By DAVID KLEPPER and KRUTIKA PATHI (Associated Press) NEW DELHI (AP) — Bollywood stars seldom weigh in on politics, so videos showing two celebrities criticizing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi — and endorsing his main opposition, the Congress party — were bound to go viral. But the clips of A-list actors Aamir Khan and Ranveer … Read more
Gambling is considered taboo across Malaysia’s multicultural society – especially among the ethnic Malay majority, who are predominantly Muslim and legally barred from engaging in any form of betting. Yet Malaysians are also prolific gamblers, with the country’s nationals regularly appearing at gaming tables elsewhere in Asia. Berjaya Corp, which owns Malaysia’s largest lottery business, … Read more
“There is a complete absence of an overarching national narrative. It has reasons to make the incumbent or the front runner a bit jittery,” said Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, an author and independent political analyst. “Normally, a front runner can sweep up everything if there is a single issue.” Some observers have attributed the smaller number of … Read more
Associated Press LOS ANGELES — The University of Southern California further shook up its commencement plans Friday, announcing the cancelation of a keynote speech by filmmaker Jon M. Chu just days after making the controversial choice to disallow the student valedictorian from speaking. The private university in Los Angeles on Monday said it was canceling … Read more
Now Israeli dates, a sweet fruit eaten to break fast during Ramadan, are in the cross hairs of a consumer campaign which is flying across Malaysian and Indonesian chat groups over fears Israeli dates are being sold to unwitting buyers in the Muslim nations. A Muslim man breaks his fast during the Muslim holy month … Read more
Beijing: Volkswagen is reviewing the future of its joint venture in the Xinjiang region of northwestern China and another German industrial giant is starting to sell its stakes there following new international scrutiny of forced labor by predominantly Muslim ethnic groups. Volkswagen said last week that it was in discussions with one of its main … Read more
Two Malaysian Muslim women who successfully challenged the expansion of sharia law in Kelantan state hit back at their detractors on Monday, after receiving death threats and having their faith questioned in a “vitriolic campaign” which has failed to understand the ruling. Tengku Yasmin Nastasha, who filed the legal challenge against the Kelantan legislature alongside … Read more
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni may have just touched a raw nerve with a loaded comment at a far right gathering in her country. According to various media reports, Meloni’s potentially explosive observation came at a political event held by the far-right Brothers of Italy in Rome, where she reportedly said that “there is no … Read more
By Dianne Gallagher | CNN A Georgia middle school teacher was arrested last week after multiple witnesses told authorities he threatened to behead a 13-year-old Muslim student who said the Israeli flag hanging in his classroom offended her. Benjamin Reese, a 51-year-old seventh grade teacher at Warner Robins Middle School, was arrested on charges of making terroristic … Read more
