Bangladesh’s largest development organization hopes to work with KSrelief on refugee crisis

Bangladesh’s largest development organization hopes to work with KSrelief on refugee crisis
BRAC Executive Director Asif Saleh meets with KSrelief Supervisor General Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah in Riyadh on Feb. 29, 2024. (SPA)
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Updated 05 March 2024
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Bangladesh’s largest development organization hopes to work with KSrelief on refugee crisis

Bangladesh’s largest development organization hopes to work with KSrelief on refugee crisis
  • Asia nation’s body is one of largest responders to Rohingya refugee crisis
  • Officials from KSrelief and Building Resources Across Communities met in Riyadh

DHAKA: Bangladesh’s largest development organization is hoping for greater collaboration with Saudi Arabia’s aid agency KSrelief to help refugees in Cox’s Bazar, Afghanistan and South Sudan, its executive director told Arab News on Tuesday.

Founded in Bangladesh in 1972, the Building Resources Across Communities organization works with marginalized communities in remote areas and post-disaster settings across Asia and Africa, with a focus on creating opportunities for the group.

The Rohingya refugee crisis and similar issues in Afghanistan and South Sudan were discussed during a meeting between BRAC’s Executive Director Asif Saleh and KSrelief’s Supervisor-General Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah last week, on the sidelines of the Human Capability Initiative Conference in Riyadh.

“It was my first meeting with Dr. Al-Rabeeah. Our discussions revolved around the refugee crisis and its management process,” Saleh told Arab News.

The BRAC organization is one of the largest responders to the Rohingya refugee crisis and has worked with communities in the Cox’s Bazar region for nearly four decades.

“BRAC works in the humanitarian sector with a mission to realize the life potential of the refugees. We have been working for the well-being of the refugees for many years. That work in Bangladesh, Afghanistan and South Sudan can be strengthened with the partnership of KSrelief.”

Saleh cited KSrelief’s ongoing work in those countries, which shows “much potential” for the two organizations to work together.

Saleh also discussed BRAC’s latest projects with Al-Rabeeah, including the organization’s ongoing work on a new refugee management model combining various services such as education, health and skills-building under one specific organization for a particular location.

As refugee management is currently the responsibility of several agencies covering different sectors, Saleh said the new model can increase effectiveness and reduce operational costs.

“We are at the design phase now and hope to complete the process by a couple of weeks. After evaluating the success of this new model, it can be gradually expanded in other camps. We will also share the updates of this new refugee management model with KSrelief, according to our discussions,” he added.

“Long-term refugee crises should be addressed in a different way. Coming out from life-saving initiatives, there should be approaches to making the refugees more self-sufficient.”


King Charles’ cancer treatment progressing well, will continue next year

King Charles’ cancer treatment progressing well, will continue next year
Updated 10 sec ago
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King Charles’ cancer treatment progressing well, will continue next year

King Charles’ cancer treatment progressing well, will continue next year
  • 2024 has been ‘brutal’ for family
  • Princes Andrew and Harry absent from Christmas get-together

LONDON: King Charles’ cancer treatment is progressing well and will continue into next year, a Buckingham Palace source said, as the British royals prepare for their annual Christmas get-together after a “brutal” year for the family.
In February, the palace revealed the 76-year-old, who became king in 2022, had been diagnosed with an unspecified form of cancer detected in tests after a corrective procedure for an enlarged prostate.
While he was able to return to public duties two months later, the number of engagements has been limited on medical advice, something which the noted workaholic has found difficult.
“His treatment has been moving in a positive direction and as a managed condition the treatment cycle will continue into next year,” the palace source said on Friday.
The palace source said there had been no change in Charles’ health and the news that his treatment would continue in 2025 did not represent any significant update.
But his busy pre-Christmas schedule, which concludes on Friday with a visit to the northeast London district of Walthamstow that staged a large counter-protest in August in response to nationwide rioting, was an indication of his determination to stay busy.
In October, Charles and his wife Camilla made a brief stopover in India where they stayed at a holistic health center following his first major trip since being diagnosed with cancer to Australia and Samoa.
Overall the last year has been difficult for the royals.
The disclosure in March that the king’s daughter-in-law Kate, the wife of heir Prince William, was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer was another shock.
While her treatment has now ended, her return to official engagements has been limited and she said her path to full recovery would be long. William said it had been the hardest 12 months of his life and “brutal” for the family.
But it has not just been health issues that have put the Windsors in the spotlight. The king’s younger brother Prince Andrew was embroiled in another scandal this month after a close business associate of his was banned from Britain over government suspicions he was a Chinese agent.
The royal finances have also come under media scrutiny while Charles was heckled by an Indigenous senator at Australia’s Parliament House during his tour there, a reflection of ongoing questions about Britain’s colonial past.
Meanwhile, the king’s younger son Prince Harry remains estranged from the family and more royal secrets are likely to be aired when he gives days of evidence in the witness box in his lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper group.
Both Harry and Andrew will be absent when the royals gather for their traditional festive gathering at the king’s Sandringham home in eastern England, a very visual demonstration of those problems.


KSrelief to build homes for thousands of Bangladeshi flood survivors

KSrelief to build homes for thousands of Bangladeshi flood survivors
Updated 3 min 49 sec ago
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KSrelief to build homes for thousands of Bangladeshi flood survivors

KSrelief to build homes for thousands of Bangladeshi flood survivors
  • Homes for 3,000 people will be built in 9 worst-affected districts
  • Construction to start next week and finish within 3 months

DHAKA: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center is helping build housing for thousands of Bangladeshis rendered homeless by this year’s devastating floods.

Bangladesh — one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change — faced a series of consecutive climate-related disasters this year.

Following the landfall of Cyclone Remal in May, communities in northeastern and southeastern Bangladesh were hit by flash floods and riverine flooding, affecting an estimated 18 million people. Many lost their homes or had them severely damaged.

The KSrelief-funded project launched earlier this week will help build 630 homes in nine worst-affected districts.

“The scale of the destruction highlighted the urgent need for sustainable relief projects,” Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Ambassador Abdulaziz Fahad Al-Ibrahim told reporters in Dhaka.

“(This) program is part of the ongoing humanitarian efforts made by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to support those affected by natural disasters around the world.”

The homes will be built by KSrelief’s local partner, the Sunbulah Welfare Association, which designed them to resist extreme weather.

“The floor of the houses will be made with concrete, while the walls and roof will be built with tin, which will be strong enough to withstand future flooding and cyclones,” Dr. Mohammad Shakir Hossain, Sunbulah’s founder and chairman, told Arab News.

The construction of one such home is estimated to cost around $1,400.

“We will complete the construction within the next three months. The first phase of construction works will begin next week,” Hossain said.

“More than 3,000 people will receive shelter … It will help a lot of people in the flood- and cyclone-hit areas. Many people in the villages can’t build a house like this. For them, a good shelter is a dream.”

One region where the houses will be built is the southwestern district of Pirojpur.

Imam Hossain, 30, a day laborer whose house was destroyed by Cyclone Remal in May, will be among the program’s beneficiaries.

“This house from KSrelief is a huge blessing for me, as my wife is expecting our first child,” he said. “It was quite impossible for me to afford to build a house on my own.”

In the northern district of Nougaon, many families affected by devastating flooding in June have been living in makeshift shelters ever since.

“It was a sudden flood, and the water levels reached up to 4 feet … Our old house was washed away by floodwaters in front of our eyes. We couldn’t do anything to save it. In the blink of an eye, we became homeless,” said Swadhin Hossain, a student who, along with his parents, grandmother and younger sister, will soon receive a new home.

“We are very happy (that) the authorities selected our family. It was impossible for me and my father to build a new house. I am grateful to KSrelief for standing with my family in this time of need.”


Rwanda declares that Marburg virus outbreak is over

Rwanda declares that Marburg virus outbreak is over
Updated 18 min 45 sec ago
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Rwanda declares that Marburg virus outbreak is over

Rwanda declares that Marburg virus outbreak is over
  • The East African country confirmed its first cases of the disease in mid-September
  • It reported 66 confirmed cases with 15 deaths and 51 recoveries

KIGALI: Rwanda has declared an end to the country’s Marburg virus outbreak following the recovery of the last patient 42 days ago, Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana told a news conference on Friday.
The East African country confirmed its first cases of the disease, a viral hemorrhagic fever that can cause death, among some patients, in mid-September.
It reported 66 confirmed cases with 15 deaths and 51 recoveries, the health ministry said on Friday.
“It has been a long journey but today, here come to the end of Marburg outbreak in Rwanda. So, Marburg is over according to World Health Organization guidelines,” Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana told a news conference.
“It took us for 42 days since the last patient tested negative and discharged... Last night at midnight exactly, was the end of the 42nd day therefore we declare Marburg over in Rwanda.”


ASEAN will want inclusive Myanmar election, Thai foreign minister says

ASEAN will want inclusive Myanmar election, Thai foreign minister says
Updated 40 min 14 sec ago
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ASEAN will want inclusive Myanmar election, Thai foreign minister says

ASEAN will want inclusive Myanmar election, Thai foreign minister says
  • Thai minister: ‘If there is an election, ASEAN would want an inclusive process that included all stakeholders’
  • Myanmar has been in turmoil since early 2021 when its military overthrew an elected civilian government

BANGKOK: Thailand has told Myanmar’s junta that ASEAN members would want all stakeholders included in an election the military government plans to hold next year, even as the regional bloc seeks a common position on the polls, Thai officials said on Friday.

“If there is an election, ASEAN would want an inclusive process that included all stakeholders,” Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa said in a group interview in Bangkok, after meetings with counterparts and senior diplomats of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) grouping.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since early 2021 when its military overthrew an elected civilian government, triggering pro-democracy protests that morphed into a widening armed rebellion that has taken over swathes of the country.

The military is fighting rebels on multiple fronts, struggling to govern and manage a crumbling economy that was seen as a promising frontier market before the generals ended a decade of tentative democracy.

Thailand this week hosted two separate regional meetings on the crisis in Myanmar, the first involving the junta and its neighbors, including China, Bangladesh and India, followed by one with ASEAN members.

Myanmar’s foreign minister on Thursday briefed attendees on the outline of the junta’s political roadmap and progress toward holding an election, which critics have dismissed as a sham, largely due to the absence and sidelining of opposition groups.

“The neighboring countries said we support Myanmar in finding solutions but the election must be inclusive for various stakeholders in the country,” Maris said, stressing that Myanmar’s neighbors would advise, but not interfere.

Their effort, he said, would also support ASEAN’s Myanmar peace plan, the “Five Point Consensus,” its strategy to diffuse the conflict that has made scant progress.

The proposed Myanmar elections were also part of discussions among ASEAN members at Friday’s meeting, which the junta was not part of, said Thai foreign ministry official Bolbongse Vangphaen.

The bloc is still awaiting details of the polls from the Myanmar side, he said, adding that ASEAN would also need to find a common position on the proposed ballot, which has the backing of regional heavyweights such as China.

China’s vice foreign minister said during Thursday’s meeting in Bangkok that all parties should support Myanmar in advancing its peace and reconciliation process, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Friday.

Sun Weidong said all parties in Myanmar should resolve differences through dialogue and consultation.


China warns Germany against ‘manipulation and smearing’ in spying cases

China warns Germany against ‘manipulation and smearing’ in spying cases
Updated 20 December 2024
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China warns Germany against ‘manipulation and smearing’ in spying cases

China warns Germany against ‘manipulation and smearing’ in spying cases
  • German media reported that a Chinese man was detained by security guards before he was arrested by police after taking photographs at the Kiel-Wik naval base on Dec. 9

BEIJING: Beijing on Friday warned Berlin against “manipulation and smearing” China in spying cases, after German police opened an espionage probe into a Chinese national.
“We hope that the German side will... stop using so-called espionage cases to engage in manipulation and smearing, and earnestly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens in Germany,” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said.
German media reported that a Chinese man was detained by security guards before he was arrested by police after taking photographs at the Kiel-Wik naval base on December 9.
The northern port is home to German naval installations and shipyards of the defense giant Thyssenkrupp, which builds submarines there.
Beijing on Friday said it was “not aware” of the specific case.
But Lin said China “has always required its citizens overseas to comply with local laws and regulations.”
Germany in early October said it had arrested a Chinese woman accused of spying on the country’s defense industry while working in a logistics company, including at Leipzig airport in eastern Germany.
Named only as Yaqi X., she allegedly reported to another suspected Beijing agent now under arrest, Jian G., who was working in the office of a German far-right member of the European Parliament, Maximilian Krah.
News magazine Der Spiegel, citing unnamed security sources, said that 38-year-old Yaqi X. had especially targeted the arms giant Rheinmetall, which is involved in making Leopard tanks and uses Leipzig airport for cargo flights.