Headlines
31/10/2015

Headlines

• Gulf will be too Hot for Humans by 2070: Study

• 800 Colombian Soldiers to Join Saudi-Led Forces in Yemen

• UK to keep 450 Troops Stationed in Afghanistan Through 2016

• Indonesia Wants to Promote Moderation in Islam with Malaysia

Details

Gulf will be too Hot for Humans by 2070: Study

The Arabian Gulf and parts of Iran will suffer heatwaves beyond the limit of human survival if climate change is unchecked, according to a new scientific study. The extreme heatwaves will affect Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Doha and coastal cities in Iran and will pose a deadly threat to millions of pilgrims in Saudi Arabia when the Haj will fall in summer. The study shows the extreme heatwaves, more intense than anything ever experienced on Earth, would kick in after 2070 and that the hottest days of today would by then be a near-daily occurrence. "Our results expose a specific regional hotspot where climate change, in the absence of significant [carbon cuts], is likely to severely impact human habitability in the future," said Prof Jeremy Pal and Prof Elfatih Eltahir, both at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, writing in the journal Nature Climate Change. They said the future climate for many locations in the Gulf would be like today's extreme climate in the desert of Northern Afar, on the African side of the Red Sea, where there are no permanent human settlements at all. But the research also showed that cutting greenhouse gas emissions now could avoid this fate. The Gulf, where populations are rising quickly, was hit this year by one of its worst-ever heatwaves, with temperatures topping 50C, leading to many deaths. Prof Eltahir said, "We would hope that information like this would be helpful in making sure there is interest [in cutting carbon emissions] for the countries in the region. They have a vital interest in supporting measures that would help reduce the concentration of CO2 in the future." The new research examined how a combined measure of temperature and humidity, called wet bulb temperature (WBT), would increase if carbon emissions continue along current trends and the world warms by 4C this century. At WBTs above 35C, the high heat and humidity make it physically impossible for even the fittest human body to cool itself by sweating, with fatal consequences after six hours. For less fit people, the fatal WBT is below 35C. A WBT temperature of 35C – the combination of 46C heat and 50 per cent humidity – was almost reached in Bandar Mahshahr in Iran in July.

Unless, humans abandon man-made laws that not only contradict man's nature but are also destructive to the environment, man-kind will always face an existential threat from the change in climate.

800 Colombian Soldiers to Join Saudi-Led Forces in Yemen

As many as 800 Colombian nationals could soon be fighting in Yemen, with dozens likely already in the war-torn Middle Eastern nation. Hundreds of Colombian nationals are fighting alongside Saudi Arabian-led forces in Yemen. The troops include former Colombian soldiers fighting under contract with Saudi Arabia. According to Colombian newspaper El Tiempo, the first group of just under 100 Colombian troops arrived in Yemen earlier this month. The newspaper has reported the troops were set to arrive in the southern port city of Aden, which is currently under the control of Saudi Arabia and forced allied with Yemen's ousted president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi. As many as 800 Colombian fighters could take up front-line positions under Saudi command, according to the newspaper. In recent days unconfirmed reports have surfaced the number of Colombians in Yemen may have already reached that number. The news comes as Colombia's government advances in peace accords with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas to end the country five-decade old conflict. The troops are expected to be involved in an ongoing offensive against the Houthi movement, which currently holds Yemen's capital, Sanaa.

Yemen has been in a state of civil war since early this year, when the Houthi launched a massive offensive that led to the capture of Sanaa and Hadi fleeing the country. The conflict in the country between the Houthi and Hadi loyalists escalated in March when Saudi Arabia and 10 of its regional allies started bombing Yemen, aided by United States' logistical and intelligence support. The Saudis have demanded the Houthi hand back power to Hadi, though the movement remains in control of much of Yemen's west. The conflict has already left thousands of Yemenis dead, with aid agencies warning of a humanitarian disaster. [Source: Telesurtv]

The Saudi led coalition is quickly losing morale and is forced to hire infidel mercenaries to kill Muslims in Yemen. This clearly shows that the war has little or no support in the GCC from the people, and the governments have to hire foreign soldiers to keep their regimes afloat.

UK to keep 450 Troops Stationed in Afghanistan Through 2016

The 450 troops Britain has stationed in Afghanistan are to remain for another year amid deteriorating security in the country. David Cameron withdrew all combat troops in 2014 after 13 years of fighting the Taliban, but the support mission stayed on to train domestic forces. In a statement to parliament, Michael Fallon, the defence secretary, confirmed the troops would remain throughout 2016. It comes after President Barack Obama delayed the departure of the US from Afghanistan, saying a force of 5,500 would stay beyond the end of his term of office in 2017.The UK and US appear to be extending their presence amid an escalation in Taliban attacks amid fears that Afghan forces are currently not as capable of maintaining security as they had hoped. Fallon said UK forces were only performing non-combat roles, including mentoring instructors at the Afghan National Army Officer Academy. "The UK government recognised it would take time for the ANDSF [Afghan national defence and security forces] to develop into a fully fledged fighting force capable of providing complete security for the people of Afghanistan," he said. [The Guardian]

Mission creep has hit UK and US, as they struggle to pacify the Pashtun resistance, after 14 years at war. Billions of dollars have been spent to fight the Taliban and still the West is unable to extricate itself from the country.

Indonesia Wants to Promote Moderation in Islam with Malaysia

The concept of moderation in Islam, which was introduced in Malaysia is in line with the concept of 'Islam Nusantara' in Indonesia, said Indonesia's Vice-President Jusuf Kalla. He said both concepts had proved that Muslims in both countries rejected any form of extremism and chose to live in a successful and peaceful country. "Indonesia and Malaysia are peaceful nations...there is no radicalism in Islam and we are not failed nations. We have moderate views," he said in an exclusive interview with Bernama, here recently. He said activities linked to terrorism launched by certain parties were not caused by religious affiliation but because the people were living in a failed state. "There are some Muslim groups which are radical and it can happen anywhere, people are afraid, not just people in Europe, but even Muslims are afraid. They resort to bombings such as in Pakistan, Yemen, and Syria," he said. Jusuf said all Muslims must work together to stop radicalism in Muslim countries because this was not included in the true teachings of Islam. However, he said, Muslims became radical because their countries were destroyed by western countries and the people's uprising had created militant groups. The vice-president said the collapse of the Middle Eastern countries became worse when there were different thoughts namely Shia and Sunni, which toppled their government radically and claimed many Muslim lives. Jusuf said the radicalism entered other countries through the modern information technology but the government of Malaysia and Indonesia managed to control it. He said the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) could do nothing to combat terrorism because it did not have the strength to take any action. [Source: The Malay Mail Online]

Rather than promoting "moderate Islam", both countries should unify efforts to re-establish the true Islamic state. Only then will peace dominate.