Srinagar: National Award-winning actor Zaira Wasim on Sunday announced her "disassociation" from the field of acting, saying she was not happy with the line of work as it interfered with her faith and religion.

In a detailed post on her Facebook page, which she later shared across all social media platforms, the Kashmiri-born "Dangal" fame star said she realised "though I may fit here perfectly, I do not belong here".

"Five years ago I made a decision that changed my life forever. As I stepped my foot in Bollywood, it opened doors of massive popularity for me. I started to become the prime candidate of public attention, I was projected as the gospel of the idea of success and was often identified as a role model for the youth. 

"However, that's never something that I set out to do or become, especially with regards to my ideas of success and failure, which I had just started to explore and understand," Wasim said in the lengthy post.

The 18-year-old actor said as she completed five years in the profession, she wanted to "confess that I am not truly happy with this identity i.e my line of work".

"For a very long time now it has felt like I have struggled to become someone else. As I had just started to explore and make sense of the things to which I dedicated my time, efforts and emotions and tried to grab hold of a new lifestyle, it was only for me to realise that though I may fit here perfectly, I do not belong here. 

"This field indeed brought a lot of love, support, and applause my way, but what it also did was to lead me to a path of ignorance, as I silently and unconsciously transitioned out of 'imaan' (faith). While I continued to work in an environment that consistently interfered with my 'imaan', my relationship with my religion was threatened," she said. 

Wasim said as she continued to "ignorantly pass through" while trying to convince herself that what she was doing was okay and was not really affecting her, "I lost all the 'Barakah' (blessing) from my life". 

"I was constantly battling with my soul to reconcile my thoughts and instincts to fix a static picture of my 'imaan' and I failed miserably, not just once but a hundred times... 

"I kept procrastinating by tricking and deluding my conscience into the idea that I know what I am doing doesn't feel right but assumed that I will put an end to this whenever the time feels right and I continued to put myself in a vulnerable position where it was always so easy to succumb to the environment that damaged my peace, 'imaan' and my relationship with Allah (God)," she said.

Talking about her life as an actor, she said she continued to observe things and twist her perceptions as she wanted them to be, without really understanding that the key was to see them as they were. 

"In the great and divine wisdom of the Quran, I found sufficiency and peace. Indeed the hearts find peace when it acquires the knowledge of Its Creator, His Attributes, His Mercy and His commandments," she added.

Wasim said she began to heavily rely upon Allah's mercy for help and guidance instead of valuing her own believability. 

"I discovered my lack of knowledge of the basic fundamentals of my religion and how my inability to reinforce a change earlier was a result of confusing my heart's contentment and well being with strengthening and satisfying my own (shallow and worldly) desires," she said. 

The actor, who made her big Bollywood debut opposite superstar Aamir Khan in 2016, said she questioned the deepest sources of her ideas of success, meaning and the purpose of her life. 

"The source code that governed and impacted my perceptions evolved into a different dimension. Success isn't correlated with our biased, delusional and conventional shallow measures of life. Success is the accomplishment of the purpose of our creation. We have forgotten the purpose we were created for as we ignorantly continue to pass through our lives; deceiving our conscience," she said. 

Wasim said the journey has been "exhausting, to battle my soul for so long" and life was too short yet too long to be at war with oneself.

About announcing the decision on social media, the actor said she was openly doing so not to paint a holier picture of herself, but "this is the least I can do to start afresh".

"This is just my first step as I have arrived at the clarity of realisation of the path I wish to be on and strive for and during this time I may have consciously or unconsciously planted a seed of temptation in the hearts of many, but my sincere advice to everyone is that no amount of success, fame, authority or wealth is worth trading or losing your peace or the light of your 'imaan' for," she said. 

Wasim will next be seen in "The Sky is Pink", which also stars Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Farhan Akhtar. The film completed shooting in March.

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For the first time in history, a US-based organization has formally requested the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate a former US president for potential complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) has submitted a 172-page request to the ICC, urging an investigation into former President Joe Biden, former Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for allegedly aiding and abetting Israeli war crimes in Gaza.

The filing, known as an Article 15 communication, outlines how US officials continued to provide military and diplomatic support to Israel despite being aware that their assistance was being used in the commission of alleged war crimes. The ICC has already issued warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for their roles in Gaza, and DAWN argues that US officials meet the legal criteria for "aiding and abetting" such crimes.

War crimes prosecutor and DAWN board member Reed Brody highlighted the significance of this case, stating: "This case might face political pushback, but that doesn’t change the message it sends: impunity isn’t a given. If the rule of law is supposed to mean anything, it has to apply across the board – not just to our enemies, but to our friends, and yes, to ourselves."

The organization contends that US support to Israel included the transfer of at least $17.9 billion in weapons, intelligence sharing, and targeting assistance. The US also abstained from, voted against, and vetoed multiple United Nations resolutions that called for a ceasefire, a hostage deal, or increased humanitarian aid over the course of 15 months. Additionally, the Biden administration repeatedly bypassed congressional review to send weapons to Israel, including those allegedly used in war crimes, such as the killing of six-year-old Hind Rajab.

The filing states: "By continuously and unconditionally providing Political Support and Military Support to Israel while being fully aware of the specific crimes committed by Netanyahu, Gallant and their subordinates, President Biden, Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin contributed intentionally to the commission of those crimes while at least knowing the intention of the group to commit the Israeli Crimes, if not aiming of furthering such criminal activity."

Sarah Leah Whitson, DAWN’s executive director, condemned the actions of the Biden administration, stating: "Not only did Biden, Blinken, and Secretary Austin ignore and justify the overwhelming evidence of Israel’s grotesque and deliberate crimes, overruling their own staff recommendations to halt weapons transfers to Israel, they doubled down by providing Israel with unconditional military and political support to ensure it could carry out its atrocities."

Despite mounting evidence and international criticism, the Biden administration has consistently defended its policy towards Israel, often reiterating that "Israel has a right to defend itself." While officials claimed that no civilian loss was acceptable and that they were urging Israel to improve its conduct, the administration took little tangible action to apply pressure. In May, the US State Department admitted that Israel had "likely" used American arms in violation of international law, but no policy changes were implemented. Instead, the administration argued that "a country’s overall commitment" to international law "is not necessarily disproven by individual violations, so long as that country is taking appropriate steps to investigate and, where appropriate, determine accountability."

In addition to Biden, Blinken, and Austin, DAWN's filing also names former National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo as officials who should be investigated for possible culpability in Israel's actions in Gaza. DAWN originally submitted the request last month on the same day a ceasefire took effect, but it was made public on Monday. The filing is backed by ICC-registered lawyers and war crimes experts.

While neither the US nor Israel is a member of the ICC, DAWN asserts that the court has jurisdiction, citing its ongoing investigation into alleged violations of the Rome Statute in Palestine.

DAWN’s submission is part of a growing wave of legal actions addressing the US-backed Israeli military campaign in Gaza. In December, Palestinians and Palestinian-Americans filed a federal lawsuit against Blinken, accusing him of failing to enforce the Leahy Law, which prohibits the US from providing military aid to foreign security forces engaged in gross human rights violations.

Internationally, several countries, including Spain, Ireland, and Belgium, have joined a South Africa-led case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing Israel of genocide. The ICJ has already issued an interim ruling ordering Israel to prevent acts of genocide, though Israel has reportedly continued its military operations without significant restraint.

Additionally, last year, a coalition of human rights organizations, Gaza residents, and US citizens with family members affected by the Israeli assault filed a lawsuit against Biden, Blinken, and Austin for failing to "prevent an unfolding genocide." Though a federal judge ruled that the court lacked jurisdiction over the case, the judge was critical of the Biden administration, stating that it was "plausible" that Israel’s conduct amounted to genocide and calling on the White House "to examine the results of their unflagging support of the military siege against the Palestinians in Gaza."

In its filing, DAWN also raised concerns over potential future violations, particularly pointing to former President Donald Trump's past actions. It highlighted Trump's executive order imposing sanctions on ICC officials and his proposed plan to forcibly displace all Palestinians from Gaza, arguing that these moves could make Trump liable for "obstruction of justice" as well as "war crimes and the crime of aggression." DAWN asserts that these actions warrant an ICC investigation.

Raed Jarrar, DAWN’s advocacy director, emphasized the importance of accountability, stating: "This filing is a message to our fellow Americans: our government has been complicit in genocide, and we all bear a responsibility to confront that reality and hold our officials accountable. This is about more than Palestine; this is about whether we, as Americans, accept a system where our leaders can facilitate mass atrocities without consequences."

As legal and political debates unfold, DAWN’s filing marks a historic attempt to hold US officials accountable for their role in supporting Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The ICC’s response to this request could set a precedent for international justice, determining whether powerful nations can be subjected to the same scrutiny as others when it comes to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

This report was originally published by Zeteo.com and has been rewritten by Vartha Bharati.