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US Defense Secretary Hegseth Asks Army Chief of Staff Randy George to Step Down
WorldAPBBCNYT+57le-mondewapoThe GuardianAl Jazeeradr-dkFox Newsyle-uutisetcbc+49 more8d ago60 sources

US Defense Secretary Hegseth Asks Army Chief of Staff Randy George to Step Down

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has asked the Army's top uniformed officer, Gen. Randy George, to step down and take immediate retirement, amidst ongoing clashes between the Pentagon chief and senior military leadership, with reports also coming from French media and the Independent.

Australian police probe threatening letter to country’s largest mosque ahead of Ramazan
WorldThe IndependentDawn1mo ago2 sources

Australian police probe threatening letter to country’s largest mosque ahead of Ramazan

Australian police said on Thursday they had launched an investigation after a threatening letter was sent to the country’s largest mosque, the third such incident in the lead-up to Ramazan. The letter sent to Lakemba Mosque in Sydney’s west on Wednesday contained a drawing of a pig and a threat to kill the “Muslim race”, local media reported. Police said they had taken the letter for forensic testing and would continue to patrol religious sites, including the mosque, as well as community events. The latest letter comes weeks after a similar message was mailed to the mosque, depicting Muslims inside a mosque on fire. Police have also arrested and charged a 70-year-old man in connection with a third threatening letter sent to Lakemba Mosque’s staff in January. The Lebanese Muslim Association, which runs the mosque, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) it had written to the government to request more funding for additional security guards and CCTV cameras. Some 5,000 people are expected to attend the mosque each night during Ramazan. More than 60 per cent of residents in the suburb of Lakemba identify as Muslim, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Bilal El-Hayek, mayor of Canterbury-Bankstown council, where Lakemba is located, said the community was feeling “very anxious”. “I’ve heard first-hand from people saying that they won’t be sending their kids to practice this Ramazan because they’re very concerned about things that might happen in local mosques,” he said. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the recent string of threats. “It is outrageous that people just going about commemorating their faith, particularly during the holy month for Muslims of Ramazan, are subject to this sort of intimidation,” he told ABC radio. “I have said repeatedly we need to turn down the temperature of political discourse in this country, and we certainly need to do that,” he said. Anti-Muslim sentiment has been growing in Australia since the beginning of Israeli onslaught in Gaza in late 2023, according to a recent report commissioned by the government. The Islamophobia Register Australia has also documented a 740pc rise in reports following the Bondi mass shooting on December 14, where authorities allege two gunmen inspired by the militant Islamic State killed 15 people attending a Jewish holiday celebration. “There’s been a massive increase post-Bondi,” Mayor El-Hayek said. “Without a doubt, this is the worst I have ever seen it. There’s a lot of tension out there.”

Row over speakers on Indonesian ‘island of 1,000 mosques’ sparks debate on compromise
CultureSCMP1mo ago

Row over speakers on Indonesian ‘island of 1,000 mosques’ sparks debate on compromise

A confrontation between a foreign tourist and residents on a popular Indonesian holiday island has reignited debate over the regulation of mosque loudspeakers in the Muslim-majority country. The dispute, involving a New Zealand national on Gili Trawangan, has drawn fresh attention to whether related government guidelines on the use of such speakers should instead become a binding law. On February 18, the woman disrupted a Koran recitation night session at a musalla – a small prayer room – nea...