More Pope Rage. From CNSNews.com, with thanks to DFS:
Jerusalem (CNSNews.com) - A previously unknown Palestinian Muslim group has threatened to bring destruction and physical harm to the Gaza Strip's small Christian community if Pope Benedict XVI does not issue a detailed apology for remarks he cited linking Islam and violence....In the disputed West Bank, a total of six churches -- Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Anglican -- were either firebombed or doused with gasoline and set alight. In Gaza City, gunmen fired on a Greek Orthodox church.
A leaflet issued by militants on Tuesday threatened to "target all Crusaders [a term frequently employed by Muslim Arabs to denote Christians] in the Gaza Strip until the pope issues an official apology."
Calling themselves "The Army of Guidance," the group announced that "all centers belonging to Crusaders, including churches and institutions, will from now on be targeted. We will even attack the Crusaders as they sit intoxicated in their homes."
A Christian leader in Gaza City told The Jerusalem Post his community has "appealed to the Palestinian Authority for protection. Christians here are keeping a very low profile and many of them would like to leave the area out of fear for their lives."
Palestinian Interior Ministry spokesman Khaled Abu Hilal told the Associated Press that security forces had been ordered to protect Christian sites, but he did not share the Gaza Christian community's sense of urgency.
"This is a new name and an unknown group. I think this is empty talk," said Abu Hilal.
But Dr. Walid Phares, a professor of Middle East Studies at Florida Atlantic University, told Cybercast News Service that the name of the group is unimportant.
"These aren't really new organizations. These are the same Salafi (Wahabi) Jihadists, a mix of al Qaeda, Hizbu Tahrir, and elements from Hamas and Islamic Jihad who issue releases at every opportunity they see in 'taking the Jihad worldwide,'" said Phares.
And he doesn't doubt that they "would target Christians, both Western and locals."
The only thing that would keep the group from going on what Phares called a "systematic rampage" against local Christians would be the Hamas government's concern over international repercussions.
Yes, but they have been excused from accountability for so long by the international community, why should they fear repercussions now?
"...sitting intoxicated in their homes." What a sad day to see violence on this level. Islam had better straighten itself out, or the rest of the world will have to straighten it out period. Christianity is certainly not perfect either... there was a great book written citing Pope John Paul IIs numerous apologies for the evils that had been committed in the name of G-d by Christians over the centuries.
If Islam is to survive it MUST shed its self of violence. If this continues in my life time I personally think that we should re-classify Islam from a religion to a cult and prohibit it from the West. I know that is a horrible thing to say, but this daily violence is beyond belief and stupidty. Europe does not think twice about banning Nazism and at this point radical Islam is no different.
I don't care what a person beliefs as long as they live in a country, participate in that country, and care about that country.
If you live in the U.S. you better darn well support the Constitution and the law of the land. Not the Sharia. Certainly, you may enfore Sharia in your home if you like, as orthodox Jews who observe their own laws. But, you can't impress those personal laws on everyone.
If you live in the U.K. you better support the Parliment and the royal family. It seems pretty clear. If you can't do that... then don't live in the country.
It isn't racist to suggest that one should actually care about the country he or she lives in.
If you are a moderate muslim...SPEAK OUT .....NOW. ACT....NOW. Either re-define as "Jihad" as an internal personal struggle for self-mastery and armed struggle ONLY in self-defence or the radicals will define it for you.
I believe that just as the West is at a cross-roads so is Islam.
Time to grow up and join the modern world, maybe even peacefully influence it for the better, or time to fade away. Violence and religion have no place together. Islam had better learn that lesson real quick. I wish things were different, but they are not. Welcome to reality.
http://www.melaniephillips.com/diary/?p=1332
Looks like the Anglican and Orthodox leaders in this area sure didn't get much for all their groveling and Israel bashing.
The Christians are the original inhabitants of this land, it is time for the farce and lie of the "Palestinian people" to end. There is no such entity. There is simply a dirty,vile rabble of Muhammadan odds and ends that settled on Christian and Jewish land, and then there are Dhimmi Christians that are alternately used for the Muhammedians designs and maligned, all thrown together to make the furtative fable of the Palestinian People.
Time for the Christians to be seperated from their "Palestinian Arab brothers"; like wheat and chaff. The west should stand up for the Christians and evict Muhammedan rabble that colonized Christian cities such as Bethlehem in the last two decades, like roachs in a ghetto apartment. Israel should add new territory, and make it 100% Muslim free, Syria,The Kingdom of Al Saud and Iraq can adopt their Muslim brothers and sisters.
And we'll where at the Pali's sure could use some birth control. I'd sure give some coin to Planned Parenthood of Gaza. Maybe there lot would improve if their women weren't simply treated like brood sows for breeding jihadis. Having ten kids in a two bedroom hovel kinda makes life suck doesn't it? But I digress.
Wait just a minute! I thought all "Palestinian" violence, rioting and unrest was all about Israel's "illegal occupation."
You mean they're just a bunch of crazy muslim fanatics, too?
Color me surprised.
/s
Hey, Bishop Riah Abu El-Assal...
Here's another one for you.
"Yes, but they [Hamas} have been excused from accountability for so long by the international community, why should they fear repercussions now?"
Because Gazans are getting mad at them now for the Hamas's failure to forsee what their policies would bring on and for being obdurate in the face of cut-off funding. Support for the government has fallen below 50% and Ismael Haniyah is getting swarmed by protesting civil servants who haven't been paid in months. Ramadan is approaching if it hasn't already arrived and nobody has any money to spend in the shops.
WaterD,
The strategy that you support here, of denying jizyah to the Arabs in Gaza as long as they support Hamas, is being wrecked by the so-called Quartet. That means that not only the EU and Russia and the UN, but GW Bush are getting ready to recognize and coddle Hamas as they have coddled and pampered Fatah and the PLO for years. Bush's "war on terror" is a fake as long as he helps Hamas and supports the so-called Road Map, which is just a way of financing and diplomatically supporting Arab terrorism.
Whether Bush is better or worse than the Democrats, I can't be sure. But he seems to be equally bad. So I see why anti-jihad people should support either Bush or the Democrats. Maybe it isn't worth it anymore to vote for president, just for local politicians and some few senators and congressmen who may oppose jihad.
This is one of the most under-reported stories in te west that deserves strong condemnation from our media.
Christians in the Middle East are extremely persecuted by Muslims.
Here are some informative links which include other areas of the Middle East where Christians are persecuted:
http://www.meforum.org/article/18
http://www.phoenicia.org/christiansmea.html
Unfortunately, if established patterns continue, the Christian Arabs will still wind up blaming the Jews for what's happening.
Oops, by "established patterns," I meant the way the Christian Arabs have been blaming the Jews for all the havoc caused by Muslim suicide bombers, snipers, and other killers. In everything I read, it's always, somehow, the Jews' fault that business is flagging, that there are "inconveniences" and "humiliations" at checkpoints, that Arabs are being killed by accident instead of or along with Jews in all those bombings, and so on.
Of course it's the Jews fault.
Matter of fact, someone give me a megaphone. I'm going to climb up to the highest minaret in Mecca and let the whole stinking lot of Muslims know the truth:
"Bismi l'lahi, The Pope is a Zionist agent. Just look at how BAD he's made you look. Just see what a lie he's given to the idea that Arab Christians and Arab Muslims are united in their oppression under the Zionists.
"Yes, habiibi, it's a Zionist Plot! Where's your Koranic, moronic logic? Do you not know, O, faithful muslims that the Zionist Pope is playing you for fools?
That should work. Unless someone accuses me of being a Zionist agent.
It is about time The West ceased to import Muslims and reserved asylum for Christians suffering persecution.
It seems ridiculous to fill up our cities with Muslims who live as they would in whatever peasant country they emerged from and to leave Christians out in the cold.
In fact it is time Christians suffering the assault of Muslim gangsters were given some assistance.......those in Lebanon are leaving en-masse and those from Iraq are sheltering in Syria (for which reason I would rather the West co-opted Syria rather than topple the regime)
Uh,how many apologies must the Pope make? One was too many in my opinion but of course a million wouldn't be enough for these crazies.
As for the Christian exodus from the Mideast-good for them. Leave those miserable places to the idiots so they can become even more backward and ignorant.
Amen to Voyager's comments!
"Time for the Christians to be seperated from their "Palestinian Arab brothers"; like wheat and chaff. The west should stand up for the Christians and evict Muhammedan rabble that colonized Christian cities such as Bethlehem in the last two decades, like roachs in a ghetto apartment. Israel should add new territory, and make it 100% Muslim free"
. from abdulalshirk above.
Amen! Amen! AMEN!
You've hit the nail right on the head. It is time for a THREE state solution: Israel; a Palestinian Christian state in Judea, Samaria, Gaza and Nazareth, and expel the Muslims to Jordan.
If you go the the 1911 Encyclopedia Brittanica and look up "Palestinian" it says "A Christian, Jew, or Samaritan indigenous to the Holy Land." The Muslims are simply defined as "Arabs" or "Turks". This is the correct definition. The only true Palestinians are the Jews and Christians and we need to begin to use these terms correctly.
If you read the Balfour Declaration that is the founding legal document for Israel, it reads the British government "views with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine." Notice that the "non-Jewish communities" are defined in the PLURAL. Not one Palestinian people but several meaning mostly Orthodox and Catholic Christians, Samaritans, and possibly some Druze.
Local Muslims did not start calling themselves "Palestinian" until Faisal Husseini's Nazi advisers convinced them that it was good propaganda. It's past time we Christians and Jews return to this original definition and reject the Nazi/Muslim propaganda for all time.
A Jewish Israel with a vibrant Christian minority in federation with a Christian Palestine with a large Jewish minority is the only solution for peace. But this can only happen after the Muslims are humanely transferred over the Jordan. Then Israel can forget about marring the land with innefective "securiry walls" because the Jordan river will be the defensive perimeter.
Where is the World Council of Churches? Why such silence from main-line protestant churches in the U.S.? What a worthless bunch of w@nkers!
And they still call them Arabs.
At least in the early days of Islam, true Arab Christians (not like those Palestinian Greeks) were not harmed by Muslims, nay they even fought together in battles.
Here we go again: "the true Arab Christians even fought together with Muslims in Battle".
Let us set the record straight. Those "Christians" had already surrendered to Islam. They were already Christian apostates because they slummed it with Muslims.
http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=2468225
President Bush is meeting with Abbas today. Think Bush will ask Abbas to stop the Muslims from rioting and burning churches in the West Bank?
Britain, Europe United States, look at Gaza, this is where we are all heading.
Unless something is done, the current course of events will lead to what is happening with the Christians in Gaza will be happening all over the world.
It is already happening in the UK, Churches are already being burned down, there has been church burning on an epidemic scale since the mid 90s.
In Europe Synagogues and churches are burned near Muslim areas and the governments, ministers, presidents and PMs are sitting in a puddle of their own fear.
They can't help us, they cannot and dare not.
We need to bring people in who will stop the whole of the comparatively free world becoming Gaza on a global scale.
Time to declare a Yeehawd.
http://www.stevebridges.com/video/wmv/per_vid4.wmv
governments, ministers, presidents and PMs are sitting in a puddle of their own fear.
They are just committee men and have no real experience of anything beyond being a lawyer.........it is the fate of Western nations to be led by people who know only how to get elected and have no other policy
Hanan Ashrawi? Michel Sabbagh? Naim Ateek, of presbyterian-church-resolution fame? The Sabeel Center? No one? Anyone?
As usual, the mainstream media says nothing about these terrible events. It is time that this change and that the world is informed.
If the media is more informative on the issue of persecuted Christians in Muslim lands, maybe the world can stop the Islamic onslaught before it is too late.
People here rightly complain about the situation of Christians in Gaza and elsewhere in the Middle East. But are they aware that Western governments [including EU and USA, etc.] provide funding for various bodies that actually encourage aggressive behavior by Muslims in Gaza and Judea-Samaria? Think of outfits like B'tselem, al-Haq, PASSIA, [see www.ngo-monitor.org for a longer list], etc. The so-called NGO's are especially noxious since they pretend to be "independent, objective" blah blah blah, whereas they are funded by governments or groupings of govts, such as the EU. They are so concerned about the Dear Poor "palestinians," except for the Christians among them. The latter are apparently second rate palestinians who do not deserve the full rights of the genuine article, eventhough, ironically, Christians such as Patriarch Sabbagh, Minister Ateek, Hanan Ashrawi, and the late edward Said, perform such essential diplomatic-propaganda-psywar services for the Umma.