Flashes from the Muslim World

Bangladesh is seeking to send one million workers abroad this year and diversify labor migration destinations, a top overseas employment official has said, as the country ramps up its COVID-19 vaccination campaign to reach the target. Over ten million Bangladeshis are living and working abroad, mainly in the Middle East. They are the second largest contributor of the country’s foreign remittances after the garment sector. Last year alone, they sent over USD 22 billion back home, according to Bureau of Manpower Employment & Training data.

Religious leaders in southeast Asia have praised the fruitful visit to Thailand by a Muslim World League delegation, where MWL Secretary General, Dr. Mohammed bin Abdul Karim al-Issa, met with Buddhist officials and visited Islamic sites around the country. During the visit, Fatoni University in Thailand’s Pattani Province awarded Al-Issa with an honorary doctorate in the presence of government, community, and academic leaders, as well as researchers and students. Islamic officials said that the visit confirms the true image of Islam, which embodies awareness, an understanding of human diversity and the need for cooperation to achieve common interests. Al Issa also visited the historic Ton Son Mosque in Thailand’s capital, Bangkok, to meet with eminent Islamic officials. The religious site was founded in 1610 and is the oldest mosque in the country.

The General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques has provided a number of interpreters inside the Grand Mosque in Makkah following the lifting of COVID-19 related precautionary procedures at the site. Worshipers and Umrah pilgrims recently returned to the courtyards of the Grand Mosque in Makkah after authorities announced lifting of COVID-19 precautionary measures and the return to normalcy in the Kingdom. The Presidency has reactivated its operational plans for full capacity worship, with its field teams removing social distancing stickers.

The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Hussein Ibrahim Taha, met with the President of Republic of Niger, Mohamed Bazoum, in Niamey. The meeting was held within the framework of the Secretary’s general tour of OIC member states from the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin. President Bazoum affirmed Niger’s readiness to support the activities of the organization, calling on member states and institutions of the group.

The agency for languages and women’s translations, led by the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, offered translations of many educational courses and awareness programs for female visitors of the Grand Mosque. It also provides religious education to women who have recently converted to Islam. The agency is responsible for organizing educational circles in multiple languages for female visitors and pilgrims at the Grand Mosque.

Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary General, Hissein Brahim Taha, recently held talks with China’s special envoy to the Middle East, Zhai Jun, in Jeddah. The two reviewed relations between the OIC and China and discussed ways to enhance dialogue and cooperation in various fields. Saudi Arabia, the OIC, Islamic Development Bank and Women’s Development Organization recently co-hosted a virtual panel discussion on Capacity Building for Female Refugees, on the sidelines of the 66th session of the Commission on the Status of Women.

The Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Da’wah and Guidance represented by the Secretariat General for Exhibitions and Conferences, recently inaugurated the Holy Qur’an Exhibition in Makkah. The 14-day event was held in cooperation with the King Fahd Complex for the Printing of the Holy Qur’an in Madinah. The King Fahd Complex for the Printing of the Holy Qur’an was established in 1985 to produce and distribute Islamic print and audio publications.

The Muslim World League is preparing to host the International Fair and Museum of the Prophet’s Biography and Islamic Civilization at the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s headquarters in Rabat, capital of Morocco. The exhibit, whose headquarters is in Madinah in Saudi Arabia, is receiving great interest in the biography of the Prophet. Working in collaboration with ICESCO and the Muhammadiyah Association of Scholars in the Kingdom of Morocco, the MWL agreed to establish branches for the museum in a number of Islamic countries.

Tired of swiping left and right for the past two years, single Muslims across the United Kingdom have tried their luck at speed-dating, with renowned British-Moroccan Muslim comedian, Fatiha El-Ghorri, breaking the ice. SingleMuslim.com, one of the world’s largest Muslim dating apps, launched a series of marriage events throughout the month in London, Birmingham and Manchester, to help Muslims meet and find life partners. Organizers said the events, which have been completely sold out, came due to a high demand from members on the site tired of just meeting people online.

An acclaimed British Pakistani film-maker, Abrar Hussain, who has produced documentaries on the Great Mosque of Makkah and Al-Aqsa Mosque, has told Arab News that his films aim to counter anti-Islamic narratives by offering rare glimpses into the religions’s cultural heritage. In 2017, Hussain released his best known work, One Day in the Haram. As only Muslims are permitted to enter Makkah, Islam’s holiest city, the film offered a glimpse inside the Grand Mosque of Makkah – showing how the world’s largest mosque is run and what the daily routines are like. Hussain’s new film, One Night in Al-Aqsa, premiered in London [recently]. It shows al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem during Laylat al-Qadr. “Our film is all about promoting better and more tolerant understanding of Islam,” Hussain said.