Muslim voters have potential 'big role' in 39 seats in UK election

June 8, 2017

London, Jun 8: Muslims voting in the UK polls could have a significant impact in as many as 39 constituencies, a community group said ahead of today's general election.

UK

Millions of Brits are set to go out to vote on Thursday, with Prime Minster Theresa May and opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn the front-runners in a race that has divided the pollsters.

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) identified 39 constituencies where votes by the Muslim community may have a high or medium “impact.”

That could be all the more significant considering that some polls have shown the divide between the two main parties narrowing. A poll published by YouGov on Tuesday found that May is on track to win 304 seats in Britain's Parliament, short of a 326-seat majority. Her party had 330 seats when the election was called in April.

Miqdaad Versi, assistant secretary general of the MCB, said it was impossible to say whether votes by Muslims could actually swing the election.

But he said it could help decide some important seats, including some of the 39 constituencies identified.

“The Muslim community's votes do really matter,” Versi told Arab News.

“If there is not much of a swing either way, then in these 39 constituencies, the Muslim (voter) turnout might play a very big role.”

Some of these seats could “be an important part of the overall puzzle after the election,” he added.

Historically favoring Labour

Versi pointed out that the Muslim community is not one single “homogenous group,” with different people voting different ways.

“There is no one single Muslim vote. There is no block vote,” he said.

But historically, the majority of UK Muslims have voted for Labour, which is currently the opposition party, Versi added.

“Many Muslims do happen to have very similar views on certain issues,” he said. These issues include concerns over Islamophobia in Britain and demands for the right to wear certain clothing and eat halal food.

“It is very much part of the democratic process for a member of parliament or a parliamentary candidate to consider the views of Muslim communities and of any of their constituents,” Versi said.

He also pointed out that British Muslims share many of the concerns of the wider population, on issues such as health care.

Higher turnout expected

This election has also seen higher political engagement among UK Muslims, Versi said, although he pointed out this was based on anecdotal evidence.

“This election has invigorated many Muslim communities — many want to get involved, many want to participate, many want to canvass and support one of the parties,” he said.

“I would not be surprised if the turnout from the communities in this election is higher than it has been previously.”

Security and the terror threat to Britain has emerged as the key campaign issue in the election, after three deadly terror attacks in the country in as many months.

Versi said that British Muslims were just as concerned over this issue as other members of society.

“Muslim communities care about security like everybody else. It is a core concern. When people ask 'what should Muslim communities do now?' one of the things that people are doing is praying that they are not victims of the next terror attack. That's the reality… all of us are in the same boat,” he said.

“We are strongly encouraging Muslim communities to go out and vote, participate in the democratic process, make sure their voice is heard. Because if there is ever a time for your voice to be heard it is in an election.”

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News Network
March 25,2024

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A teenager who led over 100 people to safety during Friday’s terrorist attack at a Moscow concert hall, has been hailed as a hero. 15-year-old Islam Khalilov, who worked part-time in one of the cloakrooms at Crocus City, recounted the events of the tragic evening to the Ruptly video agency.

The concert venue situated just outside of Moscow was packed ahead of a performance by the Russian rock band Picnic, when a group of terrorists armed with assault rifles forced their way into the building. They fired indiscriminately at fleeing people and then set the concert hall on fire.

According to the latest estimates, the attack has claimed the lives of at least 137 people, with about 180 injured.

Khalilov told the video agency that “it was when people started running from the escalator, from the stairway” that he realized that an emergency was occurring. The teenager said that he was acting on “instincts” at the time and used his thorough knowledge of the premises to quickly arrange visitors’ evacuation toward another building within the Crocus City complex.

“I started shouting all across the foyer, all across Crocus City Hall - ‘Folks, there’s a shooting! All run to the expo!’ – and I was showing where they had to go and was helping everyone,” he explained.

According to the cloakroom attendant, “there was a stampede, and everyone was in shock at first. No one knew what to do and where to go.”

Khalilov added that he himself was running behind the entire group to make sure he had not left anyone behind.

The teenager admitted to being “really scared” all along, but still managed to make the right use the instructions he’d previously been given on how to evacuate patrons in case of an emergency.

He told Ruptly that, at one point, he had caught a glimpse of one of the terrorists.

“I saw one, [he was] bearded and in green fatigues, he was walking around with an assault rifle,” the teenager recounted.

He also recalled seeing a man getting fatally shot by one of the assailants, adding that he “can’t stop thinking about it.”

The 15-year-old said he doesn’t consider himself a hero, and that he was just doing his job.

Explaining what helped him overcome fear, Khalilov reasoned that “It’s better to sacrifice yourself than to let a hundred people die.”

After Khalilov’s feat had been reported-on by several Russian media outlets, his favorite football club, FC Spartak Moscow, invited him to a meeting where he was presented with free passes to their matches.

Popular Russian rap artist Morgenstern said he had transferred 1,000,000 rubles ($11,000) to the teenager – something that Khalilov has confirmed to media.

The leader of Russia's Muslims, Mufti Ravil Guynutdin, has announced that Khalilov would receive a medal for his bravery.

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News Network
March 16,2024

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Ottawa, Mar 16: An Indian-origin couple and their teenage daughter were killed in a "suspicious" fire which tore through their home last week in Canada's Ontario province, police said on Friday.

A fire engulfed a home at the Big Sky Way and Van Kirk Drive area of Brampton on March 7, a press release by the Peel Police said.

After the blaze was put out, investigators located what was believed to be human remains within the gutted house, but the number of people killed couldn't be ascertained at the time.

The charred remains were on Friday identified as those of three family members: 51-year-old Rajiv Warikoo; his wife, 47-year-old Shilpa Kotha; and their 16-year-old daughter, Mahek Warikoo.

Police said that they resided at the address before the fire.

Peel police Constable Taryn Young on Friday said the fire had been deemed suspicious, the CTV news channel reported.

"At this time, we are investigating this with our homicide bureau, and we are deeming this as suspicious as the Ontario Fire Marshal has deemed that this fire was not accidental," the report quoted Young as saying.

"There's not much left to it," Young said when asked about the possible cause of the fire.

"Looking into something like that as a fire marshal, I'm sure it's very tough when there is not much left to look at. But we are exhausting all avenues," she said.

The deceased family's neighbour, Kenneth Yousaf, said that the family had lived on the street for about 15 years, and he never noticed any problems with them.

Yousaf said he was alerted to the fire last week by a family member, who heard a big "bang." "When we came out, the house was on fire. So sad. Within a few hours, everything was down to the ground," the report quoted Yousaf as saying.

In a press release, police said they are continuing to investigate the deaths of the three family members and urged anyone with information to come forward.

"The circumstances surrounding the house fire remains the focus of an active investigation, and anyone with information or video footage (dashcam or otherwise) is urged to contact Homicide detectives," police said.

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News Network
March 28,2024

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Russia says it is "extremely hard to believe" that Daesh could have staged the recent hugely deadly attack on a Moscow concert hall that the country's intelligence and security officials have blamed on Ukraine and its Western backers.

Four gunmen burst into the Russian capital's Crocus City Hall on Friday and began shooting at the people, who were attending an event. The Takfiri terrorist group has allegedly claimed responsibility for the massacre that killed at least 143.

Speaking on Wednesday, however, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova cast that claim into serious doubt.

"In order to ward off suspicions from the collective West, they urgently needed to come up with something, so they resorted to ISIS (Daesh), pulled an ace out of their sleeve, and literally a few hours after the terrorist attack, the Anglo-Saxon media began disseminating precisely these versions," she said.

The chief of the Russian internal intelligence (FSB), Alexander Bortnikov has suggested that not only Ukraine, but also the United States and Britain might have been behind the shooting.

The Russian Federal Security Service has also said the gunmen planned to travel to Ukraine, where they were to be welcomed as "heroes." The FSB said Western intelligence services aided the attackers.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has also suggested that Ukraine stood to derive benefit from the attack and that Kiev might have played a role.

He has said that someone on the Ukrainian side had prepared a "window" for the gunmen to escape across the border before they were captured in western Russia on Friday night.

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