Meanwhile, I focused on making the story not too long and not too short to better communicate the idea.

A page from the book.

KT: How did you see the reactions to the idea of a story?

Ibraheem: People’s reactions made me very proud of myself and very happy, because it was more than I expected. Even though the issue of Palestine was raised since childhood and we grew up with it, there are no stories and references for children that explain it in a simple way, especially since it is a complex issue and contains many details developed over the years. So, I made sure in the story to simplify the issue in a way that suits children. I was happy with one feedback I got from a reader; a 9-year-old girl who commented when she finished reading the story saying that she does not want the story to end. I saw a great interest from the Kuwaiti and Arab people, and even some people from countries abroad who received the story series, because they are always looking for stories that discuss important issues that are not often found in libraries.

KT: What is your goal in focusing on the colors of the Palestinian flag while describing the nature in the story?

Ibraheem: I aim to imprint a mental image in the minds of our children about Palestinian symbols and the importance of persistence in defending the Palestinian cause. That’s the reason I started this series of stories taking about the Palestine issue and the importance of defending Al-Aqsa Mosque. As a Kuwaiti, it is also a part of the consistent humanitarian position of my state, Kuwait, towards the Palestinian cause. Kuwait is always on the side of truth, which I am very proud of, and Kuwait has provided me with the strength to contribute and support the cause of Al-Aqsa.

The book’s cover.

KT: Will the story series only talk about the Palestinian issue, or are there other issues that you will talk about in your next publications?

Ibraheem: I seek to increase the issues further. The goal of the series is to instill Islamic values and principles in our children’s souls and minds, and I am keen to talk about the Arab common issues and topics that are important to us as Arabs and Muslims. The issue of Jerusalem is one of the most important issues that I have started with.

KT: Is there a common theme between stories?

Ibraheem: The main theme of the series is that there is a star that revolves around the earth and sees the events that happen in all countries of the world, and conveys to children Islamic and Arab issues in a poetic way, and the beginning was from the land of Palestine.

The book’s back cover.

KT: Is the series published in English only?

Ibraheem: It is currently published in English in a poetic style that reaches children in a simple way, and I also want it to be a global message because today, we notice the influence of the West on our children. As a mother, I do not want those ideas to control our children, and this book is a symbol of confronting those ideas and influences. Therefore, I am working on preparing a copy in Arabic, especially since Arabic stories are in great demand because they have become few in the market and are repetitive in their ideas such as teaching letters, numbers, animals and others. As for the older ages, I did not find a story that balances between all ages, and this is what I tried to implement in this series.

Writer Noorah Al-Ibraheem with her son.

KT: When did you start to love writing poetic stories?

Ibraheem: Since I was young, I started writing poetry stories, and with the encouragement of my mother, I was going to publish my first poetic story when I was in middle school, but unfortunately it was stolen from me in school. As a result of that, the passion inside of me stopped for a while and made me frustrated to return to writing. But when I grew up and had the opportunity to write articles in Al-Moasher Economic newspaper, this was for me a revival of my hope to write again, especially since my first article was about liberating Al-Aqsa.

KT: What made you transfer from writing in economics to children’s stories?

Ibraheem: I became a mother. I am keen to push mothers in Kuwait to encourage their children to read, because this will benefit children to form their own personality. Therefore, I wanted to instill the love of reading in my son and other kids, and since I have the talent to write poetic stories and have a specific message, I decided to write stories to people of the Arab and Islamic world.

Noorah Jamal Al-Ibraheem holds a master’s degree in civil engineering. She received her higher education in Britain. Before that, she received her school education between Kuwait and Canada, where she practiced the English language, admired the educational methods abroad and sought to transfer those methods through story writing./kuwaittimes

A recent research study revealed the discrimination experienced by headscarved women in job applications in Europe.

A recent research study revealed the discrimination experienced by headscarved women in job applications in Europe. Utrecht University in the Netherlands, Oxford University in the United Kingdom, and the German Center for Integration and Migration Research recently conducted a joint field survey on the discrimination faced by religious minorities seeking jobs in the three European labor markets: Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain.

Turkish-Muslim women living in Europe complain about discrimination against them in their job applications.

A recent research study revealed the discrimination experienced by headscarved women in job applications in Europe. Utrecht University in the Netherlands, Oxford University in the United Kingdom, and the German Center for Integration and Migration Research recently conducted a joint field survey on the discrimination faced by religious minorities seeking jobs in the three European labor markets: Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain.

The study revealed that women wearing headscarves in Germany and the Netherlands face serious discrimination in job applications. Women wearing headscarves, who were able to overcome prejudices and get a job, told that the real discrimination is on the street and gave examples of the racism they went through.

"I encounter racist and discriminatory treatment in my daily life rather than in my business life. Sometimes this is a bad and sarcastic look, sometimes a verbal insult. I was born in Germany, grew up, studied, and took up my profession. Yet, we are still not accepted. My headscarved cousins wanted to work as sales reps but were asked to take off their headscarves. This shouldn't happen anymore," said Elif Yurtten, a nurse.

Pedagogue Gülbeyaz Kılıç also said: "The vice principal of my first school thought I was a cleaner. I can never forget the expression on his face when I say that I am a pedagogue. They look at your appearance and question your language ability and identity. Especially the glances on public transport vehicles and the insults you hear from some people while passing by them are very disturbing."

"I work with children with disabilities in German schools and nurseries. As I was driving with my six-year-old daughter and the little boy in a stroller, a German pointed at me and said, 'Did you have these stupid children?' He insulted everyone publicly. For some people, if your name, skin, or hair color is different, this can cause racism," according to Hatice Demirtaş who is a teacher.

"I applied to many training centers for jobs. Either there was no response or I was getting a negative response. One day I sent my resume without a photo and was quickly contacted. When I went to the interview, the facial expression of the woman who greeted me changed. In the interview, I was told that my features are suitable for the job, I was asked if I could take off my hijab. I wasn't hired when I said I couldn't take it off," said Meliha Bayrak, a social pedagogue.

The findings of the experiment were shared in an article published by Oxford Academic this month titled "Discrimination Unveiled: A Field Experiment on the Barriers Faced by Muslim Women in Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain."

The study was conducted with the same people's curriculum vitae (CV) by using the same content and information with both veiled and unveiled photos.

As the photos on CVs show whether that person wears a hijab or not, the "cross-nationally harmonized" experiment aimed to demonstrate to what extent the responses these people receive from employers differ.

The results in the Netherlands proved that 35% of women with headscarves got responses from employers, while this rate rose to 70% among those not wearing them.

The experiment claimed a similar scenario in Germany, showing that 25% of the veiled candidates and 53% of the unveiled ones received responses.

"Muslims are perceived by the public at large as a difficult-to-integrate group, mainly due to their conservative gender role attitudes and high levels of religiosity, which are seemingly at odds with European values and the secular lifestyles of Western societies," the article stressed.

"Robust evidence that veiled Muslim women are discriminated against in Germany and the Netherlands, but only when applying for jobs that require a high level of customer contact," it presented

"In Spain, however, the level of discrimination against veiled Muslim women is much smaller than in the other two countries," it stated.

To give statistical data, the research underscored that 48.5% of unveiled Muslim women received responses from employers in the Dutch labor market, while this number decreased to 34.5% among veiled Muslim women.

In Germany, even though employers responded to the job applications of half of the unveiled Muslim women, they did not give any response to 75% of the Muslim women with headscarves.

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"Conflicts and violations of human rights anywhere are a serious issue. On the one hand, it is good that people are talking about the Russia-Ukraine conflict

"Conflicts and violations of human rights anywhere are a serious issue. On the one hand, it is good that people are talking about the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Kashmir, unfortunately, suffers from a number of issues in the sense that it's 75 years old. It is probably human nature to sometime develop fatigue over old issues," Muhammad Syrus Sajjad Qazi told Anadolu Agency in an exclusive interview.

Pakistan's ambassador to Türkiye said he hopes advocates of human rights and fair play will take a stand on Kashmir the same way they did in opposing Russia's war on Ukraine.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan since their independence in 1947, but claimed by both in its entirety. The South Asian nuclear-armed nations have been to war three times over the disputed region.

In August 2019, New Delhi revoked its constitutional autonomy, and split it into two federal territories.

Islamabad accuses India of violating UN resolutions, and trying to change demographics of the predominantly Muslim region.

"Conflicts and violations of human rights anywhere are a serious issue. On the one hand, it is good that people are talking about the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Kashmir, unfortunately, suffers from a number of issues in the sense that it's 75 years old. It is probably human nature to sometime develop fatigue over old issues," Muhammad Syrus Sajjad Qazi told Anadolu Agency in an exclusive interview.

"I believe violations of human rights anywhere are a concern for all freedom and justice-loving people everywhere. And we hope that having looked at and examined how they took a position on the Ukraine and Russia war, these same advocates of human rights and fair play will also examine their policies toward Kashmir, which is just as deserving of attention," he said.

The ambassador highlighted that more than 100,000 Kashmiris have perished in the last 30 years, the latest phase of their struggle for self-determination, including through extrajudicial killings and custodial deaths. They have also endured torture, rape and molestation, collective punishment, denial of the right of freedom of expression and denial of the right to practice their religion, he added.

"I firmly believe that denial of human rights and justice anywhere is a denial of justice and human rights everywhere. If you can stand up for country X, then you can also stand up for country or territory Y," Qazi said.

INDIA CLAIMS TO BE WORLD'S LARGEST DEMOCRACY BUT ACTING OTHERWISE

"The actions of India have been noticed by the rest of the world. Here is a democracy that is acting as if it's a totalitarian or authoritarian state with no regard for human rights or democratic norms," Qazi said.

He said Kashmir by all rights, by all logic and by all appearances was to be a part of Pakistan.

"The prescription is there. The UN Security Council resolutions clearly state that. Just ask the Kashmiris. What's so difficult about it? India claims to be the world's largest democracy.

"So why is India afraid of just asking the Kashmiris (what they want) through a free, fairly administered plebiscite?" he added.

PAKISTAN EXPECTS INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO STEP UP FOR KASHMIR

Qazi said it is the international community, particularly the UN, that needs to step up and say "enough is enough, 75 years have passed, you two don't seem to be able to solve the problem on your own."

The envoy said Kashmiris, along with the people of both Pakistan and India, have paid a heavy price due to the conflict, which can be resolved through the UN-prescribed solution-a referendum.

"Well, as long as it takes. Struggles for freedom have no statute of limitations. They have no time limit. There is no deadline. Now the fourth generation of Kashmiris is living under Indian occupation, and they detest the occupation just as much as the first generation. And this will continue.

"Here we have Pakistan having accepted that solution. Here we have India having accepted that solution. There are innumerable statements of the Indian leadership that they will abide by the UN Security Council resolutions. Subsequently, they went back on it. So the solution is there. The only thing is that one of the three parties-and that is India-just needs to look at the problem, look at the solution and have the heart to act as a democracy in Kashmir," he added.

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31 years after 1st website went online, Google tops list as Internet's most-popular site.

Internet users spend the most time on YouTube, according to figures compiled by Anadolu Agency.

As Saturday marks 31 years since the internet's first website came online, Google was found to be the most-visited website with 47.8 billion, according to US-based search engine marketing company Semrush.

However, this was not always the case over the past roughly three decades after the first-ever website, which was made by British scientist Tim Berners-Lee and contained information on the World Wide Web project, went public on Aug. 6, 1991.

The website started functioning on Dec. 20, 1990. But at the time, it was only accessible from the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).

In 2001, the most popular websites were MSN, Yahoo, and eBay, though the first two would lose their spots to Yahoo and Google by 2007.

Other popular websites at that time, such as Myspace and AOL, have disappeared over time.

Google, Facebook, and YouTube were ranked as the most popular websites in 2012.

There are currently around 2 billion websites. After Google, YouTube tops the list in popularity with 46.8 billion visits, followed by Facebook with 10.6 billion, Wikipedia with 5.8 billion, and Twitter with 4.8 billion.

On the other hand, according to website traffic tracker Similarweb, YouTube is the website on which users spend the most time -- around 22 minutes per visit. It is followed by Google, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

According to data by Statista, there were 5 billion active internet users, which is over 60% of the world population, as of April 2022. Of those, 93% are also on social media.

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Greece hastily enacted the law to appoint a puppet mufti, ignoring the Muslim Turkish minority of Western Thrace.

The Athens administration, which has made a name for itself in recent days with its human rights violations and attitudes against international law, has again signed a scandalous event.

"Athens does not have the right to appoint a sexton for the church, but it will appoint a mufti to Muslims," said Ibrahim Sharif, the popularly elected Mufti of Komotini.

Saying that there may be Christians among the committee that will appoint the mufti, “With this law, which is contrary to international agreements, the rights of the Turks of Western Thrace are trampled on.” Şerif said.

The Greek Parliament enacted the law authorizing "appointing muftis" on August 2, without consulting the Muslim Turkish minority in Western Thrace. Athens, which has not fulfilled its international obligations that guarantee the rights of the Turkish minority in Greece, especially the Treaty of Lausanne, aims to transform the mufti institution into a public office affiliated with the Greek state. The bill, which was presented to the parliament immediately after the death of the elected mufti of Xanthi Ahmet Mete, entered into force hastily in the form of a bag draft. Sharing the details on the subject, "Athens, which cannot appoint a sexton, is trying to appoint a mufti to the Muslims." the mufti of Komotini, İbrahim Şerif, who was elected by the people, said.

LAUSANNE WAS IGNORED

Stating that the rights of Muslims on the borders of Greece were first secured with the Athens Peace Treaty in 1913, Şerif said, “Just as the Greeks lived in Istanbul, the Muslims in Western Thrace would live in the same way. Later, these rights were re-assured in Lausanne. Today's muftis are the equivalent of metropolitans (religious leaders with legal rights) in Christianity. The requirements of the agreements were often not implemented by the Athens administration,” he said. Stating that Athens started to impose these impositions by ignoring international agreements in 1985, he said, “In 1985, the first regent was appointed. In 1990, the Athenian government imposed the imposition of "this is your mufti" for the appointed regent.

THE STATE IS INVOLVED IN THE FAMILY AFFAIRS OF THE MINORITY

Stating that Athens began to weaken the power of the mufti in the 90s and to empty the office, Şerif said, “Muslim people used to apply to the mufti in legal situations such as marriage, divorce, inheritance sharing, and child custody sharing. With the law passed a few years ago, Greece is trying to interfere with the life of the minority and the sociological structure here. According to the law, the mufti will be able to handle marriage and divorce proceedings, but since they are in the status of a judge, only muftis appointed by Greece will do this.

CHRISTIAN DELEGATION WILL ELECT

Stating that the rights and values of minorities will be abused through the appointed puppet mufti, Şerif said, “The so-called mufti is under the Ministry of National Education and Religious Affairs of Greece. He makes the appointment as follows: The Ministry will determine a committee of 10 people. In this delegation, which may also include Christians, there will be at least two Muslims among the imams appointed by him with the '240 Imam Law'. This delegation will send it to the ministry after examining 20 people chosen by it and 10 people selected by lot. Ultimately, the Athenian administration will be able to appoint any of these people as mufti. The law stipulates that the expenses of the mufti to be appointed should be covered by the minority associations, not the state budget. We were going to look after the mufti they appointed".

HE WILL BE ONE OF THEIR OWN APPOINTMENTS

Stating that with the '240 Imams Law', which was enacted 8 years ago, only mufti would be elected from among the imams appointed by Greece, Şerif said, "They would appoint 240 people to be appointed in schools and Quran courses and pay their salaries. Among these people who were hired as clergy to teach Muslim Turkish students the religion of Islam in Greek, there were also people who did not have religious knowledge, and we objected at that time. Later, they did not make these appointments. It is thought that the mufti to be elected may be among them.”

SOME ARTICLES OF THE LAW

Mufti offices were demoted to the level of General Directorate under the Greek Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs.

Immovable properties belonging to foundations established by minorities in the region are being abused. With the law, the Athenian administration will be able to confiscate foundation properties and use them for the construction of a mufti.

By law, the only language that the mufti will use in correspondence will be Greek. No translation will be made unless deemed necessary.

Foundations belonging to minorities will meet the accommodation problem of the appointed muftis./

The new “Dar al-Ifta” law approved by the Greek Parliament sparked negative reactions among Greek Muslims because it was prepared without coordination with the Turkish Muslim minority in the country.

According to the Treaty of Athens signed between the Ottoman Empire and Greece in 1913, the Turkish Muslim minority there has the right to elect the Mufti of Muslims, as affirmed by the Greek Constitution in 1920.

However, in 1991 Greece revoked the mentioned treaty and proceeded to appoint a mufti for Muslims, which was rejected by the Turkish minority, who insisted on the necessity of electing the mufti through it.

The appointed mufti in Greece has the power to make decisions about Muslims on issues such as inheritance and the family, but with a new presidential decree published in June 2019, the independence of the “fatwas” on the Greek side has been restricted.

In this context, the new “Dar al-Ifta” law, which the government presented to the Greek Parliament on July 22 and entered into force on August 2, confirms the Greek government’s indifference to the demands of the Turkish minority and international treaties.

The Turkish minority in Greece views the new law as an “authoritarian tool that works to limit the religious freedoms of the Turkish minority” and “evidence that the government does not intend to solve the problem.”

Muslims in Greece say that Athens continued to violate the rights of the Turkish minority and religious freedoms, especially the provisions emanating from the Treaty of Lausanne, and seeks to continue working to transform the Dar al-Ifta institution into a governmental position of the Greek state.

The aforementioned law was criticized for its style and timing, as well as for its issuance without consulting the Turkish minority concerned with the law, its impact on basic religious freedoms, and its hasty issuance after the death of the late elected Mufti, Ahmed Matta.

Greece refuses to recognize the elected muftis from the Turkish minority and insists on appointing government officials to run the religious affairs of the minority.

Athens confirms this position with this new law, transforming the heads of fatwa houses into employees working under the supervision of the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Religious Affairs.

Under the new law, Greece’s Ministry of Religious Affairs is working to appoint a government committee that seeks to elect a mufti for Muslims.

The latest Greek move raises the ire of the Turkish minority in the country because it is working to transform the “Dar Al Ifta” into a government administration that does not recognize any privacy for Muslims.

The Consultative Council of the Turkish Minority in Western Thrace (Northeastern Greece) issued a statement on the issue and emphasized that the will of the minority was not taken into account when preparing the said law.

The statement stressed that the law clearly contradicts the provisions of the Treaty of Lausanne, which guarantees the religious independence of Muslims in Greece, and that the Greek government insists on ignoring these provisions.

He explained that the positions of the current Greek government, like its predecessors, do not tend to address the problems of the Turkish minority in a constructive manner.

“We condemn in the strongest terms this anti-democratic and human rights approach,” the statement said.

In turn, the Dar al-Ifta in the Greek city of “Iskjah” (Xanthi) (northeast) said that the aforementioned law was “completely unacceptable.”

She added in a statement that the right of the Turkish minority to elect its mufti, a right guaranteed by international agreements.

On the other hand, the Turkish Foreign Ministry reiterated its support for the demands of representatives of the Turkish minority in Greece, expressing its rejection of Athens’ attempts to transform the “Dar Al Ifta” into an administration under the control of the Greek state.

The attack took place in the town of Sona, in the Koutiala area, near Mali's border with Burkina Faso.

Five police officers were killed by "unidentified assailants" in southern Mali, the national police said, while the Malian army claimed to be repelling a separate attack by militants in the northeast.

A team from the Sona Frontier Police Station "struck an explosive device followed by heavy fire from as yet unidentified assailants", the Directorate General of the National Police said in a statement.

"Five police officers were killed, one wounded and three missing", it added.

The attack took place in the town of Sona, in the Koutiala area, near Mali's border with Burkina Faso.

A local elected official and a member of the national police, both speaking to AFP news agency on condition of anonymity, described the assailants as "terrorists".

"A task force of the Defence and Security Forces, dispatched to the scene, is currently combing the area and actively searching for the missing", the police said in the statement.

Repelling separate attack

Separately, the Malian army claimed on social media on Sunday that it was in the process of repelling an attack in the Gao region by fighters from the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS).

"The (army) in the Tessit area, district of Ansongo, are repelling an ISGS attack, launched some 40 minutes ago", it posted around 4:00 pm (GMT and local), adding that it would continue to provide updates.

Mali is struggling with an insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes.

It is also in the grip of political upheaval after colonels angry at the government's handling of the insurgency seized power in August 2020.

Source: AFP