Sri Lankan pilgrims no longer required to pay for Hajj in forex, ready for journey

Sri Lankan pilgrims no longer required to pay for Hajj in forex, ready for journey
Hajj pilgrims gather on the plain of Arafat, near Makkah, Saudi Arabia, July 8, 2022. (AN Photo)
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Updated 30 May 2023

Sri Lankan pilgrims no longer required to pay for Hajj in forex, ready for journey

Sri Lankan pilgrims no longer required to pay for Hajj in forex, ready for journey
  • Nation expected to use full allocated quota of 3,500 places
  • Last year, only 960 from crisis-hit country performed ritual

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka is expecting to use its full Hajj quota this year after the government lifted a 2022 policy that required pilgrims from the crisis-stricken nation to pay their travel costs in foreign currency.

Only 960 pilgrims, or slightly more than half of last year’s quota, performed the Hajj in 2022, when Sri Lanka was gripped by the worst financial downturn since independence in 1948 and defaulted on foreign debt repayments.

As the cost of sending worshippers to Makkah — estimated at $10 million — was too high for the country to bear, Muslims were allowed to perform the pilgrimage on condition that they covered their costs in foreign currency, which the government said would not burden the national economy.

With the requirement no longer in place this year, Sri Lanka is expecting to fully utilize its allocated quota of 3,500 pilgrims.

“This year the government of Sri Lanka has not imposed such restrictions, as (the) Sri Lankan economy has improved,” Ibrahim Sahib Ansar, who oversees Hajj logistics at the Ministry of Religious Affairs, told Arab News.

About 2,200 people have already registered with the Ministry of Religious Affairs as of Wednesday.

“We are confident that 3,500 pilgrims will go this year,” Ansar said. “There is more enthusiasm and interest among the people of Sri Lanka in performing Hajj this time.”

Muslims make up almost 10 percent of the country’s population of 22 million, which is predominantly Buddhist.

Despite their country’s economy still not being sound, the Muslim minority is determined to perform the spiritual journey that is one of Islam’s five pillars of faith.

“Sri Lankan Muslims, irrespective of their financial status, they give priority to the religious obligations such as prayer, fasting and Hajj,” Ansar said.

“The Muslims in Sri Lanka are generally very religious and pious. Many Muslims save money for some years to perform Hajj, as they regard performing Hajj as an important duty.” 

Over 100 travel agents have been appointed by the government to streamline Sri Lanka’s Hajj operations this year.

Rizmi Reyal, who heads the All-Ceylon Hajj Tour Operators Association, told Arab News that the enthusiasm over the pilgrimage and the number of pilgrims were a sign of normalcy returning to the country.

“The situation in the country is coming back to normal compared to the hardships faced last year,” he said.

“The rupee is becoming stronger, power is back to normal, and the people are positive.”


China slams US over reported ‘spy base’ in Cuba

China slams US over reported ‘spy base’ in Cuba
Updated 12 sec ago

China slams US over reported ‘spy base’ in Cuba

China slams US over reported ‘spy base’ in Cuba
  • Media reports dismissed by Cuba’s deputy foreign minister as ‘mendacious and unfounded’
  • ‘Spreading rumors and slander is a common tactic of the United States, and wantonly interfering in the internal affairs of other countries is its patent’
BEIJING: China warned the United States Friday against “interfering in Cuba’s internal affairs,” in response to reports that Beijing was planning to set up a spy base on the island just off American shores.
The media reports, based on comments by anonymous US officials to The Wall Street Journal and CNN, were dismissed by Cuba’s deputy foreign minister as “mendacious and unfounded,” while the White House called them inaccurate.
When asked about the alleged spying base at a regular press briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said he was “unaware of the situation” before criticizing US policy on Cuba.
“As we all know, spreading rumors and slander is a common tactic of the United States, and wantonly interfering in the internal affairs of other countries is its patent,” said Wang.
“The United States should reflect on itself and stop interfering in Cuba’s internal affairs under the banner of freedom and democracy, and immediately cancel the economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba.”
The reports suggested that the Chinese spying base would be capable of eavesdropping on communications across broad swathes of the southeastern United States.
The developments come as Chinese leader Xi Jinping has pushed a rapid expansion of the country’s security presence around the world.
A base in Cuba, which lies 150 kilometers off Florida’s southern tip, would present the most direct challenge yet to the continental United States.
The Soviet Union had electronic spying facilities in communist Cuba to monitor the United States.
But in 1962 when Moscow moved to base nuclear missiles on Cuba, the United States declared a quarantine of the island in a crisis that threatened to bring the two superpowers to war, until Moscow backed down.
Washington then removed its nuclear-capable missiles from Turkiye, which the Soviets viewed as a threat to them.
Earlier this year, China sent what the US called a high-altitude surveillance balloon across the United States. It floated from west to east above sensitive military installations before it was shot down by a US fighter jet.

China: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to visit next week

China: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to visit next week
Updated 09 June 2023

China: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to visit next week

China: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to visit next week
  • China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang in April told his Israeli and Palestinian counterparts that his country was willing to aid peace negotiations

BEIJING: Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas will make a state visit to China next week, Beijing said Friday, after China said it was ready to help facilitate Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
“At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, President of the state of Palestine Mahmud Abbas will pay a state visit to China from June 13 to 16,” foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said.
China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang in April told his Israeli and Palestinian counterparts that his country was willing to aid peace negotiations.
The separate phone calls between Qin and the Israeli and Palestinian top diplomats came as Beijing positions itself as a regional mediator.
Qin encouraged “steps to resume peace talks” and said that “China is ready to provide convenience for this,” in a phone call with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, Xinhua reported.
And Qin told Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Maliki that Beijing supports the resumption of talks as soon as possible, according to the state news agency.
In both calls Qin emphasised China’s push for peace talks on the basis of implementing a “two-state solution.”
“President Abbas is an old and good friend of the Chinese people,” foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular briefing later on Friday.
“He is the first Arab head of state received by China this year, fully embodying the high level of China-Palestine good relations, which have traditionally been friendly,” he added.
“The Palestinian issue is the core of the Middle East issue. It bears on peace and stability in the Middle East and on international fairness and justice.”
China has been on a recent diplomatic offensive, brokering the restoration of ties in March between Iran and Saudi Arabia — rivals in a region where the United States for decades has been the main powerbroker.
Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations have been stalled since 2014.


Vatican: Pope Francis doing well after surgery, has another good night

Vatican: Pope Francis doing well after surgery, has another good night
Updated 09 June 2023

Vatican: Pope Francis doing well after surgery, has another good night

Vatican: Pope Francis doing well after surgery, has another good night
  • The Vatican has said Francis’ condition is stable and his post-operative recovery deemed normal

ROME: Pope Francis had a second good night in the hospital recovering from surgery to remove intestinal scar tissue and repair a hernia in his abdominal wall, the Vatican said.
The Holy See press office said early Friday that further medical updates were expected later in the day. The Vatican has said Francis’ condition is stable and his post-operative recovery deemed normal.
The 86-year-old Francis was admitted to the Gemelli hospital on Wednesday for his second major abdominal operation in two years, following a 2021 procedure to remove part of his colon. During the procedure, doctors removed adhesions, or internal scarring, on the intestine that had caused a partial blockage. They also repaired a hernia that had formed over a previous scar, placing a prosthetic mesh in the abdominal wall.
Francis is expected to remain at Gemelli for several days.


NATO may base troops in Sweden before Stockholm joins, government says

NATO may base troops in Sweden before Stockholm joins, government says
Updated 09 June 2023

NATO may base troops in Sweden before Stockholm joins, government says

NATO may base troops in Sweden before Stockholm joins, government says
  • Sweden applied last year to join NATO as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
  • Objections from Turkiye and Hungary have delayed the Nordic country’s bid

STOCKHOLM: Sweden will allow NATO to base troops on its territory even before it formally joins the defense alliance, the prime minister and defense minister said on Friday.
Sweden applied last year to join NATO as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Objections from Turkiye and Hungary have delayed the bid and Sweden now hopes to join by a NATO summit in Lithuania next month.
“The government has decided that the Swedish Armed Forces may undertake preparations with NATO and NATO countries to enable future joint operations,” Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Defense Minister Pal Jonson said.
“The preparations may consist of temporary basing of foreign equipment and personnel on Swedish territory. The decision sends a clear signal to Russia and strengthens Sweden’s defense,” they said in an opinion piece in daily Dagens Nyheter.
Russia would for the foreseeable future remain a threat against neighboring countries, they said, and they were uncertain of the extent of President Vladimir Putin’s territorial ambitions.
Fellow Nordic country Finland, which has a long border with Russia, joined NATO in April.


Indonesia’s Anak Krakatoa volcano erupts, spews huge ash column

Indonesia’s Anak Krakatoa volcano erupts, spews huge ash column
Updated 09 June 2023

Indonesia’s Anak Krakatoa volcano erupts, spews huge ash column

Indonesia’s Anak Krakatoa volcano erupts, spews huge ash column
  • There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties after the eruption
  • The country has nearly 130 active volcanoes

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s Anak Krakatoa volcano erupted on Friday, belching a column of ash more than three kilometers into the sky, officials said.
The volcanic island emerged from the sea at the beginning of the last century from the crater formed after the 1883 eruption of Mount Krakatoa — one of the deadliest and most destructive in history.
Anak Krakatoa, which means “Child of Krakatoa”, spewed thick ash over the strait that separates the islands of Java and Sumatra.
There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties after the eruption at 08:46 am (0146 GMT).
“The height of the eruption column was observed to be 3,000 meters (nearly 10,000 feet) above the summit,” Deny Mardiono, an official from the Krakatoa monitoring station, said in a press release.
“The ash column was observed to be grey to black with thick intensity to the southwest.”
He warned the public not to carry out activities within a five-kilometer (three-mile) radius of the volcano’s crater.
Anak Krakatoa’s status was at the second-highest warning level after authorities raised it in 2022 following a sharp rise in volcanic activity.
Its crater partly collapsed in 2018 when a major eruption sent huge chunks sliding into the ocean, triggering a tsunami that killed more than 400 people and injured thousands.
Indonesia, a Southeast Asian archipelago nation, sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.
The country has nearly 130 active volcanoes.