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NATO sees 'very serious' Russian military Ukraine build-up
by Staff Writers
Brussels (AFP) Nov 18, 2014


Muslim addresses Church of England synod for first time
London (AFP) Nov 18, 2014 - A British Muslim addressed a Church of England synod for the first time on Tuesday in a discussion with Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby on the suffering of religious minorities in Iraq and Syria.

Fuad Nahdi, head of Radical Middle Way, a think tank involved in inter-faith dialogue, recited an Islamic prayer and greeted the Anglican gathering with the words "salaam aleikum" (Peace be with you).

Nahdi branded violent Islamist jihadists as "idiots" and condemned discrimination against Christians, but said that Muslims who did not adhere to extremist ideologies had suffered in greater numbers.

"The persecution of Christians in Iraq and Syria is heinous and totally unacceptable to any sane human being. But we should not forget that the Muslims have borne the brunt of these extremists," he said.

"Thousands if not tens of thousands have died in the past couple of years and they will continue to die if we pretend to ignore it," the Kenya-born campaigner, who was dressed in a blue robe and cap, told hundreds of assembled delegates.

He also spoke about growing anger among young Muslims in Britain in reaction to criticism that they face because of the actions of extremists they have nothing to do with "thousands of miles away".

"All the pressure on us is to try and justify things that are unjustifiable," he said, calling for peaceful existence and joint "fight against ignorance" by Christians and Muslims.

In an article in The Guardian newspaper out on Tuesday, Nahdi wrote: "I hope my presence as the first Muslim to address the General Synod shows that followers of these great religions can be allies".

The Church of England is the mother church of the global Anglican Communion, which has some 80 million followers in over 165 countries.

Russia has launched a "very serious" military build-up inside Ukraine and on their shared border, deploying troops and sophisticated equipment including air defence systems, NATO head Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday.

Troops, artillery and "very modern" air defence weapons could be seen "both inside of Ukraine and also on the Russian side of the border," Stoltenberg said as he arrived for a meeting with European Union defence ministers.

"It is a very serious build-up," Stoltenberg said, urging Russia to reverse course and meet its commitments under a September ceasefire and peace plan signed by Kiev and pro-Kremlin rebels.

"Russia has a choice. Russia can either be part of a peaceful negotiated solution or Russia can continue on a path of isolation," Stoltenberg said.

"The international community calls on Russia to be part of the solution."

But for the moment "we see that Russia is still destabilising Ukraine. We see movement of troops, tanks, artillery, air defence systems in violation of the ceasefire," the former Norwegian premier said.

Air defence systems are a particular concern after the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine in July, which Western governments allege was carried out by pro-Kremlin rebels.

Stoltenberg took office in October with the Ukraine crisis top of his agenda as the US-led military alliance beefed up its readiness in response to Russia's actions which spooked newer NATO members such as Poland and the Baltic states once ruled from Moscow.

He is visiting the Baltic states later this week.

NATO has deployed aircraft and personnel on a rotational basis through its eastern member states in an effort to reassure them and embarked on longer term planning in the face of what it sees as a more assertive Moscow under President Vladimir Putin.

Putin insists Russia has no presence in eastern Ukraine where the rebels appear to be consolidating areas under their control.


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Sydney (AFP) Nov 18, 2014
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