Hate crime convict in US ordered to learn about Sikh faith as part of jail sentence
New York: A US judge has ordered a white youth, who admitted to attacking a Sikh store owner because of his religion, to learn more about the faith and submit a report in the court as part of his sentence for committing the hate crime.
Marion County Judge Lindsay Partridge also sentenced 25-year-old Andrew Ramsey to three years of imprisonment, according to a press release issued by the Sikh Coalition, the largest Sikh body in America.
On January 14, Ramsey brutally assaulted Harwinder Singh Dodd, who was working at a convenience store in the US State of Oregon, because of his perception of his religion.
Ramsey wanted rolling papers for cigarettes, but did not have an ID and the clerk would not sell them to him without the document, as required by law. When Dodd asked Ramsey to leave, he attacked him by pulling his beard, punching him in the face, pulling him to the ground and kicking him.
Ramsey also spat on Dodd and ripped his turban off his head, the press release said. The youth pleaded guilty in Marion County Circuit Court to second-degree intimidation, a hate crime under Oregon law.
Sentencing Ramsey to 36 months in jail on Friday, the judge ordered him to attend the local temple's annual parade to learn more about the Sikh religion, saying bigotry is the result of ignorance and "all of us are able to learn and benefit from cultures in our community".
"Judge Partridge ruled Ramsey is required to seek drug and alcohol treatment along with mental health treatment. Judge Partridge also included restorative justice components as part of Ramsey's probation, including a requirement that he obtain an awareness of Sikhism and report what he has learned to the court," the Sikh Coalition said.
In a written statement to the court, Dodd said, "Every person should be able to live their life without fear of being targeted because of who they are, or how they practice their faith."
According to the Sikh Coalition, Sikhs in America remain hundreds of times more likely to experience bigotry, bias or backlash than the average American.
"This conviction is a much-needed step for Oregon in its broader efforts to make all our communities safe from hate," it said.
As per a FBI report, hate crimes increased by over 40 per cent in Oregon in the last one year.
In May 2018, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum established a special task force designed to explore ways to improve measures to combat and prevent hate.
Recently, Senate Bill 577 was introduced to strengthen the state's laws against hate crimes. This proposed bill renames crime of intimidation as bias crime, the Sikh Coalition said.
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Israel launches first airstrike on Lebanon since ceasefire, accusing Hezbollah of breaching truce
Beirut, Nov 28: The Israeli military on Thursday said its warplanes fired on southern Lebanon after detecting Hezbollah activity at a rocket storage facility, the first Israeli airstrike a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold.
There was no immediate word on casualties from Israel's aerial attack, which came hours after the Israeli military said it fired on people trying to return to certain areas in southern Lebanon. Israel said they were violating the ceasefire agreement, without providing details. Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said two people were wounded.
The back-to-back incidents stirred unease about the agreement, brokered by the United States and France, which includes an initial two-month ceasefire in which Hezbollah members are to withdraw north of the Litani River and Israeli forces are to return to their side of the border. The buffer zone would be patrolled by Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers.
On Thursday, the second day of a ceasefire after more than a year of bloody conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon's state news agency reported that Israeli fire targeted civilians in Markaba, close to the border, without providing further details. Israel said it fired artillery in three other locations near the border. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
An Associated Press reporter in northern Israel near the border heard Israeli drones buzzing overhead and the sound of artillery strikes from the Lebanese side.
The Israeli military said in a statement that “several suspects were identified arriving with vehicles to a number of areas in southern Lebanon, breaching the conditions of the ceasefire.” It said troops “opened fire toward them” and would “actively enforce violations of the ceasefire agreement.”
Israeli officials have said forces will be withdrawn gradually as it ensures that the agreement is being enforced. Israel has warned people not to return to areas where troops are deployed, and says it reserves the right to strike Hezbollah if it violates the terms of the truce.
A Lebanese military official said Lebanese troops would gradually deploy in the south as Israeli troops withdraw. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.
The ceasefire agreement announced late Tuesday ended 14 months of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that began a day after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack out of Gaza, when the Lebanese Hezbollah group began firing rockets, drones and missiles in solidarity.
Israel retaliated with airstrikes, and the conflict steadily intensified for nearly a year before boiling over into all-out war in mid-September. The war in Gaza is still raging with no end in sight.
More than 3,760 people were killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon during the conflict, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. The fighting killed more than 70 people in Israel — over half of them civilians — as well as dozens of Israeli soldiers fighting in southern Lebanon.
Some 1.2 million people were displaced in Lebanon, and thousands began streaming back to their homes on Wednesday despite warnings from the Lebanese military and the Israeli army to stay out of certain areas. Some 50,000 people were displaced on the Israeli side, but few have returned and the communities near the northern border are still largely deserted.
In Menara, an Israeli community on the border with views into Lebanon, around three quarters of homes are damaged, some with collapsed roofs and burnt-out interiors. A few residents could be seen gathering their belongings on Thursday before leaving again.
