Media of the Azraqi Empire

[Azraq]

Waqtiyada
The Times

Engellex embassy 'should be housing for poor'

MPD leader calls for diplomatic complex to be redeveloped

The head of the Movement for the Poor and Dispossessed, Axmed Dalmar Geedi, who also serves as natural resources minister, has suggested the soon-to-be vacated Engellexic Embassy be converted into low-cost homes.

Speaking soon after foreign minister Mulatu Birru confirmed the compound would be closing, Axmed claimed it would be better served providing accommodation for slum-dwellers on the outskirts of Jugol. "Surely even there is space for even just some of those in the shanty towns?" The MPD chief asked.

However the idea was quickly shot down by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with a spokesman warning such a move would violate international norms and jeopardise Azraqi-Engellexic relations.

The government ordered Engellex to withdraw all diplomatic staff in the Empire after the Thaumantic republic launched an airstrike on its own embassy in Vesper, the capital of Cantignia, in response to an outbreak of so-called Engellpox.

Thousands of infected as well as Engellexic representatives died in the aerial assault, which has sparked global controversy.

While not commenting on the methods used to contain Engellpox, the government did insist on reassurance that Engellex would not repeat such actions again in the future. But with no assurances forthcoming, Engellex was asked to close its embassy in Azraq.

Named Orient Estates, the complex has been named an architectural wonder of the world, blending Himyari and Toyouan styles across a series of linked palatial structures. The grounds are filled with wildlife from across Himyar, Toyou and Implaria and surrounded by metres high spiked fences. It is one of the few embassies located outside the Tiburan Quarter in Jugol.

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[Azraq]

Gacanta
The Hand

EXCLUSIVE: Dawamalian nationalists 'plotting against Emperor'

Opposition politicians are planning a move against Boqor Tiirka Illah in collaboration with disgruntled nobles in the Council of Elders, sources in the Imperial Parliament tell Gacanta, sparking a potential political and constitutional crisis.

If the reports are true, National Assembly members from the Ansar al-Islam, Dawamalian Youth League, Futurist Party and Party of Principles are cooperating with the Emperor's rivals to have him removed from the Ivory Throne.

Triggering a clause in the Constitution never used before, delegates in the Council of Elders will claim Boqor Tiirka Illah has failed in his duties as Emperor, and if they have two-thirds majority support from the Imperial Convention - a special body drawn from the six imperial clans - cut his seven-year reign short.

The reason why? The Emperor's support for the controversial Treaty of Zarakas. Named after the Tephanonese capital, the agreement will see the islands returned to Azraq but with permanent Pelasgian military bases that will be treated as sovereign Pelasgian territory.

The Council of Elders, the upper chamber of the Imperial Parliament, had initially blocked the treaty, with the Council divided almost exclusively along ethnic lines, as Dawamalian elders voted almost unanimously against the document.

The newly-elected left-wing coalition however, using its two-thirds majority in the National Assembly, the lower chamber, to override the Elders' veto. Pundits had expected the Emperor to back the Elders over the over the government but Boqor Tiirka Illah shocked commentators by signing the bill ratifying the Treaty of Zarakas.

"For many nobles this was a stab in the front and back... siding with the socialists and lower-born over men of his own birth," explains one parliamentary insider.

"What we are potentially witnessing is the first coup since the Fifties," another told this newspaper, referring to when Islamo-futurist army officers ended the First Azraqi Empire almost seventy years ago.

Allies of the Emperor say he personally disagreed with the treaty but feared rejecting it would see a second Shamo uprising. Both the foreign minister Mulatu Birru and Garad-Wasiir (Prime Minister) Hika Qiltu, who helped negotiated the deal with Pelasgia, are ethnic Shamo. Birru is also the leader of the Shamo People's Liberation Front, the ex-paramilitary group that waged guerilla war against the Islamo-futurist junta in the 1960s.

Others say His Imperial Majesty was reassured by advice from military commanders the Pelasgian bases posed no threat to the Azraqi mainland. "They're little more than radar stations which could be wiped out in a well aimed air or missile strike," claims a defence intelligence analyst.

Regardless, despite opposition parties and Elders claiming they respected the Emperor's decision and staying silent, they are now allegedly plotting to remove him, sources say, although noone confirmed the rumours when approached by Gacanta.

This is not unsurprising, especially as elected politicians have no say over Imperial matters, which is solely the preserve of the Emperor and the Elder Council. If discovered to have been involved working against the Emperor, a National Assembly member risks being removed and potentially imprisoned.

Similarly, if Elders are caught conspiring, they may face personal and political reprisals. "Court politics have been civil recently but you don't have to look far back to see how cut throat they were," warns one Elder, who insists he is loyal to Boqor Tiirka Illah.
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[Azraq]

Xilligii
The Era

Azraq 'unprepared' for conventional war

JUGOL - Former Malakh Yusuuf Ayan Matan has warned the Azraqi Imperial Armed Forces are "ill prepared" for a large-scale inter-state conflict, blaming decades of under-investment and continuing unrest in the Spice Islands for draining resources and "skewing priorities".

Speaking before the Joint War and Defence Committee of the Imperial Parliament, which has representatives from both chambers of the legislature, the once second highest ranking military officer after the Emperor presented the preliminary findings from his strategic defence review.

In a two-hour long question-and-answer session, Aw Yusuuf hinted that:

• Conscription may have to be reintroduced after being abolished following the fall of the Futurist dictatorship
• The Imperial Navy should be the main recipient of any additional defence spending
• Azraq would likely have to surrender the Spice Islands if a foreign power invaded
• The Imperial Armed Forces' budget should be doubled over the next decade

Pointing to the increasingly uncertain geopolitical situation, the old Malakh claimed the Empire had enjoyed an "unprecedented era of peace, stability and prosperity" that would likely end soon and that "painful memories of military rule" should not block the new government acting in the national interest.

It is believed Aw Yusuuf had his appearance before the committee brought forward in light of rising tensions between the Federation of Natal and the Great Southern Kingdom of Justosia. "We should not discount the possibility of war in southern Himyar," suggests one Ministry of Imperial Defence official.

With his heavy focus on rearmament, the Malakh is likely to clash with the new left-wing coalition government, which has declared health, education and welfare to be its top priorities.

The Imperial Armed Forces' previous second-in-command may also be on a collision course with fiscal hawks in the Party of Principles, the largest opposition party and previously the dominant force in Azraqi politics. "There's a huge aversion to debt in the Azraqi elite psyche that goes deeper than Islam... many see unrestricted borrowing as the primary cause for the downfall of the Blue Imamate and later the First Azraqi Empire," explains historian Tirunesh Nefso.

Yet if Boqor Tiirka Illah, who ordered the strategic defence review in the aftermath of the Seven-Day War in Gallo-Germania, throws his weight behind the recommendations, both his elected administration and opposition politicians may have to rethink their positions.

Imperial Defence Minister Qaasim Ashkir Deeq refused to comment on the former Malakh's appearance before the Joint War and Defence Committee, saying he would await the final version of his review.

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[Azraq]

ABC | Azraqi Broadcasting Corporation

Pressure mounts on government over Loago

Garad-Wasiir Hila Qiltu is under growing pressure to intervene in Loago, as Caledonian forces backed by Elbener volunteers stream into the wartorn country and Engellexic interest in the conflict grows.

Opposition politicians have demanded the government outline its plan of action, while senior officers in the Azraqi Imperial Armed Forces are rumoured to have raised concerns. Diplomats in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs say both the Pelasgian Empire and Natalian Federation are also lobbying Jugol to act.

So far Boqor Tiirka Illah is not believed to have pushed the issue but Ivory Throne watchers say it is only a matter of time before the Emperor raises his voice.

"Right now the government is being pushed on all sides to make a statement of intent," explains one civil servant, "they will have to say something sooner or later."

Loago has been in the midst of a brutal civil war for some time, with a white minority regime propped up the military and Caledonian Himyari Company (CHC) battling against communist rebels and tribal militia. Caledonia, the former colonial power, has sent peacekeepers who are being reinforced by Elbener volunteers keen to avenge the deaths of Elbener tourists after a terrorist attack targeting a civilian aeroplane.

Meanwhile the Engellexic Thaumantic Company and Engell-Himyar Trading Company have both voiced an interest in taking over the CHC to gain a permanent foothold in Loago.

Natalia is believed to be supporting armed tribal groups and nearly clashed with Caledonian naval forces while Pelasgia is reportedly pushing for a pan-Himyari response to the crisis, also being opposed to the Caledonian presence in Loago.

For opposition parties, having lost the battle over Tephanon, Loago presents a new opportunity to wound the government. "They don't have a clue about foreign policy," says a lawmaker from the Future Party.

Foreign minister Mulatu Birru, who is also head of the Shamo People's Liberation Front, has so far avoided commenting on Loago other than calling for negotiations and a return to majority rule. However the Party of Principles' leader Cabdulmajiid Ismaacill Taifa implies Birru really wants the Loagan League of Communists in power. "We all know the SPLF made friends with other 'revolutuonaries' during the days of the junta... Perhaps the foreign minister is guided by old ties rather than the national interest," Cabdulmajiid suggested in Parliament..

"If the minister wants to convince us otherwise, he should reveal this government's strategy which so far seems to be lacking," he continued.

Birru, who previously called for stronger ties with the communist Rurikgrad Pact, strongly denies the allegations. "Peace is my number one priority," he declared.

For others, Loago is an unwelcome distraction. "Foreign affairs was not meant to be the focus of this administration," laments one backbencher from the Justice Party, the largest member of the ruling coalition, who wants to see more action on health, education and welfare.
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[Azraq]

ABC | Azraqi Broadcasting Corporation

NEWSFLASH: Principlists call for vote of no confidence

The leader of the Party of Principles has called for an urgent vote of confidence in the government, suggesting the National Assembly return early from the Christmas break in response to the growing crisis in Loago.

"This administration has seen the Empire humiliated not once but twice by the Tiburans," Cabdulmajiid Ismaacill Taifa claimed in a televised statement, "first over Tephanon and second over Loago... I urge all National Assembly members regardless of party affiliation to vote in the Imperial interest and end this embarrasment immediately."

Given the government has a two-thirds majority the motion is expected to fail but if the Principlists succeed in uniting other opposition parties they may cause serious damage.

Meanwhile an alliance of Dawamalian clan chiefs in the Council of Elders is rumoured to be lobbying Boqor Tiirka Illah and Garad-Wasiir Hika Qiltu to dismiss foreign affairs minister Mulatu Birru over Loago. As Birru is also head of the Shamo People's Liberation Front, the second largest party in the ruling coalition, such a move would likely see the government collapse.
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[Justosia]

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Office of the Foreign Minister
​

The Great Southern Kingdom of Justosia supports recent defencive proposals by your nation. Indeed this is further vindication of our project that was known as Defence Readiness One. Azraq has every right to modernize its military. For defence of course.

Know your nation has nothing to fear from us. Regional security is a top priority of our sovereign king. Again we humbly ask for a deepening of diplomatic relations between our countries. Also, there is no tension between us & the Natalian Federation. As we are under treaty. Though we have seriously questioned the lucidity of some of their moves recently, we remain hopeful in their hearts they're still our friends. Viva Justosia.

Fernando Torres
Foreign Minister

 

[Pelasgia]

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Pelasgian Empire
Embassy of Pelasgia in Jugol
Public Communiqué
​

Jugol, 27 December 2018.
ΑΣ 43/15/2018 (Δημόσιον)

To whom it may concern,

The Pelasgian Empire finds the accusation leveled by the Principalists against both the Government of Pelasgia and the Government of Azraq to be most unreasonable and out of touch with reality. The honourable steps of the Azraqi government towards decolonisation and rekindling of our ties are in no way a "humiliation"; likewise, there is no way that Pelasgia's independent foreign policy over a country foreign to Azraq, which has the same ultimate goals as Azraqi policy, constitutes a humiliation of any sort, unless it is the position of the Principalists that either Pelasgia or Loago are Azraqi vassals. We support the Government of Azraq wholeheartedly and condemn this ludicrous power grab and most irresponsible action which may have considerable repercussions for Europe as a whole, with the sole objective of myopic and short-term political gain by the Principalists.

Signed and sealed,

Adamantios K. Alexopoulos
Ambassador of Pelasgia
Ranked Ambassador
Government of Pelasgia

 

[Justosia]

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Office of the Foreign Minister
​

On behalf of my sovereign king, we can tolerate the current barometer no longer. The Great Southern Kingdom of Justosia & the good Azraq Empire must he friends.

We admire the endurance of your nation in these times. We officially invite an Azraqi delegation to Avalon for formal establishment of diplomatic relations.

Fernando Torres
Foreign Minister

 

[Azraq]

Wasaarada Arimaha Dibada
الخارجية‎ وزارة
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Azraqi Empire wants strong and peaceful relations with as many nations as possible and would be more than happy to reaffirm ties with the Great Southern Kingdom of Justosia.

 

[Azraq]

Waqtiyada
The Times

Revisionist historians arrested

Academics claiming Azraq aided 'white imperialism' jailed

Radical history professors who claim the First Azraqi Empire collaborated with Western powers in "carving up" Himyar have been detained after criticising plans to intervene in Loago as "neo-colonialism".

The group of historians known as Freedom Circle made the claims in an essay published online after Garad-Wasiir Hika Qiltu declared Azraq was ready to replace Caledonian peacekeepers in Loago.

"Such actions represent a direct continuation with the policies of the First Azraqi Empire... Jugol has always seen itself as an equal to Gallo-Germanian capitals and even swallowed anti-scientific racist myths by creating a sense of Azraqi 'whiteness'," the essay concluded, while also noting Loago was a major source of slaves for sale in Azraq and the Far East as well.

Rumours of the 12 academics' arrest first circulated earlier this week but were confirmed by the Ministry of Justice yesterday. "Twelve men working at Jugol Metropolitan University are being held on suspicion of disrespecting the memories of deceased Emperors," read a statement from the Ministry. If found guilty, potential punishment ranges from unlimited fine to up to five years' imprisonment.

The Jugol Metropolitan University did not respond to requests for comment but a colleague of the detained defends part of what they published. "A lot of Azraqi expansionism, whether towards Cabaon to the west of Port Stanley to the south, was agreed via treaties with Western powers," he said.
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[Azraq]

ABC | Azraqi Broadcasting Corporation

NEWSFLASH: SPLF pulls out from ruling coalition

The Shamo People's Liberation Front has withdrawn its support for the Justice Party led government in protest of Prime Minister Hika Qiltu's increasingly interventionist foreign policy, accusing the Garad-Wasiir of losing sight of the coalition's domestic reform agenda.

SPLF chief Mulatu Birru visited the Palace of Bones in Jugol to inform the Emperor of his decision before holding a press conference outside the Imperial Parliament to announce the move publicly.

"This government is more focused on waging war abroad than fixing our problems at home," Birru declared. "Right now we are acting like a white Western imperialist power, imposing our will on our neighbours."

Commentators say the SPLF's withdrawal of support is not entirely unexpected, given many SPLF parliamentarians had raised concerns over the government's foreign policy and Birru himself had been sidelined, with Qiltu leading the recent diplomatic visit to Port Stanley.

Opposition politicians from the Party of Principles and others blamed the SPLF's historic ties to the Loagan League of Communists and RANU-PF, both of which the Azraqi military is now actively targeting, for the rupture. "The SPLF would rather protect old comrades than the Azraqi Empire," suggested a Principlist spokesman.

Qiltu has yet to officially comment on the SPLF's move, with Justice Party sources saying he will consult Boqor Tiirka Illah and the Movement for the Poor and Dispossessed, his other coalition partner, first.

Constitutionally, Qiltu now has three options: call fresh elections as demanded by the opposition, rule as a minority government or find an alternative ally. Justice Party officials gave no hint as to which he would pick.
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[Azraq]

Gacanta
The Hand

EXCLUSIVE: Kollamese nationalists close to agreeing coalition deal

Azraq may soon have its first government with Kollamese representation after high level talks between the Justice Party, their allies in the Movement for the Poor and Dispossessed and the All Islands Kollam National Union, as the ruling coalition scrambles for support following the withdrawal of the Shamo People's Liberation Front.

The SPLF pulled out of the coalition in protest to the government's increasingly interventionist foreign policy and perceived sidelining of foreign minister Mulatu Birru, also the SPLF's leader.

Opposition parties have demanded new parliamentary elections in response, while many in the Justice Party, to which Garad-Wasiir Hika Qiltu belongs, have called for a minority administration backed by the MPD instead.

Yet if rumours of talks with the AIKNU are true, it suggests a different strategy to clinging to power entirely.

Sources say the MPD were crucial to orchestrating the negotiations with the AIKNU. MPD lawmakers feel it will help dilute the Justice Party's influence and also allow the government to fulfil its promise of decolonising Kollam, also known as the Azraqi Spice Islands.

Other Kollamese parties were deemed too sectarian or close to the current opposition to be worth engaging say those familiar with the discussions.

If a deal is struck, which many believe is close, it will be the first time explicitly
nationalist Kollamese politicians would sit on the government benches.

All parties named in this article declined to comment.
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[Azraq]

Waqtiyada
The Times

MPD chief repeats 'Out of Himyar' theory

Head of ruling coalition's second largest party claims Kollamese are originally Nethian

The leader of the Movement for the Poor and Dispossessed, Axmed Dalmar Geedi, who also serves as natural resources minister, has asserted Azraqi Spice Islanders are the descendants of black Himyari settlers, a theory that has long been dismissed by scientists.

Speaking soon after Prime Minister Hika Qiltu announced the supply-and-confidence deal with the All Islands Kollamese National Union, Axmed reiterated the widely debunked claim in an interview. "There is no doubt these are the sons and daughters of an older Himyar," The MPD chief stated.

Axmeed and many MPD members are followers of the obscure Adamite sect, which claims all the Prophets were black, which say they say is backed up by anthropological research.

This belief has been condemned by many mainstream Muslim scholars, who say Mohammed was Urodoah and Jesus ethnically Jewish as per religious texts.

Many Adamites also consider a number of Hindu and Buddhist figures to be prophets as well, again to the criticism of many Islamic jurists.
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[Ebria]

IT IS HEREBY DECREED BY

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THE FEDERATION OF THE NATAL - SANGANO RE NATALI
​

5 March 2019
REGARDS from the NATALIAN FOLK AND GOVERNMENT

The government of the Federation of the Natal and its folk applaud the political successes of Prime Minister Hika Kiltu and the Justice Party from managing to avoid a political crisis after the collapse of the coalition in power. We thank the Kollamese and Dawamalian parties for setting aside their differences and being ready to work together for the betterment of the country they both share, even if they are different linguistically, culturally and religiously. Loago should serve as an important example to nations from all over the world for what happens when different groups inside a nation-state stop cooperating in the administration of their common ground and prefer to lapse into chaos, anarchism, genocide and barbarity.

Not only we do not condone, but we are extremely disappointed and condemn the Party of Principles for their proposals for a return of a direct imperial administration and the re-creation of an absolute monarchy in Azraq. Their call for the Emperor to violate constitutional laws only shows that they are unable to function as an opposition party and to understand that in a democracy, the voice of the people is law. The Federation is always happy to cooperate with the authorities in Jugol as we see the Empire as a stable and trustworthy partner, especially in those trying times for our continent.

We thus want to extend the invitation into the Eastern Himyari Treaty Organisation for Azraq, as the Empire is already supporting and helping us fight the LLC and the Rhinos in Loago. The Alliance is designed to bring together all state actors in Eastern Himyar to create a united front against non-state actors whose main goal is to see political change through violent means, usually destroying every element of civilisation in their way, leaving behind only a mass of fuming ruins and the emaciated survivors of genocidal wars. With this we are bringing together our intelligence agencies and our armed forces by creating common channels through which they can cooperate and share information, but also telling the world that the days when Eastern Himyar was a region ready to be colonised and exploited are over.

SIGNED AND SEALED
With Loyalty to Folk and the Memory of the Ancestors
The Honorable Christopher Tanner
Minister of Foreign Affairs​

 

[Azraq]

ABC | Azraqi Broadcasting Corporation

NEWSFLASH: Central bank expects weaker Q1

The Imperial Bank of Azraq, which is responsible for the Empire's monetary policy, has warned Azraq will see "significantly reduced growth" in the first quarter of this year, blaming geopolitical events for the reduction.

While refusing to give an exact prediction on GDP numbers, a press statement from the Imperial Bank of Azraq specifically named the Cabaon conflict, Loagan civil war, closure of Engellexic airspace and Long Sea tensions as factors depressing growth. The effects would likely continue into quarter two the Bank also said.

However domestic consumer spending remains strong, higher oil and gas prices will help with government revenues while recovering consumer sentiment in Gallo-Germania will see demand for key exports such as exotic goods, textiles and natural luxuries rise.

Tourism and Shariah-compliant finance were named as two potential growth areas as well, with government initiatives promoting both abroad.
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[Azraq]

Xilligii
The Era

Emperor revives 'Iron Pillars' defence plan

JUGOL - His Imperial Majesty Boqor Tiirka Ilaah has resurrected a decades-old strategy to install a series of anti-air and ship missile batteries across the Pillars of Nearchus, giving Azraq full military dominion over one of the world's busiest waterways.

Named 'Iron Pillars', the idea was first conceived during the Islamofuturist dictatorship between the 1950s and 70s. However the programme never went ahead due to expected cost and the fact that forces still loyal to the Ivory Throne controlled Kollam and many of the other smaller islands in the Pillars of Nearchus.

Yet in a landmark speech delivered yesterday, the Emperor called on the Imperial Parliament to explore the 'Iron Pillars' strategy once more, citing recent events in the Long Sea.

"As events near the Retalian isles have shown, geopolitical instability is beginning to impact maritime security in crucial trade lanes and for an oceanic power like us with an Empire spanning two continents, it is imperative we have total control over the channel most important to us: the Pillars of Nearchus," he declared.

The Ministry of War and Defence, on the Emperor's orders, has already announced additional naval patrols in the region, with a focus on tackling piracy and other criminal activity.

The Emperor promised to reveal more detailed plans for Parliament to study but suggested so called 'Iron Pillars II' would involving upgrading existing military facilities, constructing new ones and potentially even the creation of artificial islands.

Opposition politicians from the Party of Principles and Futurists were quick to welcome the Emperor's initiative and called on the government to immediately back the proposals.

The ruling coalition, which is currently negotiating with Kollamese nationalists for support after the Shamo People's Liberation Front pulled out in a dispute over foreign policy, said it would study the plans in more detail first.
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[Azraq]

ABC | Azraqi Broadcasting Corporation

NEWSFLASH: AIKNU ends support for coalition

The All Islands Kollamese National Union (AIKNU) has withdrawn its support for the ruling coalition, meaning either fresh elections must be held or the Imperial government continues as a minority administration.

The AIKNU had entered a supply-and-confidence arrangement with the coalition led by the Justice Party, however pressure from other nationalist groups in the Viceroyalty of Kollam saw the party try renegotiate terms, with a focus on ownership of the Joint Spice Islands Energy Corporation.

JSPIEC is a joint venture between the Azraqi Imperial Oil and Gas Company and the Cussian State Foreign Mercantile Trust, which is ultimately run by the government of Beautancus, a key strategic partner for the Empire.

The AIKNU were demanding the Cussian 49% stake in JSPIEC as a price of continued support. However, with the Cussian government unwilling to sell, and the Emperor reportedly vowing to veto any move to give Kollamese local authorities a share in the JV, the AIKNU has terminated its agreement with the coalition.

"We could not allow foreigners to continue to profit from our natural resources while we get no share and no say," read an official statement from the AIKNU.

The government, now just composed of the Justice Party and Movement for the Poor and Dispossessed after the Shamo People's Liberation Front withdrew, must now choose one of two options: call another election or carry on as a minority administration.

Neither the Justice Party or MPD have commented yet indicating which they will choose.

@Beautancus
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[Beautancus]

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"CIVILIZATION. COMMERCE. COOPERATION."
STATE FOREIGN MERCANTILE TRUST
of the Confederated Republic of Beautancus
1239 Whitemere Avenue,
Welmonton, City of Welmonton, CRB, 58362
on this day, the 26th of the month of March, in the 2019th year of the Civilized Epoch
​

We ask that His Grace, Hika Qiltu, most forthright servant and Garad-Wasiir of the present Administration of the Government His Most Exalted and Imperial Majesty Tiirka Ilaah receive these words from these representatives of those most Western and reliable friends and partners of the Azraqi Empire with favor, forgive us this most inopportune though imminently necessary complication in what must already be trying times with assurances that we are now as committed to ensuring the continued and ever fortified prosperity and wellness of the Azraqi Empire and all the many peoples hailing from therein.

With increasing trepidation have we, of the Governing Authority of the State Foreign Mercantile Trust, observed the continuing disturbances and increasingly numerous instances of ethnic disharmony in the Viceroyalty of Kollam, especially in relation to those most furtively separatist agitators advocating for the so-called "nationalization" of assets, capital and facilities rightly belonging to, controlled and operated by the Joint Spice Islands Energy Corporation (JSPIEC). The JSPIEC is not only one of the crowning jewels in the long history of Cusso-Azraqi friendship and shared prosperity - it is also one of the most strategically vital and materially viable points of interest and investment in the world for those interests now marshaled into and unified by the SFMT.

It has not been, nor is it now the policy of the Governing Authority to direct those companies and services within our dominions to exert undo and improprietous amounts of direct influence upon the private and/or political affairs of our most trusted associates and partners, and we would be most loathe to reassess this, our policy. As ever, we prefer instead to offer those means necessary for our most trusted friends and partners within positions of leadership and responsibility within the Azraqi Empire to affect both circumstances and to further those changes necessary for all.

Let us ensure that this AKINU business is but a minor footnote in the infinite volumes of splendor passing between our two great nations and all their multitude of peoples.

With all expectations of success and wishes for your continued health and proper stewardship of the Azraqi Empire - and all due enthusiasm for pursuing our mutual goals unto the most distant of future days,


Augustus Virgil DeWitt,
Deputy Imperator for Transoceanic Interests,
State Foreign Mercantile Trust of the Confederated Republic of Beautancus

 

[Azraq]

Waqtiyada
The Times

Supreme Court to rule on Emperor's actions

Judges expected to side with the Ivory Throne as Shamo parties plot campaign of civil disobedience

The Supreme Court will decide tomorrow whether Boqor Tiirka Illah's suspension of the Imperial Parliament was indeed constitutional, after the highest legal body in the Empire agreed to hear the challenge lodged by the Justice Party and the Movement for the Poor and Dispossessed.

Pundits have hailed the Supreme Court's decision to consider the appeal by the two parties as proof of Azraqi democracy's maturity, although few expect the Court to rule against the Emperor.

A spokesman for the Ivory Throne said Boqor Tiirka Illah was confident of the legality of his actions. "His Imperial Majesty has acted within the confines set out by the Constitution," read an official statement.

To suspend parliament, the Emperor activated a previously unused clause that gives the reigning monarch the right to institute absolute rule in times of national emergency. Boqor Tiirka Illah said the inaction of the government, paralysed by the loss of its two-thirds majority, combined with the Long Sea crisis amounted to a national emergency. A later terror attack by communists in The Natal only proved him right, supporters would go on to claim.

"We're facing an era of global instability not seen since the 1950s," argued one lawmaker from the Party of Principles, which lost the last election to the Justice Party and its allies, in a TV interview.

Yet not all opposition parties are convinced imperial intervention is necessarily a positive step. "The Fifties saw the Islamofuturist dictatorship.. we are at risk of swapping one autocracy for another, with fear of an unknown enemy being used as justification again," remarks a member of Ansar al-Imam (Helpers of the Imam), whose supporters were persecuted by the Islamofuturist regime.

The Justice Party and MPD - joined by their former coalition partner the Shamo People's Liberation Front - certainly think Azraq faces years of Imperial absolute rule, propped up by the Dawamalian, Qaraf and Ooba elites.

Speaking in Dhihaa, capital of the Shamoiya region, Justice leader Hika Qiltu, joined by MPD and SPLF heads, vowed "peaceful mass action" and predicted the rise of "street democracy" unless parliament was reinstated immediately.

The Shamo parties also privately predict the Supreme Court will side with the Emperor. They sense a second opportunity however when the Emperor dissolved parliament to call fresh elections as promised. "Suspension and dissolution are two separate processes requiring two different justifications," explains a SPLF MP, "the Jugol establishment will not risk a Shamo uprising by forcing out a Shamo government."
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[Azraq]

ABC | Azraqi Broadcasting Corporation

NEWSFLASH: Emperor promises elections after Loago conflict

His Imperial Majesty Boqor Tiirka Illah has promised to end absolute rule and hold fresh elections once the war in Loago is resolved.

In an official statement from the Ivory Throne, the Emperor said Azraq could not afford "internal distractions" while its borders were threatened and said the focus must be on securing peace in Loago.

With Port Stanley launching its own offensive into Loago, targeting the Kadikistani Burukova syndicate and Loagan League of Communists, His Imperial Majesty said a resolution to the conflict was "imminent".

The Azraqi Imperial Armed Forces have already confirmed they will continue operations in Loago and supporting the Stanleyan military, which is operating out of Azraq.

The promise of fresh elections follows an unprecedented joint statement from a number of opposition parties for a clear timetable to ending absolute imperial rule, and continuing street protests by the Justice Party, Movement for the Poor and Dispossessed and Shamo People's Liberation Front. Only the Party of Principles supports indefinite imperial rule.

Calling new elections will require the dissolution, rather than suspension, of parliament and the Justice Party and MPD have already vowed to challenge the move in the Supreme Court.
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