Rich on the kuffar dole

"Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued." -- Qur'an 9:29

As British jihadist Anjem Choudary said: "The normal situation is to take money from the kuffar. You work, give us the money, Allahu akbar."

"Accused Fort Hood Shooter Paid $278,000 While Awaiting Trial," by Scott Friedman for NBCDFW.com, May 21 (thanks to Pamela Geller):

The Department of Defense confirms to NBC 5 Investigates that accused Fort Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan has been paid more than $278,000 since the Nov. 5, 2009 shooting that left 13 dead 32 injured.

The Department of Defense confirms to NBC 5 Investigates that accused Fort Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan has been paid more than $278,000 since the Nov. 5, 2009 shooting that left 13 dead 32 injured.

The Department of Defense confirms to NBC 5 Investigates that accused Fort Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan has now been paid more than $278,000 since the Nov. 5, 2009 shooting that left 13 dead 32 injured. The Army said under the Military Code of Justice, Hasan’s salary cannot be suspended unless he is proven guilty.

If Hasan had been a civilian defense department employee, NBC 5 Investigates has learned, the Army could have suspended his pay after just seven days.

Personnel rules for most civilian government workers allow for "indefinite suspensions" in cases "when the agency has reasonable cause to believe that the employee has committed a crime for which a sentence of imprisonment may be imposed."

Meanwhile, more than three years later soldiers wounded in the mass shooting are fighting to receive the same pay and medical benefits given to those wounded in combat.

Retired Army Spc. Logan Burnett, a reservist who, in 2009, was soon to be deployed to Iraq, was shot three times when a gunman opened fire inside the Army Deployment Center.

“I honestly thought I was going to die in that building,” said Burnett. “Just blood everywhere and then the thought of -- that's my blood everywhere.”

Burnett nearly died. He's had more than a dozen surgeries since the shooting, and says post-traumatic stress still keeps him up at night.

Burnett is now fighting a new battle; only this one is against the U.S. Army.

The Army has not classified the wounds of the Ft. Hood victims as “combat related” and declines to label the shooting a “terrorist attack”, [sic]

The “combat related” designation is an important one, for without it Burnett and other shooting victims are not given combat-related pay, they are not eligible for Purple Heart retirement or medical benefits given to other soldiers wounded either at war or during the Sept. 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon.

As a result, Burnett, his wife Torey, and the families of other Fort Hood victims miss out on thousands of dollars of potential benefits and pay every year.

To Burnett the shooting felt like combat.

“You take three rounds and lose five good friends and watch seven other people get killed in front of you. Do you have another term that we can classify that as?” asked Burnett.

The Army has categorized the shooting as a case of “workplace violence.”

“Sickens me. Absolutely sickens me. Workplace violence? I don't even know if I have the words to say,” said Burnett....

Actually, he sent teargas to the Muslim Brotherhood oppressors of Christians. "Obama vows US support as Myanmar leader visits," by Matthew Pennington and Nedra Pickler for the Associated Press, May 21:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama on Monday told Myanmar's president during a long-awaited White House meeting that he appreciates the Asian leader's efforts to lead the country on its sometimes difficult path to democracy and assured him of U.S. support.

Obama spoke as he sat in the Oval Office with former general Thein Sein, who became the first president of Myanmar to visit the White House in 47 years. Activists object to the invitation because of concerns over human rights in the country, but it marks a turnaround in international acceptance for Myanmar after decades of isolation and direct military rule....

In a speech at a university in Washington, Thein Sein called for a new era in U.S.-Myanmar relations. On domestic challenges, he vowed to ensure that communal violence between Buddhists and minority Muslims that has claimed hundreds of lives over the past year would be brought to a halt and that all the perpetrators are brought to justice.

Obama said he expressed concern about violence against Muslims in the country. "The displacement of people, the violence directed toward them needs to stop," he said....

No one particularly cares about the bloody ideology that incites all this murder. To investigate that would lead to uncomfortable questions about the texts and teachings of Islam. Better to focus on the latest "Islamophobia" report instead.

Note also that there will be no international outcry over the "desecration" of these mosques. That is because the bombers were Muslims; that kind of moral opprobrium is reserved solely for the kuffar.

"Fresh bombings in Iraq target Shiite mosque, 9 killed," from ANI, May 21:

Beijing: At least nine people were killed and 53 others wounded in bombing attacks against two Shiite mosques in Iraq's southern city of Hilla on Monday, a police source said.

A suicide bomber wearing explosive vest blew himself up at Al- Wardiyah mosque in Hilla, some 100 km south of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, and about five minutes later a bomb exploded in the nearby Al-Galagh mosque, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The two attacks targeted worshipers in the Shiite mosques and some of the wounded people were in critical conditions, he added.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the deadly attacks, but the al-Qaida front in Iraq, in most cases, were responsible for such massive attacks in the country, raising fears that the terrorist group and other militia could return to widespread violence.

Earlier on Monday, a series of car bombs and shootings mainly targeting Shiite areas across Iraq killed at least 61 people, including several Iranian pilgrims, and wounded some 200, apparently in an attempt to stir up sectarian strife among Iraqis....

Open season on Christians in Pakistan, and the world yawns. "Christian student killed by firing of Muslims in native village of Shahbaz Bhatti," from the Pakistan Christian Post, May 20 (spelling and grammar as in original):

Faisalabad: May 20, 2013. (PCP) A Christian village named Khushpur in sub-district Samundari of Faisalabad district came under attack of Muslims on May 19, 2013, killing one Christian student of 10th Grade and injuring many Christian by firing.

Father Felix, a European missionary who established a number of villages like Mariamabad in Shekhupura district, Francisabad in Shorkot, Jhang district in Pakistan. “Felix” is the Latin word for "happy". The village was thus given the name of "Khushpur" in Urdu, the "land of Fr Felix" or “land of Happiness”.

Many important Catholic public figures come from the village in government records shown as Chak Number 451/GB; people like Bishop John Joseph, Bishop Rufin Anthony, Ilama Paul Ernest, and Shahbaz Bhatti were born and raised in this remote village;

On informations of Muslims attack, contingents of police reached to village and prevented further killing by Muslims.

Faisal Patras, a Christian student of class 10th of High School was killed by firing of Muslims while Danish Masih who is brother of Faisal Patras and Patras Masih father of deceased was seriously injured with bullet wounds when trying to safe Faisal Patras.

After agricultural revolution in Pakistan, many Christians peasants of these Christian villages in Punjab province of Pakistan which were distributed without any cost by Catholic and other missionaries moved to cities and sold this gifted land to Muslims.

Muslim attack was on a petty dispute on a piece of land which Christian of Khushpur have sold to Muslims.

According to Samundari Social Media Network, there was killing of one Christian in other Christian village Chack Number 468/GB in this district one months ago by firing of Muslims and killers are at large, this other killing happened.

Mr. Khalid Gill, Chief Orgnizer of All Pakistan Minorities Alliance APMA have stronly condemned attack on village Khushpur and killing of a Christian student.

Mr. Gill have demanded immediate arrest of killers and security of the Christians which are under constant attack of Muslims in Punjab province of Pakistan.

This is a result of Muhammad's exoneration of his favorite wife, Aisha, who was suspected of adultery. Allah gave him a revelation requiring four male witnesses to establish such a crime: "And those who accuse honourable women but bring not four witnesses, scourge them (with) eighty stripes and never (afterward) accept their testimony - They indeed are evil-doers" (Qur'an 24:4). The problem with this is that women who accuse men of rape but cannot produce four male witnesses are often accused themselves of zina -- unlawful sexual intercourse -- and jailed as a result.

"Sharp rise in jail terms for Afghan rape and abuse victims," by Dean Nelson in the Telegraph, May 21 (thanks to Pedro):

The number of Afghan women and girls jailed for fleeing sexual abuse, domestic, violence and forced marriage has increased dramatically, according to new official figures.

Statistics obtained from Afghanistan's Interior Ministry by the campaign group Human Rights Watch reveal the number of women and girls convicted of 'moral crimes,' which include running away from home has increased by 50 per cent in the last year from 400 to 600.

Many of the 600 women jailed in the last year are victims of sexual assault and domestic abuse whose only crime was to run away from their assailants, the group said.

It called on the Afghan government to enforce its own Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW), and to stop its judges punishing female victims.

Although it is not a crime in Afghanistan for women to run away, the group said the country's judges, including members of its Supreme Court, regard women who run away from their homes as criminals. Many of them who flee rapes and other assaults have been charged with seeking sex outside marriage, known as Zina in Afghanistan.

Those jailed for Zina include women and girls who have been raped or forced into prostitution, the group said.

Earlier this year Human Rights Watch released its report I had to Run Away, which revealed that half of all women and 95 per cent of girls in Afghan jails had been convicted of 'moral crimes' of running away or sex outside marriage.

A report by Oxfam found that 87 per cent of Afghan women had suffered sexual and physical abuse and been forced into unwanted marriages.

Earlier this year a 22 year old woman, Gulnaz, who was jailed for Zina after she was raped and impregnated by her cousin's husband decided to marry her attacker to spare her daughter the stigma of being born out of wedlock. She had been 'pardoned' for her crime by President Karzai and released following an international outcry....

Video thanks to ygalg.

This is a staggering number in a country in which the electorate numbers fifty million. It is a manifestation of the widespread Egyptian discontent with the Muslim Brotherhood and Sharia rule. But it is unlikely -- in fact, inconceivable -- that Obama will support these pro-democracy protesters. He only supports such people when they are working to establish an Islamic supremacist regime, not when they're working against one.

"Egypt's 'rebels' gather millions of signatures to protest Morsi," by Charlene Gubash for NBC News, May 21 (thanks to Robert):

CAIRO – Once again, a handful of activists has managed to galvanize and inspire Egypt’s grumbling masses in a way no opposition political parties have been able to.

Their concept is simple. They are inviting the Egyptian electorate to sign a petition expressing “no confidence” in President Mohamed Morsi, a move they hope will trigger early presidential elections.

The response has been eye-opening. So far, 6,000 volunteers for the grassroots campaign dubbed “Tamarod” or “Rebel” have collected over 2 million signatures, according to the group’s spokesman Mahmoud Badr. Egypt’s electorate numbers about 50 million, with half of those voting in the last presidential election.

The movement has grown quickly, with opposition parties announcing support, widespread press coverage and black and white leaflets plastered across nearly every Cairo neighborhood. The “Rebel” Facebook page has attracted 150,000 “likes” in one month.

At a busy intersection in Mohandiseen, an upper-middle class Cairo neighborhood, at least 20 people stopped last Thursday to sign the leaflets and jot down national ID numbers to verify their identity.

Egyptian volunteer Basma Sherif, 24, hands out 'Rebel' petitions calling for no confidence in President Morsi and calling for early elections.

“Yesterday was even more crowded,” said Basma Sherif, as she handed out forms.

“There were accidents because people were leaving their cars in traffic to come and sign,” said Sherif, a 24-year-old insurance company employee.

People from all walks of life and throughout Egypt are signing the petition – from upper class educated elites to truck drivers and housekeepers – even people who voted for Morsi in the last election are now taking part in the campaign.

"People come from the cars to sign – poor, rich, middle class, everybody has one opinion,” said Sherif.

Those signing the petition were anxious for change. “I don’t want Morsi,” said Khaled Mostafa, a 27-year-old lab technician. “There is no security, no stability and their economic program failed… If we get several million signatures, we will have early elections.”

Amal Ragab, a middle-aged human resources manager, said that the revolution that toppled Mubarak made her believe people have the power to bring down a president. “For us, the Muslim Brotherhood is much worse and weaker than Mubarak with all of his power and security apparatus,” she added.

The group’s goal is to collect 15 million signatures, almost 3 million more than the number of votes Morsi received when he was elected by a narrow margin in June last year. They plan to deliver the petition for early elections to the Supreme Constitutional Court, Egypt’s highest court, on June 30, the one-year anniversary of Morsi’s inauguration, and to hold a massive demonstration in front of the presidential palace that day.

A symbolic move

But even diehard supporters admit there are no legal grounds to call for early elections based on a “no confidence” petition. They say the campaign is really meant to prove that Morsi has lost his majority and, with it, his legitimacy.

Hamza Abdullah, a 37-year-old lawyer who has been coordinating the campaign in three Cairo districts was carrying an armload of signed petitions on Thursday.

“This is a peaceful way to apply pressure and prove that people are against Morsi,” he said. “It is not legally binding, but it is like a poll to prove that he is not popular and not approved as president of Egypt.”

Protesters call for the removal of the Egyptian government in Tahrir Square in Cairo on May 17.

Not so fast, say Muslim Brotherhood

Members of the ruling Muslim Brotherhood, however, pooh-pooh the challenge.

Dr. Mohamed Beltagy, a senior leader of the Brotherhood’s political arm, issued a statement calling the petition “no more than a public survey,” saying it was useless unless organizers “transform the millions of participants they’re talking about into a political party.”

Others gave veiled warnings. “If some want to toss out the constitution, then they should admit their aim and bear the consequences because it is a complete and utter crime,” Essam Arian, deputy chairman of the Muslim Brotherhood, told the Al Fajr newspaper.

A lawyer for the Brotherhood, Abdel Moneim Abdel Maksoud, said that, “Hijacking a political democratic legitimacy constitutes a violation of the law.” And one Brotherhood-linked group launched a rhyming pro-Morsi petition called Tagarod, or “Impartiality.”...

We need a few politicians like this in the U.S. "Australian MP Calls For Egypt’s Ambassador To Be Called In Over Coptic Persecution," from the Australian Coptic Movement, May 11 (thanks to Jonah):

Mr Laurie Ferguson MP, Federal Member for Werriwa has written to the Australian Coptic Movement Association (ACM) confirming that he requested Senator the Hon. Bob Carr, Minister for Foreign Affairs to call in the Egyptian Ambassador following ongoing attacks on Copts in Egypt.

Below is an excerpt from Mr Ferguson’s letter to Senator Bob Carr:

“I appreciate the seriousness of calling in an Ambassador to indicate Australia’s concerns about particular issues. However, events in Egypt appear to demand such action.

On April 14th I attended a sizeable rally in Sydney’s Martin Place with a significant number of NSW and Commonwealth parliamentarians in the aftermath of violent attacks on mourners at Cairo’s St Mark’s Cathedral”.

The ACM welcomes Mr Ferguson’s stance and we look forward to a prompt response from the Senator Hon. Bob Carr. We also demand that the Australian Government immediately makes strong representations on this serious issue at the United Nations.

It is quite clear that The Egyptian government has not only failed to take appropriate action to afford protection to Egypt’s vulnerable Coptic community but also directly participated in the persecution.

We are also deeply concerned over the welfare of 24 year Demiana Nour. She has been held by Egyptian police in Luxor since 8 May 2013 under ‘defamation of religion’ charges. Demiana is a young teacher who was merely undertaking her teaching duties.

We demand that the Egyptian authorities immediately release Demiana and all Copts who have been have been charged under flimsy ‘defamation of religion’ charges.

Not that the young Tsarnaev brothers could have picked up anything from their environment. "4 dead, 44 hurt in Dagestan bombing, security officials say," by Nick Paton Walsh for CNN, May 20 (thanks to all who sent this in):

Makhachkala, Dagestan (CNN) -- At least four people are dead and 44 are injured after two bombs exploded Monday in Russia's volatile North Caucasus region, the Ministry of Health's website says.

Thirty-one of the injured were hospitalized, it says.

The incident -- which occurred in Makhachkala, capital of the semi-autonomous republic of Dagestan -- also caused significant damage. Security officials say they believe law enforcement officers may have been the target because the explosion occurred outside a local marshal's building.

One car bomb was discovered by a police patrol, who called in a unit to defuse it. Before that could be done, the bomb went off, but the explosion was minor, security officials said. Then, as a crowd of people gathered, a second, more powerful device detonated, causing the casualties.

An Islamic insurgency has taken hold in the North Caucasus and there is a strong presence of Islamic militants fighting Moscow's rule.

Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev -- the suspects in the Boston Marathon terror attack last month -- had ties with the region. The brothers are ethnic Chechens who lived in Kyrgyzstan and Dagestan....

Dangerous

The dangers of speaking one's mind in what is rapidly becoming a Sharia state. "Amina Tyler, Tunisia’s ‘topless jihad’ activist, caught and under arrest," from Al Arabiya, May 21:

After months of reportedly going into hiding, the outspoken Tunisian feminist who sparked a trend of “topless jihad” has been found and arrested by Tunisian authorities earlier this week and may be charged for conducting “provocative acts.”

Amina Tyler, 19, was found in the midst of police scuffles with hardline Salafist group Ansar al-Shariah in the central Tunisian city of Kairouan on Sunday.

Tyler previously described herself as a member of the Ukrainian feminist group Femen, which uses nudity in protests.

Witnesses said she allegedly scrawled “Femen” on the wall near the main mosque and may have intended to hang a banner on the building before an angry crowd gathered and started shouting at her to leave, according to The Associated Press.

Video posted by the Tunisian online Nawaat news site shows Tyler, with dyed blonde hair, clutching a banner and being hustled away by police and put into a van as residents chased her.

A local resident shouts at the camera: “She is dishonoring us. We will protect our town, but a dirty girl like her shouldn’t come among us.”

Mohammed Ali Aroui, the spokesman for the Tunisian interior ministry, described her acts as provocative and said she was under investigation and may be charged for her behavior on Sunday. He added that he understood the angry reaction of local residents to her appearance.

The ministry had banned Ansar al-Shariah’s annual conference, citing it as a threat to security and public order, and sent 11,000 soldiers and police to prevent hardline Muslims, known as salafis, from entering Kairouan.

In March, Tyler posted pictures of her topless body with the phrase “my body is my own” scrawled on it, and she went into hiding after receiving death threats. Her family took her to stay with relatives outside the capital before she escaped and hid with friends.

A month later, Tyler had been trying to leave Tunisia, her former lawyer said after a video surfaced in which the woman recounted being drugged and given virginity tests by relatives.

“Free Amina” rallies held by bare-breasted Femen activists hit Paris last month as Tyler’s supporters feared she would soon face criminal prosecution.

No one cares about this. Tell us more about "Islamophobia." "More Christians Killed in Northern Nigeria Last Year Than in the Rest of the World Combined," by Ann Buwalda for the Jubilee Campaign via AINA, May 20:

Two weeks ago I informed Nigerian Congressmen and women about this deplorable disrepute during my lecture to the Nigerian House of Representatives, Committee on Human Rights. Invited by the Chairman of the Committee, the Hon. Beni Lar, to address the topic of Ethnicity, Conflict, and Human Rights, I pointed out that the Nigerian Constitution reflects the broadest range of religious freedom exercise recognized within international law. I asked, "What good is this right in principle when in practice there is a societal actor, namely the Boko Haram, which strikes fear with bomb blasting of churches during worship services?" I called for an end to impunity because the predictable and certain result of impunity is more violence. I explained what it means within U.S. law that the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), a U.S. government funded agency, had just submitted its recommendation that Nigeria receive US Department of State designation as a "country of particular concern" under the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act which would trigger a menu of remedies for engagement.

The discussant to my lecture, Professor Muhammed Tabiu from the Faculty of Law, Bayero University, emphasized that the religious freedom called for in the Nigerian Constitution is even broader then the freedoms articulated within the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. He stated that the legal framework has done all that it can do and that the improvement must take place "on the ground." With respect to religious extremism, he noted that "lack of respect for human rights are a daily occurrence." Prof. Tabiu also agreed with my criticism of the US Department of State's surprising endorsement of a federal Sharia court of appeal. Jubilee Campaign has yet to find anyone other than the Boko Haram terror group calling for more sharia. I had noted that this illustrates how the US Department of State fundamentally misunderstands and misrepresents the constitution of Nigeria. Prof. Tabiu clarified that there are state courts of appeals for the Sharia courts and that the Constitution of Nigeria reflects a "reasonable compromise" accommodating Muslims as well as Christians in the context of state level Sharia and customary courts.

I also pointed out that in addition to mistakes about Nigerian law, there are also mistakes as to facts. USCIRF for instance reported that only Muslims had been convicted of religious violence. This is however not accurate. Jubilee is involved in a case where Christians, arrested for curfew violation were wrongly convicted of terrorism. The attorney general of Plateau State also has previously provided updates of prosecutions which included a number of Christians arrested and charged in relation to incidents of violence.

Following the close of the Congressional Human Rights Committee session, four Northern Nigeria Congressmen pulled me aside to dialogue about how dangerous and "explosive" my factual statement about the religious identity of the victims in the death toll was. One of the Congressmen insisted that more Muslims have been killed by Boko Haram, and that mosques in the north were also bombed by Boko Haram affiliated actors. When I told him that my data consisting of specific incidents researched from Nigerian media and NGO sources can be found at http://factsnigeriaviolence.wordpress.com/, he could only provide anecdotal claims to support his contention that more Muslims were killed. Ironically, neither the U.S. Department of State's human rights report on Nigeria nor recent Human Rights Watch reports have provided more than anecdotal references for the same unsupported proposition that more Muslims have been killed by Boko Haram. Moreover, the fact that moderate Muslims have been killed by Boko Haram should be the real "explosive" cause for all of Nigerians to unite and seek the arrest and prosecution of those responsible for the violence.

Coincidentally, the next evening of May 3 I caught an interview on Al Jazeera entitled, "Jailed Boko Haram rebels seek pardon." Imprisoned since last August, Ibrahim Mohammed told the interviewer, "Yes my belief is that there should be Islamic law, and we have chosen to take up arms against people who do not want Sharia." Another fighter detailed the attacks he perpetrated which he prefaced with the statement, "Between me and God I took up arms to fight." When asked about the death of innocent bystanders, the third militant explained that such a death would be by a "mistake" and that "if he dies he is innocent and we don't worry at all. We are forgiven by God." Chilling. Without any hint of remorse from them concerning their actions on victims or victims' families, their lawyer and the interviewer described their efforts to obtain amnesty and prompt release. Amnesty would be a travesty and injustice of the worst kind to innocent victims. Nothing indicates these three men would not resume their jihad to impose Sharia law, as they so clearly stated on camera was the reason why they took up arms.

It seems that following a plea from the governor of Borno State, Kassim Shettima, that his state was on the brink of a takeover by the Boko Haram, President Goodluck Jonathan responded with a declaration of a state of emergency as well as sending military troops to Maiduguri, known to be Boko Haram's stronghold. After the militants again attacked the government, killed civilians, and seized property, Nigeria's military sent several thousand troops and imposed a 24 hour curfew in Maiduguri. The military seized stock piles of weapons, including sophisticated rocket-propelled grenades, killed 10 militants, and arrested 63, according to Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera reported yesterday that the blockade of supply routes to Boko Haram seems to achieving the goal of causing militants to flee their bases.

The predictable response from the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry cautioned, "We are also deeply concerned by credible allegations that Nigerian security forces are committing gross human rights violations, which, in turn, only escalate the violence and fuel extremism. The United States condemns Boko Haram's campaign of terror in the strongest terms. We urge Nigeria's security forces to apply disciplined use of force in all operations, protect civilians in any security response, and respect human rights and the rule of law." The U.S. Department of State's response once again could not be more convoluted and confused as to who the perpetrators of human rights violations and spread of carnage are. In fact, as reported by Al Jazeera and others, the violent takeover of Borno state and other territories by the Boko Haram are being contained as per the state of emergency.

For example, as reported by The Independent on May 8 "The Nigerian Islamist sect Boko Haram is thought to have been behind a deadly siege on the northeastern town of Bama on Tuesday that left 55 people dead...Boko Haram is a terror group that wants to carve out an Islamic state in a country split roughly equally between Christians and Muslims." This article goes on to explain that its more recent tactics have resulted from "the help Boko Haram has received from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), a branch of the international terrorist network based in the Saharan states of Mali, Niger and Algeria."

It seems that the Nigerian government is seeking to contain known militants responsible for weekly incidents of carnage and destruction on civilians. We continue to encourage the end to impunity and the restoration of peace for all civilians in the north of Nigeria.

On this week’s edition of the chat show that leaves Letterman, Leno, and the rest slack-jawed with awe and envy, The Glazov Gang, our hero had the honor of being joined by TV and movie star Morgan Brittany, provocateur Michael Chandler and the National Director of PolitiChicks, Ann-Marie Murrell.

The Gang discussed the topic Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s Islamic Engravings on a Cabin Wall. The dialogue occurred in Part II and focused on how a jihadist has explained that Allah made him do it — but the media still can’t find a motive. Part I focused on the scandals rocking Obama’s world.

Not wasting a second to claim victim status. "Somali reaction to al-Shabab sentences mixed," by Amy Forliti for the Associated Press, May 19 (thanks to all who sent this in):

MINNEAPOLIS - Wide-ranging sentences handed down in the yearslong federal investigation into recruiting and financing for the terrorist group al-Shabab have kindled a mix of outrage, confusion and relief among members of Minnesota's large Somali community.

Some say the 10- and 20-year prison sentences for two Minnesota women who sent money to the group were too harsh, especially since two men who traveled to Somalia and joined al-Shabab got three years. The attorney for one man sentenced to 20 years in prison has already filed a notice of appeal; more are expected.

But others say justice has been served, and authorities said the nine penalties doled out last week show that those who support terrorism will be held accountable....

Prosecutors have said the men and women were part of a "deadly pipeline," sending money and men to al-Shabab, which the U.S. government has designated a terrorist organization for its links to al-Qaida and its tactics that include suicide bombings and assassinations. At least 22 men left Minnesota for Somalia since 2007 in what has been called one of the largest efforts to recruit U.S. fighters for a foreign terrorist organization.

Authorities say the conspiracy began in 2007, when small groups of Somali men began holding secret meetings about returning to their homeland to wage jihad against Ethiopians. Ethiopian troops had been brought into Somalia a year earlier by its U.N.-backed government, but many Somalis viewed them as invaders.

That sentiment came up often during the hearings, as Chief U.S. District Judge Michael Davis gave each defendant unlimited time to say whatever he or she wanted. Davis also asked family and community members to speak, and asked defendants about their time in Somalia and refugee camps.

Hassan Mohamud, the imam at a St. Paul mosque, commended Davis for that approach.

But Mohamud was among several people outraged after two women — Amina Farah Ali and Hawo Mohamed Hassan — received sentences of 20 and 10 years. Ali and Hassan had gone door-to-door, saying they were raising money for charity; they were convicted of funneling funds to al-Shabab.

"They didn't go back home. They didn't kill anyone. They just helped with the poor people," said Abdiwali Warsame, a St. Paul Somali who was interviewed outside the courthouse. He called the women's sentences an "injustice."

They were funding jihad terror, but Warsame hopes you forget about that inconvenient fact.

Three men who traveled to Somalia and pleaded guilty to terror-related charges received lower sentences after cooperating with authorities. Two received three-year prison stints; a third who stayed and fought alongside al-Shabab then lied to the FBI got 10 years. One man who admitted helping recruits obtain plane tickets — but was later characterized as a leader in recruitment efforts — received 12 years.

Last week's sentences are in line with other al-Shabab-related cases. In New Jersey, two men arrested while trying to board flights to Somalia for a jihad were sentenced to 22 and 20 years in prison. A southern California woman received eight years for sending money to Minnesota men in Somalia, while a Missouri man received more than 11 years for funding al-Shabab....

Others raised concerns about potential bias after Davis questioned Ali and Hassan about whether they supported suicide bombings and Sharia law, and asked Hassan about her traditional dress. That led some Somalis to say Islam was under attack.

It also prompted the [Hamas-linked] Council on American-Islamic Relations to announce Friday that it will file a complaint against Davis, for allegedly linking mainstream Islamic principles with terrorism. Davis does not speak about court cases. His office referred The Associated Press to the court record....

He didn't know that pressure cooker bombs were used in the Boston Marathon jihad bombing! He didn't know you can get them in Toledo! He had a valid passport that he just forgot to present instead of his expired and altered one! Clearly he is a victim of "Islamophobia"! "Saudi with pressure cooker in baggage seeks bond," by David N. Goodman for the Associated Press, May 20 (thanks to Block Ness):

DETROIT (AP) - A Saudi man arrested at Detroit Metropolitan Airport after allegedly lying about why he was traveling with a pressure cooker asked to be released on bond Monday.

Hussain Al Khawahir, 33, was arrested May 11 by federal agents at the airport in Romulus, Mich., and charged with giving false statements to federal agents and possessing an altered passport.

Defense lawyer James C. Howarth filed a motion asking a Detroit federal judge to set bond for Al Khawahir, who didn't initially seek release.

Howarth has said his client didn't know at the time of his arrest that pressure cookers were used in the Boston Marathon attack and was bringing the pressure cooker for use by his nephew, a student at the University of Toledo in Ohio.

Because everyone knows you can't get them in Toledo.

U.S. Justice Department lawyers did not immediately return an email from The Associated Press asking if they oppose Al Khawahir's release request. U.S. Customs and Border Protection also has a detention order for him, and he would need to clear it as well to gain release.

Howarth used the motion to challenge the government's case, saying that Al Khawahir carried a valid, current Saudi passport as well as an expired passport, "purportedly altered," that contained a visa stamp for his entry to the U.S.

Howarth said the difference between two explanations that Al Khawahir gave federal agents about why he was bringing the pressure cooker - that his nephew couldn't find one in the U.S. and that the ones available here were defective - were "possibly a distinction without much difference."

He said Al Khawahir "represents neither a risk of flight nor a danger to a person or the community."

Al Khawahir's next scheduled court date is May 28 for a hearing on whether there's enough evidence for the case to proceed.

In his motion, Howarth said his client contacted his nation's diplomats immediately after the arrest, and the government of Saudi Arabia "pledged its support" of him.

That means he will be going home soon.

Dialogue. "Updated | Bombers target Catholic church in Benghazi, priests escape unhurt," from Malta Today, May 19 (thanks to Tom):

Fr Alan Castillo and Fr Raghib Marzouk escaped unhurt after a bomb went off at the Catholic church in Via Torino, Benghazi, late Friday night.

According to sources, a bomb was placed at the main of the church when an explosion rocked the area at around 11.30pm shattering several glass windows on the opposite side of the narrow road and also several windows in the building adjacent to the church housing the priests.

Fortunately, Maltese bishop Mgr Sylvester Magro was not there as he is currently in Spain attending a religious function.

Fr. Alan Castillo and Fr. Raghib Marzouk were however present at the time of the explosion, but both escaped uninjured.

Soon after the explosion security officials cordoned the area barring anyone from entering or leaving the area.

No one was hurt in this incident.

Foreign Affairs Minister George Vella also contacted the Maltese Consul in Benghazi Joe Pirotta to obtain "first hand" information on the incident and to express his solidarity with the people.

The Maltese Consulate is the only consulate, from among the EU member states, still open in Benghazi. The other consulates are those of Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt.

In a statement, the Foreign Affairs Ministry described the situation in Benghazi as being "highly fluid" and "easy to obtain explosive material"....

"There's still a tendency to see these things in Sunni-Shia terms. But the Middle East is going to have to overcome that." - Condoleezza Rice, January 2007.

Six years later, Washington is even more clueless than it was then.

"Dozens killed by car and suicide bombs in Iraqi cities," from the BBC, May 20 (thanks to BD):

More than 70 people have been killed and many others injured in a series of bomb attacks across Iraq.

Baghdad was worst hit, with several explosions at bus stations and markets in the mainly Shia Muslim districts.

Attacks also occurred in Samarra, north of the capital, and Basra and Hilla further south.

It is one of the worst days of violence in recent months as Iraq has seen a rise in attacks linked to growing political and sectarian tension.

The bloodshed has raised fears of a re-emergence of the levels of sectarian violence seen in 2006 and 2007.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki vowed to make immediate changes to Iraq's security strategy and told Iraqis that militants "will not be able to return us to the sectarian conflict"

Looks as if the perfume is already out of the bottle, Nouri.

In a separate incident, 10 policemen kidnapped on Saturday in western Anbar province were found dead....

Will the Islamophobia never end? "Moscow terrorist attack foiled," from the Associated Press, May 20 (thanks to Kenneth):

Russia's counterterrorism agency said Monday that its special forces killed two militants and detained a third believed to have been planning a terrorist act in Moscow.

A spokesman for the National Anti-Terrorist Committee, known as NAK, said on state television that the militants were Russian citizens who had received training along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. They were not identified.

Russian special forces regularly announce that they have thwarted terrorist attacks, although this most often occurs in the Caucasus region of southern Russia where an Islamic insurgency is simmering. The last major terrorist attack in Moscow was a suicide bombing at the Domodedovo international airport in January 2011 that left 37 people dead.

NAK spokesman Dmitry Pavlov said special forces surrounded the building where the militants were holed up in the Moscow suburb of Orekhovo-Zuevo and ordered them to surrender, but instead the militants opened fire. He said one of the special forces was lightly wounded in the operation but no local residents were hurt.

It was not clear when the operation took place and no further information was immediately available.

Meanwhile, two bombs exploded outside a court building in Russia's restive province of Dagestan on Monday, killing at least four people and wounding dozens of others, officials said....

Last summer, a Pakistani Muslim cleric said that polio vaccinations were un-Islamic. More recently, the Taliban was murdering people who were administering the polio vaccine in Pakistan. And the quest for Islamic purity continues.

"Gunmen Attack Pakistani Polio Team, Kill Policeman," from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, May 20:

Pakistani officials say gunmen attacked a polio vaccination team in the country's northwest, killing a policeman who was escorting the health workers.

The group was assaulted on May 20 in the Bajur tribal area, one of Pakistan's seven tribal areas along the Afghan border.

A local official said more than 600 teams are taking part in the latest campaign in Bajur to vaccinate 220,000 children against the crippling disease.

It is unclear whether the campaign, which had already been postponed due to previous attacks, will continue.

No one has claimed responsibility.

In December, gunmen killed at least nine polio workers in separate attacks in Pakistan.

Some Pakistani militants oppose the polio vaccination campaign, accusing health workers of acting as spies for the United States and claiming the vaccine harms Muslim children.

Here is my weekly column at PJ Lifestyle today:

Last Friday, an Afghan journalist named Mustafa Kazemi posted on Facebook a harrowing story about an eight-year-old girl in the Khashrood district of Nimruz province in Afghanistan, who was sold off into marriage to a mullah in his late 50s, and who bled to death on their wedding night.

It was one of many such tragedies in a land that little notes nor long remembers such deaths. An eight-year-old girl sold into marriage and dead after a brutal sexual assault that her body could not withstand is no more noteworthy than a pack animal that collapses under a too-heavy weight. It’s time and money wasted, that’s all. Forget about it. Get another one.

Indeed, the day after Kazemi posted his account, pro-Sharia lawmakers in Afghanistan blocked a proposed Law on Elimination of Violence Against Women, which would have set criminal penalties for child marriage. Pro-Sharia legislator Khalil Ahmad Shaheedzada denounced the law as un-Islamic, explaining: “Whatever is against Islamic law, we don’t even need to speak about it.”

That means that more girls like the eight-year-old in the Khashrood district will continue to suffer. For few things are more abundantly attested in Islamic law than the permissibility of child marriage. Islamic tradition records that Muhammad’s favorite wife, Aisha, was six when Muhammad wedded her and nine when he consummated the marriage:

“The Prophet wrote the (marriage contract) with Aisha while she was six years old and consummated his marriage with her while she was nine years old and she remained with him for nine years (i.e. till his death)” (Bukhari 7.62.88).

Another tradition has Aisha herself recount the scene:

The Prophet engaged me when I was a girl of six (years). We went to Medina and stayed at the home of Bani-al-Harith bin Khazraj. Then I got ill and my hair fell down. Later on my hair grew (again) and my mother, Um Ruman, came to me while I was playing in a swing with some of my girl friends. She called me, and I went to her, not knowing what she wanted to do to me. She caught me by the hand and made me stand at the door of the house. I was breathless then, and when my breathing became Allright, she took some water and rubbed my face and head with it. Then she took me into the house. There in the house I saw some Ansari women who said, “Best wishes and Allah’s Blessing and a good luck.” Then she entrusted me to them and they prepared me (for the marriage). Unexpectedly Allah’s Apostle came to me in the forenoon and my mother handed me over to him, and at that time I was a girl of nine years of age. (Bukhari 5.58.234).

Muhammad was at this time fifty-four years old.

Marrying young girls was not all that unusual for its time, but because in Islam Muhammad is the supreme example of conduct (cf. Qur’an 33:21), he is considered exemplary in this unto today. And so in April 2011, the Bangladesh Mufti Fazlul Haque Amini declared that those trying to pass a law banning child marriage in that country were putting Muhammad in a bad light: “Banning child marriage will cause challenging the marriage of the holy prophet of Islam… [putting] the moral character of the prophet into controversy and challenge.” He added a threat: “Islam permits child marriage and it will not be tolerated if any ruler will ever try to touch this issue in the name of giving more rights to women.” The Mufti said that 200,000 jihadists were ready to sacrifice their lives for any law restricting child marriage.

Likewise the influential website Islamonline.com in December 2010 justified child marriage by invoking not only Muhammad’s example, but the Qur’an as well:

The Noble Qur’an has also mentioned the waiting period [i.e. for a divorced wife to remarry] for the wife who has not yet menstruated, saying: “And those who no longer expect menstruation among your women—if you doubt, then their period is three months, and [also for] those who have not menstruated” [Qur’an 65:4]. Since this is not negated later, we can take from this verse that it is permissible to have sexual intercourse with a prepubescent girl. The Qur’an is not like the books of jurisprudence which mention what the implications of things are, even if they are prohibited. It is true that the prophet entered into a marriage contract with A’isha when she was six years old, however he did not have sex with her until she was nine years old, according to al-Bukhari.

Other countries make Muhammad’s example the basis of their laws regarding the legal marriageable age for girls. Article 1041 of the Civil Code of the Islamic Republic of Iran states that girls can be engaged before the age of nine, and married at nine: “Marriage before puberty (nine full lunar years for girls) is prohibited. Marriage contracted before reaching puberty with the permission of the guardian is valid provided that the interests of the ward are duly observed.”

Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini himself married a ten-year-old girl when he was twenty-eight. Khomeini called marriage to a prepubescent girl “a divine blessing,” and advised the faithful to give their own daughters away accordingly: “Do your best to ensure that your daughters do not see their first blood in your house.” When he took power in Iran, he lowered the legal marriageable age of girls to nine, in accord with Muhammad’s example....

There is more.

He doesn't recognize the authority of non-Muslims. Pamela Geller asks the key question: "My question is, why would anyone who regarded their system of governance (no matter how savage) superior to the country in which they are living -- be allowed to remain? It is treason. They should be thrown out."

"Accused rioter Mohammed Issai Issaka berated in court after refusing to stand for Magistrate Jacqueline Milledge," by Peter Bodkin for The Daily Telegraph, May 20 (thanks to Pamela Geller):

A MAN accused of rioting during last year's violent Muslim protests has been berated for his "disrespect" after refusing to stand before a magistrate at his court hearing.

Mohammed Issai Issaka, who was charged with riot, assaulting police and resisting arrest over the September incident, this morning said his religious beliefs stopped him for rising for the court - the standard practice whenever a judge or magistrate enters or leaves.

Magistrate Jacqueline Milledge repeatedly demanded Issaka stand for her, telling him she didn’t accept his refusal.

"You can tell me where it is in his religion that it says he cannot stand," she said to Issaka's lawyer, Stephen Hopper.

"I was a magistrate at Bankstown Court for four years and I have never had to deal with such disrespect."

The hearing had to be postponed for nearly half an hour after the prosecution and defence consulted Ms Milledge, with the case eventually continuing after Issaka waited outside the courtroom as everyone stood for the magistrate.

Constable Allan Simon, who helped arrest Issaka during the CBD protests, told the court he first noticed the man take a "boxer stance" in front of a police line, where he was "jerking backwards and forwards" and "hissing" at the officers' dogs.

He said he next saw the accused rioter about 15 minutes later when he was violently lashing out at riot squad police.

"There was like a running jump-kick at the (officers') shields and he was punching the shields," he said.

Constable Simon said three officers brought Issaka to the ground but he continued resisting them and the man kicked him in the knee before he was bundled into a police van.

While in the truck he kept repeating "I have no respect for you guys", the court heard.

Issaka shook his head repeatedly during parts of the constable’s evidence.

Sgt Catherine Sadler said she saw Issaka dragged towards the police van and she heard him yell out: "You’re not a lady, you’re f…ing filth"....