August 2008 Archives

Or else. More on this story. "Nigerian man to divorce 82 wives," from BBC, August 31:

A Nigerian religious leader with 86 wives has accepted an Islamic decree ordering him to divorce all but four of them, local authorities say.

A spokesman for the emir of Bida told the BBC that Mohammadu Bello Abubakar, 84, agreed on Saturday to comply with the decree.

Last week one of Nigeria's top Islamic bodies, the Jamatu Nasril Islam, sentenced him to death.

The sentence was lifted but he was threatened with eviction from his home.

Earlier, Mr Abubakar had challenged Islamic scholars, saying there was no punishment stated in the Koran for having more than four wives.

"I have not contravened any established law that would warrant my being banished from the land... There is no law that says one must one must not marry more than four wives," the AFP news agency reported him as saying.

"All my wives are with children and some of these are people I have married and stayed with for over 30 years, how can they expect me to leave them within two days," he reportedly told local newspapers.

The former teacher and Islamic preacher lives in Niger State with his wives and at least 170 children.

Niger is one of the Muslim majority states to have reintroduced Sharia punishments since 2000.

Several people have been sentenced to death for adultery by Sharia courts but none of these sentences have been carried out.

And yet people complain about sharia, as if the punishments are always carried out. Go figure.

Insolent Hindus dare to not only annex their own former lands from Sayf al-Islam, but use them for mushrik worship. According to the strictest reading of "sharia," Hindus aren't even worthy of dhimmi status, so imagine the effrontery. "Muslims protest after IHK shrine deal," from Daily Times, August 30:

One killed, 15 injured as forces, protesters clash in Srinagar

SRINAGAR: Hindus in Indian-held Kashmir on Sunday suspended two month of protest after the government agreed to temporarily provide land to a Hindu trust, while one person was killed when security forces fired on Muslims protesting against the decision.

Authorities re-imposed a curfew in many areas of Kashmir after briefly relaxing it earlier in the day, as protesters clashed with police in the summer capital Srinagar.

According to the BBC, the decision to allow the land to be used for the Hindu pilgrimage was made in a meeting between a government panel and the Amarnath Yatra Sangarsh Smeeti on Sunday.

Under the new deal, 40 hectares of land will be available to the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board every year but only during the pilgrimage.

“The shrine board will now exclusively use the land during the pilgrimage period,” said Leela Karan Sharma, the head of a Hindu group that was leading the protests in Hindu-dominated Jammu.

Protests: Agitated Muslims staged huge protests as soon as the news of the deal was made public. Indian paramilitary troops and police used firing, tear gas and baton-charge to disperse the protesters, which resulted in the death of one person and injured 15 in the outskirts of Srinagar.

The protesters argued the land transfer was being done to change the demographics in the valley but India says it has never encouraged Hindus to settle in the region.

Dr Saleem Iqbal of Mahraja Hari Singh Hospital confirmed the death and said three of the injured were in a critical condition.

Meanwhile, authorities have imposed a strict curfew in Jammu, saying that hardliner groups, who have threatened to kill a leader of the Amarnath Yatra Sangarsh Smeeti, were spotted in the area.

Kashmiri separatists have rejected the latest deal. “We reject this deal. But it is not a major issue for us as we are pre-occupied with our freedom struggle,” a statement quoted senior separatist Masarat Alam as saying.

The Americans who have been arrested in Yemen attend the same Germantown Masjid which was at the center of the controversy surrounding the killing of Police Officer Stephen Liczbinski. Incidentally, Mustafa Ali -- the ATM killer who executed two retired police officers -- as well as the Wal-Mart robbers, also attended this Germantown mosque. They are all Salafis -- "pure" Muslims.

It is known that the Germantown mosque has sponsored "students" going to Yemen to study with the jihadist Sheikh Muqbil -- and after he passed away, another jihadist, Yahya Hajoori. There are a number of jihadist Americans in Yemen as we speak.

Omar Sharif Cash, wanted for murder and rape, is another Muslim convert from the Philadelphia area. With Islamic proselytizing going on so energetically in prisons, this is going to an inevitable result.

"After 1 month, Philly native remains detained in Yemen," by Kitty Caparella for the Philadelphia Daily News, August 28:

A Philadelphia native who wanted to study Islam was yanked off a Yemeni bus with five other Americans last month and has been detained there since, according to authorities.

LaToya Calloway-Gould, 34, of Reading, said that on July 30 the U.S. Embassy in Yemen notified her that her husband, Nasir Daymar Gould, 30, had been detained on July 27, six days after his arrival.

Gould, who grew up at 51st Street and Hazel Avenue, in West Philadelphia, was riding an intercity Yemeni bus from Sa'dah to Sana'a when it stopped at a security checkpoint and six Americans were taken into custody, his wife said.

"They told me there were no formal charges," Calloway-Gould said. "With their government, they do what they want to do, when they want to do it. Here, he has rights. Over there, there are no rights.

"He was pulled off the bus for nothing," she added.

A State Department spokeswoman said, "We are looking into the situation." [...]

Gould said that her husband had planned the trip to Yemen for a year to study Islam and Arabic with an imam in Mabar. He wanted to extend his 30-day visa to six months. [...]

As a youth, Gould was in and out of jail, but his mother said he had turned his life around. Though his father was Muslim, he did not study Islam until his most recent jail term. After his release, he prayed regularly at the Germantown Masjid, in lower Germantown.

Attorney Tariq El-Shabazz, the managing director of the Germantown mosque, said that he did not know Gould....

Now if that was the case, surely all the haters of Christianity living in the West would be detonating themselves on a daily basis while screaming "Jesus is great!" -- you know, to "defame" Christianity. For some reason or other, instead of defaming Christianity by killing themselves in its name (which doesn't seem very logical), they've taken to doing things like depicting crucified frogs. Could it be, then, that Muslim suicide bombers are not trying to defame Islam?

"Suicide attacks an attempt to defame Islam: Rehman Malik," from the Associated Press, Pakistan, August 31:

LAHORE, Aug 31 (APP): Suicide attacks are an attempt to defame Islam and the government is making efforts to purge the society from cancer of extremism and restore true image of Islam through collective efforts.

Prime Minister’s advisor on Interior Rehman A Malik said at a joint press conference with Jamaat Islami Chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed here at Mansoorah on Sunday.[...]

To a question, he said that policies of Pervez Musharraf have already been changed and the present government believes in use of force as a last option that is the reason casualty rate in activities of law enforcement agencies have been substantially reduced.[...]

Qazi Hussain Ahmed said that political dialogue is spirit of democracy for which JI’s doors are always open.

He said that Allah is the supreme power and the government should implement Quran and Sunnah without getting impressed by any power other than Allah.

He said that he has talked to the advisor for changing policies of Pervez Musharraf in FATA because in his views Musharraf’s policies were root cause of the whole disturbance.

Ramadan is nearly upon us. As this story notes, aside from confronting daily violence, Muslims across the world are broke and will have a hard time with escalating food prices. How exactly that relates to Ramadan, not sure. If anything, now that Muslims will be eating at least fewer total meals, one would assume they would also be eating less food: so how is the "dramatic rise" in food prices some new factor for Ramadan?

Here's an interesting tidbit indicating the militant origins of Ramadan. According to Ori Hofmekler, author of The Warrior Diet, ancient, primitive man ate hardly anything in the daylight: he was busy hunting and warring. Then, in the evening, the tribe would get together and feast, sometimes to the point of gorging. This is reminiscent of Ramadan, indicating that even Islam's holy month may have roots in militant dietary habits. Hofmekler himself points out Ramadan as an example. Of course, that he is Jewish and a former member of Israeli Special Forces will only lead to more "conspiracy theories."

At any rate, make sure you too abstain from food and drink in the presence of pious, fasting Muslims, so as to support, not offend, them. "Muslims prepare for Ramadan as costs rise," from AFP, August 31:

KARACHI (AFP) — Muslims across the world are preparing for the holy month of Ramadan, which will this year take place amid sharp hikes in food prices and in many countries an ever present fear of violence.

The start of Ramadan, the ninth and holiest month in the Muslim calendar, is traditionally determined by the sighting of a new moon, which often divides Islamic nations over exactly when to begin the festival.

For the month, followers are required to abstain from food, drink and sex from dawn to dusk. Activity peaks between "iftar", the breaking of the fast at sunset, and "suhur", the last meal of the day before sunrise.

Daily life slows down with many businesses closing early in deference to a religious event which nevertheless could be marred by extremists.

In Pakistan, thousands of police equipped with metal detectors will be deployed outside mosques in cities and large towns to foil any attack as places of worship are crowded during Ramadan, expected to start here Tuesday.

The country is in the grip of a wave of militant bombings and suicide attacks that have seen nearly 1,200 of its citizens killed in the past year in a backlash against Islamabad's pivotal role in the US-led "war on terror".[...]

Afghanistan faces much the same problems as its South Asian neighbour.

Police have "special security" in place, deputy interior minister Munir Mangal told AFP, promising "staunch steps" and calling for peace over Ramadan.

Prices of some foods, including the staple wheat, are said to have doubled in parts of Afghanistan over the past year.[...]

In Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, prices for essentials such as eggs, meat and cooking oil have surged by as much as 25 percent in one week as the faithful stock up.

In Baghdad, Iraqi security forces have yet to announce any specific measures for Ramadan, but men, women and children have been spending many hours shopping in markets amid an overall fall in violence, currently at a four-year low.

And in the Gaza Strip weary residents will celebrate their second Ramadan since the Islamist Hamas movement seized power in June 2007 under a strict Israeli blockade that continues despite a fragile two-month truce.

Saudi Arabia, which applies a rigorous doctrine of Sunni Islam known as Wahhabism, is also gearing up for the festival. It is extremely strict in applying a ban on eating, drinking and smoking in public during daylight hours. Expatriates risk deportation if they are caught violating the rules.

In the Somali capital Mogadishu, where people face daily violence, self-imposed curfews, prolonged droughts and economic woes, the situation is grim. Many people have been unable to go out or buy the foods normally eaten when breaking the fast.

In the Philippines, where government troops have been engaged in heavy fighting against Muslim rebels in the south, commanders will make "tactical adjustments" because of Ramadan, an official said Sunday.

Creating the world in six, er, eight days

According to Muhammad’s first biographer, Ibn Ishaq, Sura 41 was revealed to Muhammad after ‘Utba bin Rabi’a, a chieftan of the pagan Quraysh, offered Muhammad a series of proposals to “which if he accepts in part, we will give him whatever he wants, and he will leave us in peace.”

‘Utba approached Muhammad and reminded that he was of the Quraysh tribe (although they had rejected his prophetic claim). “If what you want is money, we will gather for you of our property so that you may be the richest of us; if you want honor, we will make you our chief so that no one can decide anything apart from you; if you want sovereignty, we will make you king, and if this ghost which comes to you, which you see, is such that you cannot get rid of him, we will find a physician for you, and exhaust our means in getting you cured, for often a familiar spirit gets possession of a man until he can be cured of it.”

Ain't it the truth, B'nai Brith?

"Rights bodies vulnerable to 'political Islam': B'nai Brith: 'Human rights commissions just don't get it,'" by Joseph Brean for the National Post, August 30:

Canada's human rights commissions have shown "a disastrous combination of investigative zeal and substantive ignorance" that has left them vulnerable to abuse by "political Islam," the same ideology that has hijacked the United Nations human rights council, according to B'nai Brith Canada.

In a submission to an independent review of the Canadian Human Rights Commission's hate speech mandate, the Jewish human rights group states that "when it comes to this particular threat to human rights, human rights commissions just don't get it."

"Human rights commissions, like generals, are fighting the last war. They do not see new threats until they are overwhelmed by them. If, out of generosity than for no other reason, we should assume ignorance rather than wilful blindness, then the remedy is education and training," reads the report, written by B'nai Brith's senior legal counsel, David Matas.

His central thesis is that political Islam, an ideology that seeks to limit freedoms by marshalling the power of the state in defence of religion, constitutes the gravest threat to Canada's human rights system. He points to the Organization of the Islamic Conference, an international Muslim group that "successfully hijacked UN institutions to impose its own radicalized agenda," and to the utter failure of many UN anti-racism initiatives, which have degenerated into outright anti-Semitism.

The Canadian Islamic Congress, which brought three high-profile human rights complaints of Islamophobia against Maclean's magazine, and has close ties to the OIC, did not respond to requests for comment yesterday.

Tarek Fatah, the co-founder of the reform-minded Muslim Canadian Congress, said Canadians are "not at all" aware that Islamists are "using Western law to attack Western values."

"Neither the Conservatives nor the Liberals have any interest in this. Their effort is to appease these Islamist groups. They don't wish to offend, and therefore the Islamists can walk over and literally blackmail politicians and the liberal intelligentsia into not saying a word about it," he said.

Mr. Fatah described the Islamist strategy as two-fold. Non-Muslim critics of Islam are labelled "Islamophobic," which is equated in the public mind with racism, one of the most serious accusations in civil society. Muslim critics, however, such as Mr. Fatah himself, are labelled "apostates," which he called a "hidden death threat."

It is this context that Canada's human rights commissions have failed to appreciate, the B'nai Brith report says.

It singles out Barbara Hall, chief commissioner of the Ontario Human Rights Commission, for her "egregious" and "appalling" treatment of the complaint against Maclean's, which she dismissed as out of her jurisdiction, but went on to denounce the magazine for racism. Mr. Matas said this "made a human rights threat more acute."

The Pope asked them to take the thing down. They refused. That's the end of the matter. There will be -- and I know I'm really going out on a limb here -- no riots, and no Christian bodies dictating to the museum or anyone else about "red lines that should not be crossed."

But you All-Religions-Have-Their-Fundamentalist-Loonies types shouldn't be discouraged! One day Christians will rise up and demand an end to free speech, so as to end unwelcome criticism and lampooning of Christianity! Why, it's inevitable! Muslims have shown that it works -- how long can it be before Christians get the message? The disparate reactions couldn't have anything to do with the differing teachings of the religions -- oh, no. If we said that it did, the next thing you know we would have to acknowledge that traditional Islam actually contains doctrines of violence and supremacism. Better to say that today's Christians have just been slow on the uptake on using violence to get their way.

"Italy museum defies pope anger over crucified frog," by Ariel David for AP, August 28:

ROME (AP) - An art museum in northern Italy said Thursday it will continue displaying a sculpture portraying a green frog nailed to a cross that has angered Pope Benedict XVI and local officials.

The board of the foundation of the Museion in the city of Bolzano voted to keep the work by the late German artist Martin Kippenberger, the museum said in a statement.

Earlier in August the pope had written a letter to Franz Pahl, the president of the Trentino-Alto Adige region that includes Bolzano, denouncing the sculpture.

It "has offended the religious feelings of many people who consider the cross a symbol of God's love and of our redemption," Pahl quoted the pope as writing in the letter.

Pahl himself has long opposed the display of "Zuerst die Fuesse" ("First the Feet" in German), even staging a hunger strike this summer and saying he would not seek re-election unless it was removed.

In a telephone interview with The Associated Press on Thursday, Pahl said he was outraged by the museum's decision to keep the work, which he claims "pokes fun at the Catholic population and offends religion and the pope."

A hunger strike, eh? Just wait, folks -- it won't be long before they're shooting innocent people over this. It's just a matter of time!

Why does he condemn suicide attacks in Pakistan? Because it's wrong, and forbidden in Islam, to kill innocent people. So far so good -- but then it turns out that he seems to think that such attacks in Afghanistan, against American forces, are just fine. They aren't innocent, you see. And it is upon this -- what is meant by the word "innocent" -- that so much depends. We constantly hear from Muslim spokesmen in the West that Islam condemns the killing of innocent people. But they do not take the time to explain whether or not they consider American office workers in the Twin Towers on beautiful September morning to have been innocent at all -- or American civilians in general.

"Suicide attacks in Pakistan unjustified," by Naveed Miraj in the Post (Pakistan), August 30:

ISALAMABAD: One can somehow justify the Taliban actions in Afghanistan on the grounds that they are engaged in fighting against the US-led forces and their local collaborators to liberate their homeland but how can suicide attacks in Pakistan could be justified, let alone to accept it as jihad.

The target of these attacks, which have done huge loss of life and property, is the government and people of an Islamic country who always stood by the Afghan people in their difficult times.

The US dictated policies of the former president Pervez Musharraf presented a fragile justification of the attacks against his regime, but on what grounds they are still engaged in the terrorist activities inside Pakistan even after the departure of the man.

Now there is democratic government in place that is inclined to resolve the issue through dialogue but it is receiving disastrous results from the tribal areas and this ‘jihad’ has been extended to agencies other than North and South Waziristan and hundreds of thousands of local people have been displaced and have become refugees in their own homeland.

But the rising incidents of suicide attacks in various cities of Pakistan and claims by Taliban spokesman that they are ready to take over even country's economic hub Karachi raises serious questions about the designs of those who are operating in the country and there is need to give serious thought to cope with the situation and have a clue to reach to the true culprits and the people behind theses activities to control these activities and overcome this mafia which is out to destabilise the country, posing serious challenges to government.

The government would have to pay special attention to reach the real master minds of these activities as no Muslim can think to kill innocent people as Islam abhors all kinds of violence and promotes peace and brotherhood but these elements are killing their fellows brutally and after every suicide attack a so-called spokesman for Taliban, Mullah Umer, makes a telephone call and accepts the responsibility of the attack terming it jihad....

More on this story. "Preachers of separatism at work inside Britain's mosques," by Sara Hassan for the Telegraph, August 31:

In a large balcony above the beautiful main hall at Regent's Park Mosque in London - widely considered the most important mosque in Britain - I am filming undercover as the woman preacher gives her talk. [...]

Adulterers, she says, are to be stoned to death - and as for homosexuals, and women who "make themselves like a man, a woman like a man ... the punishment is kill, kill them, throw them from the highest place".

These punishments, the preacher says, are to be implemented in a future Islamic state. "This is not to tell you to start killing people," she continues. "There must be a Muslim leader, when the Muslim army becomes stronger, when Islam has grown enough."

A young female student from the group interrupts her: the punishment should also be to stone the homosexuals to death, once they have been thrown from a high place.

These are teachings I never expected to hear inside Regent's Park Mosque, which is supposedly committed to interfaith dialogue and moderation, and was set up more than 60 years ago, to represent British Muslims to the Government. And many of those listening were teenage British girls or, even more disturbingly, young children.

My investigation for Channel 4's Dispatches came after last year's Undercover Mosque, which investigated claims that teachings of intolerance and fundamentalism were spreading through Britain's mosques from the Saudi Arabian religious establishment - which is closely linked to the Saudi Arabian government. In response, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia denied it was spreading intolerance, while Regent's Park Mosque, which featured in the film, urged all mosques to be "vigilant" and monitor what was taught on their premises. [...]

The mosque is meant to promote moderation and integration. But although the circle does preach against terrorism and does not incite Muslims to break British laws, it teaches Muslims to "keep away" and segregate themselves from disbelievers: "Islam is keeping away from disbelief and from the disbelievers, the people who disbelieve."

Friendship with non-Muslims is discouraged because "loyalty is only to the Muslim, not to the kaffir [disbeliever]".

A woman who was friendly with a non-Muslim woman was heavily criticised: "It's part of Islam, of the correct belief, that you love those who love Allah and that you hate those who hate Allah."

One preacher even says Muslims shouldn't live in Britain at all: "It is not befitting for Muslims that he should reside in the land of evil, the land of the kuffaar, the land of the disbelievers."

Another, Um Saleem, says Muslims should not take British citizenship as their loyalty is to Allah.

"Some conditions can take you into disbelief, to take the British citizenship, whether you like it or not, for these people, you are selling your religion, it's a very serious thing, it is not allowed to give allegiance to other than Allah."

Article of faith:

Their teachings shocked me. This was not the Islam that I and many other Muslims in the UK were taught as youngsters, nor is it a version that most Muslims follow.

It's always the Tiny Minority of Extremists, which keeps cropping up in so many places, in spite of being so very tiny.

One preacher said of Christians praying in a church: "What are these people doing in there, these things are so vile, what they say with their tongues is so vile and disgusting, it's an abomination." As for the concept of interfaith live-and-let-live: "This is false. It does not work. This concept is a lie, it is fake, and it is a farce." [...]

Um Saleem later told me that her comments that Muslims could not take British citizenship were "erroneous" and indeed apologised for them. As for comments that Muslims cannot live in a non-Muslim country, she agreed that the language used was "inappropriate". She continued: "Whilst it is recommended for a Muslim to migrate to a Muslim country, it is not obligatory."

She added: "We are not blind followers of any government or any 'clerics'. We do criticise other religions, just as other religions criticise Islam…we encourage integration into society."

However, she stood by some of her other claims, stating that the rulings that women could not travel alone, and could not work if it conflicted with religious requirements, were "totally justified by Islamic texts".

"You may regard these juristic and textual rulings as 'extreme restrictions'," she said. "But we see them as our way of life and a liberation of the soul."

Dr Al Dubayan said they would be removed pending an investigation, but I found the same fundamentalist preachers' works still openly displayed and sold there. DVDs preaching that disbelievers are "evil, wicked, mischievous people ... they do the most evil, filthy things"; that men are in charge of women and should control them.

One speaker says of the Jews: "Their time will come, like every other evil person's time will come." Another speech, this time by Sheikh Khalid Yasin, who learned Arabic in Saudi Arabia, praised the deterrent effect of sharia law: "Then people can see, people without hands, people can see in public heads rolling down the street, people got [sic] their hands and feet from opposite sides chopped off and they see them crucified…they see people put up against the pole and see them get lashed in public they see it, and because they see it, it acts as a deterrent for them because they say I don't want that to happen to me."

Sheikh Yasin responded to me that his comments should be considered in context. He said he did not support or promote Saudi Arabian government policy or religious rhetoric, and said capital punishments were carried out by many states and governments. "The lecture was aimed at reforming the Muslim people, the Muslim society and the Muslim world … to be adjudicated by the Sovereign Islamic State" when one exists.

Read it all.

An update on Fritz the Jihadist and friends. "2007 German terror suspects to be charged," from the Associated Press, August 30:

BERLIN (AP) - Germany's federal prosecutor is preparing to bring charges against three men suspected of plotting massive bombing attacks that were thwarted by authorities in 2007.

Frank Wallenta, a spokesman for federal prosecutors in Karlsruhe, said Saturday that charges would be pressed «in the coming days,» confirming reports in Der Spiegel and Focus weeklies.

The suspects, Fritz Martin Gelowicz - described as the leader of an Islamic Jihad Union terror cell in Germany - Daniel Martin Schneider and Adem Yilmaz, have been jailed since police arrested them Sept. 4, 2007 on suspicion of plotting to bomb targets that included places frequented by U.S. citizens.

Wallenta declined to comment on further details in the reports, which said the three will be charged with membership in both a foreign and a domestic terror organization. Gelowicz and Schneider are German citizens. Yilmaz is a Turkish citizen who lived in Germany. Authorities say they had all undergone training at camps in Pakistan run by the Islamic Jihad Union, and had formed a German cell of the al-Qaida-influenced group.

At the time of their arrest, the suspects had military-style detonators and enough material to make bombs more powerful than those that killed 191 people in Madrid in 2004 and 52 commuters in London in 2005, prosecutors said then.

They came to the attention of law enforcement officials when one or more of them carried out surveillance of U.S. military facilities in Hanau, near Frankfurt, in late 2006.

Over the next six months, authorities observed them gathering a dozen containers of 35 percent hydrogen peroxide solution, which officials say can easily be combined with other material to make explosives.

Police decided to move in when the suspects began moving some of the containers and acquiring other equipment used to make bombs.

The Islamic Jihad Union is a Sunni Muslim group based in Central Asia that was an offshoot of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, an extremist group with origins in that country.

The extremely low age of marriage for girls -- after the example of Muhammad's marriage to Aisha -- doesn't help, either. By Tan Ee Lyn for Reuters, August 30:

HONG KONG (Reuters) - High child mortality rates in conservative Afghanistan are linked not just to war but to mothers being uneducated and having little or no say when their children need medical help, a study has found.

Child mortality rates in Afghanistan are among the highest in the world, and one out of every five Afghan children (or 191 out of every 1,000 live births) will not survive beyond age five.

The study of 2,474 children from 1,327 households in Kabul province found that diarrhoea (32.5 percent), acute respiratory infection (41 percent), emaciation (12.4 percent) and stuntedness (39.9 percent) were among the most common health problems, said the article published in the latest issue of BioMed Central Public Health.

"As in other countries, the primary caregivers of small children in Afghanistan are their mothers; however, in this country, mothers are subject to a number of restrictions in the decision-making process regarding child healthcare," said the article published by a team of Afghan and Japanese researchers.

The researchers said they interviewed mothers of the children and found the problems correlated most closely with mothers not having any autonomy (79.1 percent) and education (71.7 percent).

Up to 18.3 percent of the mothers also delivered their first child before they were 16, which meant they were married when they were still children, the researchers wrote.

A shortage of basic material needs was also observed in 59.1 percent of the households.

The researchers defined a lack of maternal autonomy to mean mothers requiring permission from the head of the household to bring a child to the doctor, or if she required another person - usually a male relative - to accompany her to a clinic with the child.

Sharia Alert:

Afghanistan is deeply conservative and women's movements are still restricted in many parts of the country.

The researchers defined a lack of education as not having attended school for at least a year.

"The poor economic and educational status of these women, and their overall immaturity caused by a lack of learning opportunities may have resulted in difficulties in preventing illness in their children," they wrote.

They called for change in Afghan society. Families needed to be educated and the government must play its part, they said.

"Culturally appropriate programmes with multifaceted approaches that provide families and communities with education and reproductive health services can help stop child marriage," they wrote.

They appear to have no idea about the sort of resistance they will face, or why.

Living up to the Koran's dictum: "The Believers, men and women, are protectors one of another: they enjoin what is just, and forbid what is evil" (9:71). "Revealed: Saudi women preaching hate in the British mosque that promised to clean up its act 18 months ago," by Tom Harper, for Daily Mail, August 30 (thanks to Morgaan):

Hardline female ‘preachers of hate’ are radicalising Muslim women at one of Britain’s top mosques.

The Saudi Arabian preachers were secretly filmed ordering women to murder gays and ex-Muslims.

Undercover reporters from Channel 4’s Dispatches recorded the lectures in the women’s section of Regent’s Park Mosque in London.

An unnamed Saudi woman is seen mocking other religions – labelling Christianity ‘vile’ and an ‘abomination’. Another, known as ‘Angelique’, claims Britain is a ‘land of evil’.

The investigators attended lectures for two months at the mosque, which had promised a clean-up after another Dispatches probe just 18 months ago exposed it for spreading extreme Islamic views.

During one sermon, a woman called Um Amira says: ‘He is Muslim, and he gets out of Islam...what are we going to do? We kill him, kill, kill.’

In the programme, to be screened tomorrow, she adds that women adulterers should be stoned to death and people who have sex before marriage should get ‘100 lashes’.

Regent’s Park Mosque is one of the biggest and most prestigious Islamic institutions in the UK. Opened in 1944 by King George VI, it can hold up to 5,000 worshippers.[...]

This time, Dispatches returned to Regent’s Park Mosque to find exactly the same extremist books on sale there and the female preachers spreading radical Wahhabi Islam.

One Saudi woman, who mocks other religions, says: ‘We feel nothing sometimes going past the church. What they say with their tongues is so vile and disgusting, it’s an abomination.’

Another female preacher, Um Saleem, says it ‘breaks her heart’ to see Muslims ‘working in banks, wearing short sleeves...and make-up’.

The man in charge of the mosque, Dr Ahmed Al Dubayan, is Islamic Affairs attaché to the Saudi Embassy. Dispatches claims the mosque has links to the Saudi government, which it accuses of spending billions spreading the Wahhabi message. The Saudi Embassy denied this.

Dr Al Dubayan said he did not know the preachers in the documentary and claimed the mosque ‘does not support or condone extreme views’.

Jihad against music on the way. "Morocco music festivals bring culture clash," by Alfred de Montesquiou for the Associated Press, August 30

CASABLANCA, MOROCCO -- This is an overwhelmingly Muslim country, but you wouldn't know it from the music festivals.

The Casablanca Festival turns the commercial capital into an urban Woodstock, with masses of young people clogging the mosque-filled streets and partying to the pulse of hip-hop, rock, pop and Arab music. An estimated 2 million people attend free concerts at a dozen venues.[...]

The promotion of culture and leisure by Morocco's moderate government has a political undertone. The country's increasingly powerful Islamist groups view it as a deliberate attempt to divert young people from traditional Islamic values. Even some government officials acknowledge that the aim is to promote the liberal values they'd like to see society embrace over radical Islam.[...]

The streets full of trendy teenagers dancing to the Tecktonik craze that has swept Europe stand in striking contrast to the near-medieval living conditions in Morocco's countryside or the sprawling slums around Casablanca, which have become a hotbed of Islamic fundamentalism.

Such festivals would be unheard of in more rigorous Muslim states, where the mixing of boys and girls, free sale of alcohol or even dancing in public can be forbidden. But Morocco, a strong U.S. ally and a major tourist destination, prides itself on a cultural diversity that allows scantily clad girls to attend a concert side by side with women wearing Islamic head scarves.[...]

But many have qualms with all this revelry.[...]

The most vocal critics are usually affiliated with the Islamists, who hold growing sway in Morocco. The gap between the educated, wealthy and Westernized elite and the vast majority of the impoverished population has been widening.

"We stand against the debauchery observed during these festivals," Abdelilah Benkirane, leader of Morocco's biggest authorized Islamist group, the Justice and Development Party, said on a state TV talk show.

"Have you seen the type of groups they invite? The suggestive, scantily clad women?" he was quoted as saying by the liberal-leaning TelQuel weekly magazine.

More hard-line Islamist groups, like the semi-clandestine Justice and Charity movement -- viewed as the largest in Morocco -- see more than bad morality in the partying.

"It's not only dissolute, it's cynical," said Nadia Yassine, spokeswoman for the movement and the daughter of its founder, Sheik Yassine.

"It's like ancient Rome: bread and circus to keep the masses happy," she said.[...]

One high-ranking Interior Ministry official, who spoke anonymously because this is not a publicly avowed government policy, recalled how some Islamists began speaking out against public beaches. Groups walked the seafront to preach for better morals and fewer bikinis, or to set up segregated areas. "No one wants to be bothered on the beach, so people began shying away," the official said.

The government's reaction was to promote beach sports and leisure activities as well as song and dance contests, even though it bothers the Islamists, the official said.

Ammor, the festival organizer, said the government is on a mission to make Morocco a place where Arab and Western cultures can interplay, rather than dwell on the tensions of the last decade.

"People call it a clash of civilizations," he said. "I think it's a clash of ignorance."

That it may be. But who is ignorant of who remains to be seen.

If you're going to resurrect the caliphate, might as well focus on where it last stood. "Turkish police arrest 21 al Qaeda suspects," from France 24, August 29:

Turkish police on Friday arrested 21 suspected members of Al-Qaeda in a major operation in Istanbul, Anatolia news agency reported.

Many of the suspects had received military training in Afghanistan and were preparing attacks, said the report, which did not give sources. Raids were carried out in several districts of the city.

The suspects will appear in court in coming days.

Turkish police detained 24 suspected members of Osama bin Laden's group, including Al-Qaeda's alleged Istanbul chief, in April.

Al-Qaeda was blamed for bomb attacks in the city in November 2003 on two synagogues and British-owned bank HSBC in which 63 people were killed and hundreds wounded.

In February 2007, a Turkish court jailed seven accused Al-Qaeda militants, including a Syrian said to have planned and financed the attacks, to life jail terms.

Darth Spencer says: Welcome to the dark side

"Ahmadinejad got something just as valuable: a chance to spin his own image, court popularity and bash the United States and Israel."

Courtesy our friend and ally, Turkey.

"Then, as he left the mosque, Ahmadinejad got out of his car to encourage a crowd of about 300 to chant, 'Death to Israel! Death to America!'"

Courtesy our friend and ally, Turkey.

Islamization of Turkey Update: "Turkey bows to the dark side: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit is a sign that the West can no longer take Turkey for granted as a staunch ally against Iran," by Soner Cagaptay in the Los Angeles Times, August 19 (thanks to Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi):

ISTANBUL, TURKEY -- Praying in Istanbul's Blue Mosque on Friday, I witnessed firsthand Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's international publicity coup.

Ahmadinejad's visit produced little in terms of substantive policy; the signing of a multibillion-dollar natural gas pipeline deal was put off. But Ahmadinejad got something just as valuable: a chance to spin his own image, court popularity and bash the United States and Israel.

I've long been fond of the Blue Mosque because it is where, many years ago, I attended my first Friday prayers. Last Friday, though, I felt uncomfortable in the prayer hall, where I found myself in front of God but next to Ahmadinejad, who turned the ritual into a political show.

Departing from established practice of having visiting Muslim heads of state pray in a smaller mosque in Istanbul, the government allowed Ahmadinejad to pray in the Blue Mosque, Turkey's symbol of tolerant Ottoman Islam. With permission from Turkish authorities, he also allowed Iranian television to videotape him during the entire prayer, in violation of Islamic tradition, which requires quiet and intimate communion between God and the faithful. There was so much commotion around Ahmadinejad that the imam had to chide the congregants. Then, as he left the mosque, Ahmadinejad got out of his car to encourage a crowd of about 300 to chant, "Death to Israel! Death to America!"

Even without this behavior, any visit from a leader representing an authoritarian, anti-Western autocracy would have created controversy in Turkey just a few years ago. Not today. The ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, government not only opened the Blue Mosque to Ahmadinejad but accommodated his refusal to pay respects at the mausoleum of Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern, secular Turkey -- a major violation of protocol for an official visit.

[...]

Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan asked the Turkish public to ignore the snub and instead "focus on the big picture." It is the "big picture," though, that is most disconcerting. By extending an invitation to Ahmadinejad, the first such move by any NATO or European Union member country, Turkey has broken ranks with the West. The West can no longer take Turkey for granted as a staunch ally against Tehran.

Here is the ultimate consequence of a series of "truces" with jihadists in the Northwest Frontier Province. "Pakistani city of Peshawar could fall to Taliban as fear and attacks grow," by Nick Meo for the Telegraph, August 30:

When the summer holidays end tomorrow, the parents of 1,400 pupils at the Badabher Government Girls' School will face a difficult choice.

Should they let their daughters go back to lessons in the rubble of their school, blown up by the Taliban in the middle of the night, or should they keep them safe at home?

Hashim, the caretaker who was held at gunpoint by masked gunmen, was warned that they would be back if the school is rebuilt. He fears that next time they could blow it up with pupils inside.

Yet this is not Kandahar, the Taliban capital of southern Afghanistan, but Peshawar - a city of 1.4 million people in neighbouring Pakistan, once celebrated as a cultural haven for artists, musicians and intellectuals.

A year ago schools were considered safe in the city, the capital of North-West Frontier Province. But the Taliban insurgency that has been growing in the wild mountains that rise in the distance is spreading into urban Pakistan.

Clerics and political leaders critical of the Taliban have been kidnapped and shot dead, around 15 suicide bombers have attacked inside the city, and to escape kidnappers businessmen are giving up and moving to the capital Islamabad, two hours drive away, or overseas to Dubai if they can afford to.

Nobody has ever known the city so fearful.

And signs of a backlash from local residents may be too little, too late, especially if government forces don't support them.

Musli Khan, a clerk who lives near the remains of the school, was disconsolately picking through the mess. The main building collapsed from the force of the explosion and the walls that were left were riddled with giant cracks.

Some chairs and schoolbooks had been pulled from the rubble, he said, gesturing at a damaged Koran.

"And these people say they are Muslims," Mr Khan muttered, shaking his head sadly before checking himself: it is dangerous now to be too critical of the Taliban, especially in suburbs on the outskirts of Peshawar. Here, at night, the police must lock themselves into fortified outposts for safety, and armed fighters prowl at will.

During a hasty and nervous drive to Badabher, only six miles from the city centre, The Sunday Telegraph passed three police stations which have been attacked with rockets in the past few weeks. "You must not stop for long at the school," said our guide, a local reporter. "Out here the Taliban have their spies everywhere."

On the same morning that the school was blown up last week, America's chief diplomat in the province narrowly escaped assassination when her car was ambushed as she drove to work. [...]

Taliban influence has even crept into Qissa Kawani, the street of the storytellers, in the heart of Peshawar's bazaars, where the mournful chanting of a Taliban CD was playing.

"I hate that noise," said Insanullah, the owner of a shop selling Pushtun music DVDs which he is now too scared to play.

Music store owners have been killed in bombings and he receives threatening letters but said he will continue because he has invested all his money in his little shop and has no other livelihood. On the city outskirts most have closed down.

"People still like music, but they are afraid for their lives and business is terrible," he said.

One of the city's most famous singers, Baryali, moved to Kabul to be safe and another, Wazir Khan, was briefly kidnapped by the Taliban and has gone into hiding since his release.

The city's cinemas are almost empty because customers fear bombs and even Peshawar's poets are censoring themselves.

Taous Dilsouz used to write songs about the war against the Soviets, then about Pakistani politics, but these days he sticks to safe subjects. "No poets will write songs about what is happening to our city," he said. "And even if they did they could not find singers who are brave enough to sing them."

Outside Peshawar it is much worse. Assadullah Khan, a watchman from the town of Mardan which is still nominally under government control, said: "Out of five brothers in my town, one will support the Taliban. The people are poor and illiterate, and they listen to what the clerics say. Some of my friends have joined the Taliban – they pay them for fighting."...

Actually it was the Palestinian police. Don't they know mosques are holy places? Ibrahim Hooper, call your office! This outrage must not go unprotested!

"Palestinian police arrest 10 in Hamas mosque raids," from AFP, August 30 (thanks to Sr. Soph):

HEBRON, West Bank - Palestinian police raided two mosques linked to the Islamist Hamas movement in the West Bank, seizing weapons caches and arresting more than 10 people, an official said on Saturday.

Security forces loyal to president Mahmud Abbas raided the two village mosques overnight, seizing Hamas pamphlets and weapons, Nidal Abu Sneini, the director of intelligence services in the nearby town of Hebron, told reporters....

A very revealing piece on sharia, marriage, and concubinage, as they relate to this story. "Why we passed Fatwa on Islamic preacher with 86 wives –Imam Ashafa," by Emeka Mamah, Kaduna for Vanguard, August 30:

Mohammad Nureen Ashafa is the Imam of Ashafa Central Mosque, Tudun Wada, Kaduna; Vice President, Ashafa Mosque Foundation, as well as the Co-Executive Director of Interfaith Mediation Centre of Muslim-Christian Dialogue Forum, also in Kaduna.
He spoke to some media organisations on the implications of the death sentence [fatwa] passed on octogenarian Islamic preacher, Mohammed Bello Abubakar, by the Jama’tu Nasril Islam [JNI], for marrying 86 wives contrary to Islamic injunctions. Excerpts:

Do you support the fatwa passed on Mohammed Abubakar for admitting that he has 86 wives?

I strongly support the JNI fatwa. In Islam, if somebody claims to be a Muslim, he professes Islam and he wants to act in the name of Islam, then he has no legitimacy to marry more than four wives. In Koran Chapter four, God made it very clear.

You are free to marry women of your choice; you can marry two, three, or four. However, if you feel you cannot do justice among them, marry only one wife. This scriptural text is not ambiguous.

This is a direct instruction from God, so, anything that negates that injunction is not allowed. You cannot marry more than four wives. There is room for concubine in Islam [i.e., sex-slaves]. And that is why you see some royal fathers have four wives and they have concubines.

The history of concubine has to do with slavery, if you had women who are in your possession as slaves. This is because in those days, people bought slaves. It may no longer be fashionable in modern times but the law is still there.[...]

So, if somebody says he has 86 wives, and he claims to be a Muslim scholar, there is nowhere in the history of Islam that such a thing is accepted. Prophet Mohammed had more than four wives, he had nine wives but he had the wives before the law on limitation on the number of wives a Muslim can marry.[...]

So, how do you share 86 wives in a year? It means that you cannot meet some of the women more than once in a week. In fact, it may not even be possible because we have 52 weeks in a year. So, if you see one every week, the others have to wait till the next year to take their turns. What is the legitimacy? There is no legitimacy for that in Islam. It is an abuse on the rights and dignity of these women. It is an abuse on the sanctity of woman-hood. It is an abuse to marry 86 wives in the name of Islam.[...]

I am a polygamist because I have two wives and I try to give equal justice to the two of them. It is not enough for me to say that because I have enough money or houses then I should marry a third wife. A woman needs emotional satisfaction. That affection is part of the rudiments of marriage.

How does the man with 86 wives satisfy the sexual and emotional needs of these women?

And the man is about 80 years old and the law of diminishing returns has caught up with him. If he were to be a younger person, then we may conclude that he takes Viagra or other stimulants but here we have a man who is about 83 years old having 86 wives.

One of the things that can nullify any marriage in Islam is when a man is not able to satisfy his wife sexually. If a man cannot meet the sexual needs of the wife, the woman is free to demand the dissolution of that marriage. It constitutes an abuse of Islam for any Muslim,anywhere to marry more than four wives.[...]

If a Muslim takes a bottle of beer and starts drinking in my presence and he claims to have a right to do that, I would take a cane and flog him right there if he is a member of my mosque because he is messing up the moral values of the Muslim community. The Islamic culture is unique because there are rules that guide the behaviours of a Muslim. That is why there is no compulsion in joining the religion of Islam.

A man has a right to decide to become a Muslim but he may not be free to just renounce the religion the moment he is in. There is no compulsion in Islam. You do not force people to come into the religion. However, when somebody willingly comes into it, it is not easy for him to say that he is leaving it.

He ought to have known the consequences before coming in. It is like being a citizen of America and tomorrow you say I am no longer an American citizen, I am now an Afganistan and I hate America.

You start condemning America. Will America let you go? It is treasonable felony because you have no right to be a citizen of Nigeria and sabotage the nation.[...]

But several Emirs and other rich Muslims have more than the prescribed four wives. If this man did not speak, nobody would have known. Are there mechanisms that the JNI can use to determine those who flout the law and perhaps also sanction them?

If you have more than four wives and you do not say it, the Sharia would not know anything about it. If you do not confess that you have more than four, nobody dares say anything because you have your privacy and your privacy is well protected in Islam.[...]

There are four basic principles of marriage. There must be the interest across the parties. You do not hijack a woman and give to a man.

They must be interested in each other. There must be love. There must be acceptance by the families of the couple.

How could he not do so? The idea that Allah cursed the Jews and transformed some of them into apes and pigs is thrice repeated in the Qur'an: 2:63-66, 5:59-60, and 7:166.

Also, this is a Tiny Minority of Extremists Update: mainstream Australian Muslim leaders seem to have no problem with broadcasting Hizballah TV in Australia.

"Australian Arab leader defends blood libels," from the Jerusalem Post, August 25:

Recent comments by the chairman of the Australian Arabic Council, Roland Jabbour, defame the Jewish People, B'nai B'rith Anti-Defamation Commission (ADC) chairman John Searle was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the ADC on Monday.

According to the statement, Searle called Jabbour's defense of Hizbullah's al-Manar television station labeling Jews as the offspring of apes and pigs "despicable."

"Roland Jabbour's claim, made in the name of the Australian Arabic Council, that anti-Semitic blood libels and demeaning depictions of Jewish people are acceptable in the context of the perceived 'crimes of the State of Israel,' is deplorable," he said.

The ADC chairman also called on the Australian federal government to look closely at the al-Manar television station and take whatever steps necessary to prevent the dissemination of such racist, anti-Semitic material, designed to incite hatred in Australia....

The station broadcasts vehemently anti-Semitic, anti-Israel and anti-American vitriol, as well as messages from suicide bombers.

Searle said in a statement that he was "distressed" at the anti-Semitic content that is being broadcast in Australia.

"Al-Manar is renowned for inciting violence and hatred," he said. "It broadcasts disgraceful anti-Semitic propaganda, including the infamous blood libel allegations, and it seeks to legitimize terrorism.

"Australian Jews, like all other Australians, have the right to live without being subjected to this kind of vicious defamation. The ADC condemns all forms of racism, including anti-Semitism, and works for a tolerant society that recognizes the right of people of all religions and backgrounds to live free from discrimination and abuse."

But the Australian Arabic Council said al-Manar should not be restricted and that Hizbullah, while anti-Zionist, was not anti-Semitic....

Summer 1939 Alert: "World War III will break out in case of aggression on Iran," from IRNA, August 30 (thanks to Sr. Soph):

World War III will break out in case of aggression on Iran, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces for Cultural Affairs, Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri said on Saturday.

The extremist and expansionist policies of Washington and Tel Aviv which have been manifested in Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan and recently in the Caucasus, have endangered the entire world.

He reiterated that the so-called leading countries are falling and the world will soon witness great developments.

He said that Islam and the Islamic Republic call for international peace and co-existence.

"Teachings of Islam and the aspirations of the Islamic Revolution uphold peace and tranquility throughout the globe and are totally against war and escalation of tension being stirred by the US and international Zionism, he said.

Peace and tranquility under Islamic hegemony, that is.

Because if he copied it, he couldn't possibly agree with or want to implement its contents, right? Right?

I hope the silliness of this defense is seen for what it is.

Belal Khazaal Update: "Man 'a plagiarist, not a terrorist,'" by Margaret Scheikowski for AAP, August 26:

A MAN accused of producing a book promoting jihad terrorist acts copied it "word for word" from a website, a court has been told.

IT security expert Samier Dandan gave evidence for the defence today in the trial of Sydney man Belal Saadallah Khazaal.

Mr Dandan told the jury in the New South Wales Supreme Court that every chapter in the 110-page book had been copied verbatim from a website, with only a few paragraphs added.

Mr Khazaal has pleaded not guilty to knowingly making a document connected with assistance in a terrorist act.

He has also denied attempting to incite the commission of a terrorist act.

The book is titled: Provisions on the rules of jihad - short judicial rulings and organisational instructions for fighters and mujahideen against infidels....

It wasn't censorship. Fine. It was cowardly, it was craven, it was a manifestation of dhimmitude, and it most certainly was "an episode in some 'showdown between Islam and the Western tradition of free speech.'” I am not so much interested in Stanley Fish's pedantic point about the definition of the word censorship as I am in his cavalier dismissal of the possibility that this is a skirmish in a larger battle over free speech. The Organization of the Islamic Conference has been clear about its plan to compel Western countries to curtail free speech so as to end criticism of Islam and jihad terrorism, and Random House was clear that they did not publish this book because they were afraid of violent reprisals.

How, then, could this not be "an episode in some 'showdown between Islam and the Western tradition of free speech'”? Fear rules the day: even blowhard conservative talking heads on TV are afraid of discussing the elements of Islam that jihadists exploit to justify jihad violence and Islamic supremacism, for fear of being called "bigots" and "racists." Others, like Random House, are afraid of making any move that Muslims might dislike, up to and including publishing a trashy Harlequin-Romanceization of Muhammad's marriage to the nine-year-old Aisha, for fear of suffering violent reprisals.

So perhaps Fish is right: there is no showdown, because on the Western side no one is showing up. For a showdown in the Old West you needed two gunfighters standing toe-to-toe, not one standing up and the other running to meet his every demand.

But is there an attempt by the Islamic world to muzzle Western speech about Islam? Certainly. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the Secretary General of OIC, recently crowed: "In confronting the Danish cartoons and the Dutch film ‘Fitna’, we sent a clear message to the West regarding the red lines that should not be crossed. As we speak, the official West and its public opinion are all now well aware of the sensitivities of these issues. They have also started to look seriously into the question of freedom of expression from the perspective of its inherent responsibility, which should not be overlooked.” And now Random House has obediently fallen into line.

Stanley Fish, and everyone, ought to be aware of what's at stake, and ready to defend our values.

"Crying Censorship," by Stanley Fish in the New York Times, August 24:

Salman Rushdie, self-appointed poster boy for the First Amendment, is at it again. This time he’s not standing up for free expression on his own behalf, but on behalf of another author, Sherry Jones, whose debut novel about the prophet Muhammad’s child bride had been withdrawn by Random House after consultants warned that its publication “could incite racial conflict.” [...]

It is censorship when Germany and other countries criminalize the professing or publication of Holocaust denial. (I am not saying whether this is a good or a bad idea.) It is censorship when in some countries those who criticize the government are prosecuted and jailed. It was censorship when the United States Congress passed the Sedition Act of 1798, stipulating that anyone who writes with the intent to bring the president or Congress or the government “into contempt or disrepute” shall be “punished by a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars and by imprisonment not exceeding two years.” Key to these instances is the fact that (1) it is the government that is criminalizing expression and (2) that the restrictions are blanket ones. That is, they are not the time, manner, place restrictions that First Amendment doctrine traditionally allows; they apply across the board. You shall not speak or write about this, ever. That’s censorship.

So what Random House did was not censorship. (Some other press is perfectly free to publish Jones’s book, and one probably will.) It may have been cowardly or alarmist, or it may have been good business, or it may have been an attempt to avoid trouble that ended up buying trouble. But whatever it was, it doesn’t rise to the level of constitutional or philosophical concern. And it is certainly not an episode in some “showdown between Islam and the Western tradition of free speech.” Formulations like that at once inflate a minor business decision and trivialize something too important and complex to be reduced to a high-school civics lesson about the glories of the First Amendment.

Hassan Al-Haifi speaks here of "the Wahhabi misguided rendition of Islam," but the only indication he provides of what exactly he thinks is misguided about it is that the Wahhabis fought and are fighting their fellow Muslims. Meanwhile, he takes our friends and allies the Saudis to task for pretending that they are not responsible for the global spread of the jihad ideology.

"'Libya and Iran financing Al-Qaeda in Yemen': The Saudi Gazette Really Knows Better," by Hassan Al-Haifi in the Yemen Times, August 28:

One cannot help but read with awe the gross misrepresentations of the facts by the Saudi press, as it seeks to whitewash the evil doings of the Saudi religious establishment throughout the world. It is not just by trying to disassociate themselves from all terrorist (and safe to say, absolutely non-Islamic, in deed and in concept) activities.

Like last Thursday's (August 21, 2008) article of the Saudi Gazette (link: www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentID=2008082114998), and of course acting under directions from their bosses in the Saudi regime, these paid pens of the Saudi regime wish to convince the reader that anyone to their dislike is the torchbearer of all the evil they have unleashed throughout the world over the last three decades. Thus the Saudi Gazette wishes to mislead the world that the Saudis are as innocent of Al-Qaeda and all its doings as the Prophet Joseph was of the seductress that was infatuated with him and demanded that he relieve her from the fire of temptation that had come to overtake her, because of this infatuation.

That is a reference not to the Bible but to the Qur'an's Sura 12, about which you can read here.

The fact of the matter is that the international so called "Islamic" terrorism, which has engulfed the Islamic world and brought havoc to the rest of the non-Islamic world, is as Saudi as the light crude oil that provides the source of financing for the propagation of the Wahhabi misguided rendition of Islam. The fact of the matter is that the Wahhabi Establishment, itself a hereditary clerical order (although Islam forbids the existence of a clergy) under the tight control of the descendants of Mohammed Abdul-Wahhab. This establishment is the mentor and financial backer of all these prominent so called "Salafi" movements. Mohammed Abdul Wahhab presumably concocted the divergent and deviant "Wahhabi" creed of Islam over two hundred years ago. One is puzzled why the followers of this gross misrepresentation of Islam in so many ways do not even like to be called Wahhabis, and try to cloud this association by taking on names that associate them with genuine ideological and seminarian associations (such as "Salafi", Moslem "Brotherhood", "Jihadists", "Fundamentalist"). The answer is obvious, as the Wahhabis are viewed by most mainstream Moslems, even the majority of Sunnis, as unorthodox, bloodthirsty highway robbers, as their early history was drowned with the blood of thousands of fellow Moslems, who were the victims of their lust for loot from pilgrims to Mecca and from those who dare dispute their misguided interpretations of Islam.

So the "mainstream Moslems" view the Wahhabis as "unorthodox, bloodthirsty highway robbers" because "their early history was drowned with the blood of thousands of fellow Moslems." Not, you see, because they make war against unbelievers. On that the Wahhabis and other Islamic sects and schools do not disagree.

You will never see, in their revelations of the history of their movement, the hundreds of raids, especially in the earlier part of the past two and a half centuries, which these bandits inflicted on their brethren of the faith, who they actually labeled as "non-believers" or infidels, which makes their blood and their assets sanctified for them.

Not that the writer is against Wahhabism as such:

One is not here trying to smear the glorious bloody past of the Wahhabi Movement. Not that their past should be ignored, but one can state for certain that intra-sectarian bloody conflict between Moslems is virtually non-existent since the Prophet Mohammed's days until the Wahhabis came into being. Sure there was politically related Moslem bloodshed, but never was this fuelled by how long your beard is, or where you place your hands while standing in prayer and some of the other very secondary issues, in which Moslems might differ, which to the Wahhabis can be ground for war or for repression, if you are living in a Wahhabi regime. There have only been two countries that have succumbed to Wahhabi regimes (Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan under the Taliban), and in both cases it was by the use of repressive force. Ironically, there is a suspicious historical collusion between the Wahhabi movement and the British Crown (see Wahhabi Past), but that is a long story and there are enough sources in the internet and elsewhere that covers it.

The point to be made here is that the Saudis are not at all acting responsibly when they seek to disassociate themselves from an evil they have been rearing now for over two hundred years whether with British support or collusion with Masonic or Zionist [ed.: Boo!] forces, as so many historical chroniclers wish to point out on many occasions. The obvious incongruity of the accusation that Al-Qaeda is funded by the Iranians, with whom there is a big rift with the Al-Qaeda from a sectarian point of view is somewhat unbelievable and the same is true with the Libyans. On the latter one cannot help but remember how Washington tried to mislead the world into believing that Saddam Hussein was associated with Al-Qaeda (Actually Saddam had his own means of terror, which was more straightforward and down to earth and discernible than the wishy washy form Saudi Arabia has been nurturing and with which the Saudis could never disclaim any sectarian, ideological and even congenial association, as most of the Al-Qaeda elements that have been killed or arrested are actually Saudi citizens (Yemen has just submitted eight of them to the Saudis last week as well).. So it is not hard to tell, who is the real backer of world terrorism, morally and materially?

More on this story. And as I noted there, these are more than just tribal traditions. A manual of Islamic law certified by Al-Azhar as a reliable guide to Sunni orthodoxy says that "retaliation is obligatory against anyone who kills a human being purely intentionally and without right." However, "not subject to retaliation" is "a father or mother (or their fathers or mothers) for killing their offspring, or offspring's offspring." ('Umdat al-Salik o1.1-2).

In other words, someone who kills his child incurs no legal penalty under Islamic law.

Why does this stipulation appear in a manual of Islamic law if this has nothing to do with Islam? I'm glad that some Pakistani lawmakers in this AP story expressed horror at what Israr Ullah Zehri said, but they will need to confront the tolerance for this practice in Islamic law if they ever hope to end it.

"Pakistani lawmaker defends honor killings," from The Associated Press, August 30 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: A Pakistani lawmaker defended a decision by northwestern tribesmen to bury five women alive because they wanted to choose their own husbands, telling stunned members of Parliament this week to spare him their outrage.

"These are centuries-old traditions, and I will continue to defend them," Israr Ullah Zehri, who represents Baluchistan province, told The Associated Press on Saturday. "Only those who indulge in immoral acts should be afraid."

The women, three of whom were teenagers, were first shot and then thrown into a ditch.

They were still breathing as mud was shoveled over their bodies, according media reports, which said their only "crime" was that they wished to marry men of their own choosing.

Zehri told a packed and stunned Parliament on Friday that Baluch tribal traditions helped stop obscenity and then asked fellow lawmakers to stop making such a fuss about it.

Several lawmakers stood up in protest, describing the so-called honor killings as "barbaric."...

The known Tiny Minority of Extremists increase in number again. "Morocco 'breaks terror network'," from BBC News, August 29:

The Moroccan authorities say they have broken up a militant cell operating in several towns in the kingdom.

The group allegedly had links with al- Qaeda and police described the 15 people arrested as "dangerous".

They had electronic and chemical materials used to make explosives, reports the state press agency, MAP.

It is the fourth such network Morocco says it has broken up this year. An al-Qaeda-inspired group has said it was behind recent attacks in Algeria.

"The members of this structure, known as "Fath al-Andalous" [Conquest of Andalusia], planned to carry out attacks in Morocco and had formed operational links with foreign extremists who have pledged allegiance to the al-Qaeda organisation," MAP says.

The BBC's James Copnall in Morocco says this is almost certainly a reference to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (QIM), an organisation largely based in neighbouring Algeria which has ties with Osama bin Laden's movement.

QIM says it has carried out attacks in several other North African countries, as well as the Algeria bombings which left 70 dead.

However, some analysts believe there is little real regional co-ordination between extremist groups.

Our correspondent says Morocco has been accused of over-dramatising the threat it faces from extremists, to benefit from support from the US and Europe.

Nevertheless, he notes that there have been attacks in Morocco: the most dramatic example occurred five years ago, when suicide bombers killed 45 people in Casablanca.

Not too sure if the word "phobia" is suitable in this instance, as no one fears cheek-turning Christians -- at least not the way bomb-laden or sword-waving Muslims tend to instill fear. "Anti-Christianism" or perhaps even "Misochristianism" may better capture the feeling here. "Vatican warns of growing 'Christianophobia,'" by Philip Pullella for Reuters, August 29:

ROME (Reuters) - "Christianophobia" is a growing problem around the world and it must be fought with the same determination as anti-Semitism or Islamophobia, the Vatican said on Friday.[...]

Mamberti said 21 Catholic missionaries were killed in the world in 2007 and lamented that the Christian population of Iraq was now down to about 500,000 from about one million before the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Last month, Pope Benedict told Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki that minority Christians in Iraq needed more protection.

The Archbishop of Mosul of Iraq's largest Christian denomination, the Chaldean Catholics, was kidnapped in February and found dead two weeks later.

The Vatican has often expressed concern that conflicts in the Middle East are greatly diminishing the Christian population in the areas of the religion's birth.

The Near East, which was pivotal to the development of Christianity (many of the "giants" of Christian theology hailed from Alexandria, Antioch, not to mention Constantinople, i.e., Istanbul) has, since the 7th century and nearly 1,400 years of jihadi terror and dhimmitude, been steadily "expunged" of any trace of its Christian heritage. Suppose that's what the Vatican means by "conflicts in the Middle East"? Anyway, if Muslims and jihad are not behind the disappearance of Middle Eastern Christianity, who or what is? Secular, dictatorial governments? Obviously not: Iraq's Christian population disappeared by half after -- not during -- the reign of Saddam; they disappeared by half after Iraq's various Muslim groups were given "democracy," that is, after the will of the (Muslim) majority both officially and unofficially became supreme.

Feel the love. "House siege second major attack in three months," from the Times of India, August 28 (thanks to Ravtish):

JAMMU: The fidayeen took care to save their ammunition, even as army officers chalked out strategies to neutralize them without harming the civilians during the stand off on Wednesday.

By 7 pm, another terrorist had been shot dead. Around 5.30 am, the terrorists, who had sneaked into India from across the border near Kanachak sector in Akhnoor, about 20km from Jammu, on Tuesday, riding a goods carrier fired at an army checkpost in the Domana-Mishriwala area. Junior commissioned officer V V Prakashan of 6 Madras was hit. He later succumbed to his injuries.

The infiltrators then hijacked a three-wheeler, fired indiscriminately killing the auto driver, local milkman Shabir Hussain, a motorcyclist Nasib Singh and an armyman Vijay Kumar, posted in Jaipur, who had come home on leave. Some locals traveling on motorbikes and a policeman were also fired at and injured.

The terrorists took shelter in the house of Billu Ram. His entire family — wife Sunita Devi, 35, Sheetal 9, Arishal 7, Kajal 4, Vipan 3 — was trapped alongwith with the terrorists. A visitor, Ashok Kumar (27), was also with them. Billu Ram was not at his home because he was being treated for a snake bite in hospital.

IGP (Jammu Zone) K Rajendra said that the terrorists were suspected to be the same infiltrators who had cut through the concertina wires on the border. They had taken advantage of the cover fire provided by Pakistani troops. "A high alert has been sounded in Jammu due to the terrorist infiltration from across the border," he said.

Once the hostages are rescued, there will be a "final onslaught", said an army officer, which in military terms means blowing up the building with rocket launchers or explosives. "This (civilian hostages) is what is holding us up from launching final onslaught. We are ready for that," he said....

"Terrorism" snuffing out the light of Islam, Saudi Arabia

Another chickens coming home to roost moment. Of course, if the Saudis were remotely serious about condemning terrorism, they wouldn't be teaching their children to hate non-Muslims and that jihad is a duty. Besides, as these cartoons demonstrate, the issue is not so much condemning terrorism in general; it's condemning terrorism directed at the Saudi government. Go to the MEMRI link for more.

"Saudi Anti-Terror Cartoons," from MEMRI, August 21 (thanks to AC):

On June 25, 2008, the Saudi Interior Ministry reported the arrest of 520 Al-Qaeda operatives who had planned to strike oil facilities and economic centers in eastern Saudi Arabia. According to the report, the leader of the cell, who bore a message from Al-Qaeda deputy leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri, was among those arrested, as were some 50 webmasters of websites that spread extremist ideas and encourage terrorism.

After the arrests were made public, Saudi papers focused on condemning terrorism and terrorist ideology, through articles and cartoons.

A member of the International Solidarity Movement. Left/Jihad Nexus Update: "York County native gets 31/2 years for helping Hamas," by Nichole Dobo for The Evening Sun, August 23 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

A 33-year-old York County native was sentenced Thursday morning to prison for aiding a group the United States designated as a terrorist organization.

Richard David Hupper, originally from York Township, was sentenced to 3 1/2 years in federal prison for aiding Hamas, a Palestinian military and political organization.

Hupper faced up to 15 years in prison. He admitted to giving about $20,000 to Hamas while working in Israel with the International Solidarity Movement, a non-governmental organization....

Hupper, a Dallastown Area High School graduate, became involved with the conflict in the Middle East after watching international newscasts. The machinist watched the TV shows while recovering from a work-related injury at his Alabama home, his lawyer has said.

Hupper traveled to the Gaza Strip, where he worked with the International Solidarity Movement to aid Palestinians, according to court documents. He was eventually deported by Israeli authorities, according to court documents.

To return to Israel, Hupper applied for a passport in Florida using false information, according to court documents. He pleaded guilty to passport fraud charges more than two years ago. He is finishing his 24-month federal prison sentence for those charges.

"We have a message: Muslim Americans are as American as apple pie” – from this article in The Guardian about Muslims at the Democratic National Convention in Denver

If Muslims are "as American as apple pie," are they as American as pumpkin pie, the pumpkin pie traditionally served at Thanksgiving, which like Independence Day, Memorial Day, and other national holidays, are not to be observed by observant Muslims, for only Muslim holidays, Muslim history, Muslim everything, counts?

And one more question. If Muslims have no trouble at all being "as American as apple pie" then surely they have no trouble viewing the defining document of the American polity, the Constitution of the United States, as worthy of their complete loyalty. And that includes, of course, the guarantees of individual rights in the Bill of Rights. And since the Bill of Rights is so very close, in so many of its key provisions -- freedom of speech, freedom of conscience (which naturally includes the right to apostatize) -- to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, can we conclude that American-as-apple-pie American Muslims find it puzzling that all of the Muslim countries (save for the Shah's Iran, and most temporarily and temporizingly) have failed to subscribe to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and instead have concocted a Muslim version, the so-called Cairo Declaration, which in every essential respect, involving individual rights, fatally vitiates the original, Universal Declaration?

This entire op-ed could be summed up in one sentence: "If only we could get people to not take the Koran so darn literally, jihad would stop." Note, however, how Christianity is constantly conflated with Islam in regards to violence and intolerance. "Can chimps stop suicide bombers?" by S. Aravindan Neelakandan for UPI Asia, August 29:

Nagercoil, India — What does Wahabbi fundamentalism have in common with the worldview of Marvin Olasky – the “spiritual advisor” of U.S. President George W. Bush? Seemingly on either side of the famed “clash of civilizations,” they both find themselves shaking hands when it comes to fighting evolution. Darwinian evolution seems to be an object of hatred for all believers of expansionist Abrahamic religions.[...]

Unlike Islamic fundamentalism, which is throbbing with suicide bombers and Fiyadheen attacks throughout the world against the secular culture, Christian fundamentalism is essentially a spent force, at least in the West. One just has to watch that old movie “Inherit the Wind” to see the last deathblows that scientific humanism dealt to the Bible-thumping fundamentalism in the Bible belt of the United States.

But now, as a counter to Islamic fundamentalism, Christian fundamentalism is again raising its ugly head. There is again a pattern here. In the case of the Wahabbist jihad, the suicide cannon fodder is usually derived from those in Third World nations’ Islamic populations who have been lured into being outsourced for the jihadi industry by Wahabbist preachers.[...]

Let us just imagine: If every seminary, every madrassa were to teach its students evolution, how would their worldview change? If every student of theology of whatsoever religion were to undergo a course in cosmology with no theological strings attached, could such students ever live in a vision wrapped between the covers of their scriptures? When bathed thus in the immensity of the cosmos, where comes the need for proselytization, crusades, jihads and other holy wars?

In other words, if we could only convince people that evolution is a fact, the Bible and Koran could no longer be taken so seriously. Arguable. However, the need for crusades is the need for a people to defend itself, and annex its former lands from invaders. The need for jihad, on the other hand, is that Allah wills it. Get it right.

Yet, oddly, she herself has only worn it once, to experiment. "Behind the veil lives a thriving Muslim sexuality," by Naomi Wolf for the Sydney Morning Herald, August 30:

A woman swathed in black to her ankles, wearing a headscarf or a full chador, walks down a European or North American street, surrounded by other women in halter tops, miniskirts and short shorts. She passes under immense billboards on which other women swoon in sexual ecstasy, cavort in lingerie or simply stretch out languorously, almost fully naked. Could this image be any more iconic of the discomfort the West has with the social mores of Islam, and vice versa?

Ideological battles are often waged with women's bodies as their emblems, and Western Islamophobia is no exception. When France banned headscarves in schools, it used the hijab as a proxy for Western values in general, including the appropriate status of women. When Americans were being prepared for the invasion of Afghanistan, the Taliban were demonised for denying cosmetics and hair colour to women; when the Taliban were overthrown, Western writers often noted that women had taken off their scarves.

But are we in the West radically misinterpreting Muslim sexual mores, particularly the meaning to many Muslim women of being veiled or wearing the chador? And are we blind to our own markers of the oppression and control of women?[...]

Outside the walls of the typical Muslim households that I visited in Morocco, Jordan, and Egypt, all was demureness and propriety. But inside, women were as interested in allure, seduction and pleasure as women anywhere in the world.[...]

Indeed, many Muslim women I spoke with did not feel at all subjugated by the chador or the headscarf. On the contrary, they felt liberated from what they experienced as the intrusive, commodifying, basely sexualising Western gaze.[...]

I experienced it myself. I put on a shalwar kameez and a headscarf in Morocco for a trip to the bazaar. Yes, some of the warmth I encountered was probably from the novelty of seeing a Westerner so clothed; but, as I moved about the market - the curve of my breasts covered, the shape of my legs obscured, my long hair not flying about me - I felt a novel sense of calm and serenity. I felt, yes, in certain ways, free.

Got that everyone? Taliban, morally upright; Western women, controlled and oppressed; the hijab and burqa, means of freedom. If you're in the habit of reading Islamist propaganda, this piece should suffice for today.

Another warning of Israel's destruction if the U.S. and/or Israel dare to attack Iran. However, this one has a curious hollow ring.

"Report: Iran supplied Hizbullah with advanced missiles," by Roee Nahmias for YNet News, August 29 (thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist):

Iran has supplied Hizbullah with advanced missiles which can accurately hit extensive targets inside Israel, the London-based Arabic-language newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi reported Friday, quoting Arab sources. According to the report, the missiles will be operational at any moment Israel "thinks of acting adventurously and attacking Iran" or when the United States launches a regional war against the Tehran government. The Arab sources said that the new missiles are capable of reaching a range "Israel cannot even imagine" and are one of the "surprises" promised by Hizbullah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah....

Yeah, it's some surprise, if I know about it this morning. This makes this story sound like the desperate and empty threats of an unarmed man with his finger poking out inside his suit pocket.

Which is not to say that none of this is accurate.

According to recent reports, Iran plans to build an array of antiaircraft missiles for Hizbullah in Lebanon. Kuwaiti newspaper al-Siyasa reported Tuesday that 300 Iranian experts were working to build an array of antiaircraft missiles on the mountain range in western Lebanon.

Al-Quds al-Arabi went on to report that Iran is not only helping Israel's enemies in Lebanon, but is also attempting to reinforce the Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip in a bid to weaken the truce between Hamas and Israel....

When he says that the military will take seriously any attempt to undermine Turkey's secular principles and turn it into an Islamic state -- which does seem to be the ultimate goal of Prime Minister Erdogan and the ruling party -- will result in a military coup to protect the Kemalist order. It has happened before.

"Turkish army chief warns of Islam," from PressTV, August 28 (thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist):

Turkey's new military chief warns against what he calls a rising "religious lifestyle", highlighting secularist and AKP government tensions.

General Ilker Basbug, in a speech to an audience during a ceremony which he officially replaced former chief of military Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, said the military would take seriously any attempt to undermine Turkey's secular principles.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul from the Justice and Development Party (AKP) Gul attended the ceremony at the military headquarters without their wives who wear headscarves.

Basbug said part of the nation is concerned that a new culture and lifestyle heavily influenced by Islam was emerging in Turkey.

"A segment of society thinks that religion is given a great weight in an emerging new cultural identity and lifestyle, and is worried about this development," Basbug said as he took command of NATO's second-biggest army.

"This concern should be taken seriously. This is compulsory for social peace within the scope of a pluralistic democracy."

Turkey has a secular constitution and the military considers itself the ultimate guardian of the republic founded by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

Hardline secularists, including the military and judges, accuse the AKP of harboring a hidden Islamist agenda by seeking to loosen restrictions on religion, such as its failed attempt to ease a ban on Muslim headscarves at universities. Erdogan and the AKP deny the convictions as illusions, but argue that Turks should be free to choose their way of life including what they wear....

And at least one of them was or is KGB.

We have noted many times over the years how eager Russia is to help Iran and other jihadists, despite facing its own jihadist troubles in the Caucasus. And now this suggests that the linkage between Russia and the jihadists may be even closer.

"Finnish Islamists back Russia," from A Step At A Time, August 28 (thanks to Maxwell):

The possibility that Islamist movements in Europe and probably also further afield to some extent work in harmony with the Putin/Medvdev schemes in the field of military and foreign policy is evidenced by an interesting statement by the Finnish Islamic Party (Suomenislamilainenpuolue), which aims to represent the interests of Finland's small Muslim minority. The statement condemns the "aggressive acts of the Georgian leadership" and gives the party's full support to Russia. It also makes a savage attack on the president and government of Estonia, and demands that President Saakashvili be put on trial for war crimes. Although Finland's Muslims are mostly Tatars, and have little time for fundamentalist ideology, the document is a curious and revealing indicator of the sort of sources where the Kremlin may really be deriving support in today's world. The fact that the Hamas organization was the first to recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia may not be a coincidence.

That some voices in Finland may be helping to foment a movement which they call a "Russian Intifada" among Estonia's Russian-speaking minority is shown by this blog, which is dedicated to the subject.

There has long been a noted connection between the Kremlin and Islamist groupings, and it is no secret that, as Alexander Litvinenko pointed out before he was brutally murdered in London, Al-Qaeda’s Ayman al-Zawahiri trained at a Federal Security Service (the former Russian KGB) base in Dagestan in 1998.

"There are, according to Khan, two kinds of Jihad. The greater Jihad, in which a person fights their animal tendencies, and a lesser Jihad, in which they fight on behalf of their community." -- from this article

Again and again this phony business about "Lesser Jihad" and "Greater Jihad" keeps coming up, and we are carefully told that the "Greater Jihad" is the internal struggle of Muslims with their own consciences. But this is not quite what it seems.

First of all, Islam is based not on solicitousness for the individual, but concern for the collective of Believers, the Umma, and for furthering the interests not of a single soul but of the Great Cause: that of spreading Islam until it dominates everywhere. The individual Believer is akin to a recruit to an army. If he leaves, that is regarded as treason. His duty is that of mental submission -- no independent questioning, no comparing what his duties are with what reason, or morality, tell him should be his duties. His not to reason why, but to follow scrupulously the rules as to what is prohibited and what is commanded.

Sharia Alert -- we are constantly told in the West that honor killing has nothing to do with Islam, but Muslims somehow seem to keep misunderstanding that.

I've said this before, and I will keep saying it:

A manual of Islamic law certified by Al-Azhar as a reliable guide to Sunni orthodoxy says that "retaliation is obligatory against anyone who kills a human being purely intentionally and without right." However, "not subject to retaliation" is "a father or mother (or their fathers or mothers) for killing their offspring, or offspring's offspring." ('Umdat al-Salik o1.1-2).

In other words, someone who kills his child incurs no legal penalty under Islamic law.

Why does this stipulation appear in a manual of Islamic law if this has nothing to do with Islam?

"Five women buried alive in name of honour," from the PakTribune, August 25 (thanks to all who sent this in):

ISLAMABAD: Three teenage girls along with their two close elderly relatives were shot at before being buried alive in a desert of Balochistan by their tribesmen in the name of honour.

The shocking reports of this horrible incident reaching the capital from different quarters revealed that the girls studying in classes 10 to 12 intended to marry men of their choice through a civil court by defying the centuries-old tribal traditions. When the fuming elders of Umrani tribe came to know about the intentions of these girls to appear before a local court, they picked them up from their homes along with two of their elderly women relatives. The crying girls were pushed into official cars and driven to a deserted area. There they were pushed out of the cars, made to stand in a queue and volleys of shots fired at them.

As the bleeding girls fell on the sand, the tribesmen dragged them into a nearby ditch and levelled it with earth and stones before the girls could breathe their last. As the two shocked elderly women tried to rescue the hapless girls, they too were gunned down and buried in the same manner.

The killers after burying these women returned to their tribe like conquerors without any action against them. The step taken was to send a loud message to the rest of the tribe’s girls. Father of these girls lodged an FIR with the police against his own brother, who was said to be the architect of this crime. But after some family pressure, he withdrew the case and so the blood of those girls was forgiven in the name of centuries-old tradition, which does not allow any girl of the tribe to contract marriage of her choice.

Meanwhile, the Human Rights Watch has accused Abdul Sattar Umrani, the younger brother of PPP Housing Minister in Balochistan Government Mir Sadiq Umrani, of being directly responsible for this shocking act of barbarianism....

A supposed ally turns out to be working for the other side. Funny how that keeps happening. "Senior Iraqi official suspected of militia links," by Robert H. Reid for the Associated Press, August 28 (thanks to JCB):

BAGHDAD - A senior official in Nouri al-Maliki's government was in custody Thursday suspected of ties to Iranian-backed Shiite militias and plotting a June bombing that killed 10 people, including four Americans, Iraqi authorities said.

The arrest of Ali al-Lami — taken Wednesday as he left a plane arriving from Lebanon — reinforced suspicions about Tehran's influence within the Shiite-led Iraqi government and could open wider probes into Shiite networks, including possible links to Lebanon's Hezbollah.

Al-Lami heads a commission responsible for keeping Saddam Hussein loyalists out of government posts and has been a target of criticism from Sunni leaders who claim the government wants to limit the overall Sunni voice in political and security issues.

He was arrested by U.S. and Iraqi troops at Baghdad's airport as he returned with his family from medical treatment in Beirut, said a member of his committee, Qaiser Watout.

U.S. and Iraqi troops were waiting for al-Lami as the plane's doors opened, Watout said.

"We condemn this act," Watout said. "Al-Lami was a moderate official and we are surprised by his arrest."

U.S. military officials would not confirm the arrest of al-Lami, who has been involved in government affairs since shortly after Saddam's fall in 2003.

But the U.S. command said a "suspected senior" leader of Iranian-backed "Special Groups" militias was detained at the airport for allegedly planning the June 24 bombing of a municipal building in the capital's Shiite district of Sadr City. Two American soldiers and two State Department employees died in the blast along with six Iraqis.

"The man has been known to travel in and out of Iraq to neighboring nations including Iran and Lebanon, where it is believed he meets and helps run the Iranian-backed Special Groups in Iraq," the U.S. military statement said.

In Washington, a senior U.S. military intelligence official said Thursday that the statement referred to al-Lami and that he was believed to have information that would lead investigators to people connected to "other countries," an apparent reference to Iran and Lebanon.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case but added he had personally reviewed "multiple and corroborating reports" pointing to al-Lami.

Iraqi Shiite parties that dominate the government maintain close ties to Iran, where many key figures spent years in exile during Saddam's rule. U.S. officials have long maintained that Iran's Revolutionary Guards, through its elite Quds Force, arms and trains Shiite extremists — a charge Tehran denies....

An update on this story. "Fifth Arrest in Suspected Plot Against British Leaders," by Alan Cowell for the New York Times, August 27:

LONDON — British counterterrorism police officers investigating a suspected conspiracy to assassinate Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his predecessor, Tony Blair, arrested a 29-year-old man in central England on Tuesday, officials said Wednesday.

The arrest of the man, who was not identified, was the fifth in two weeks in an investigation centering on blue-collar towns in central and northwest England.

Two men were arrested earlier this month at the Manchester airport as they were about to board a flight to Finland. A third was seized in the northwestern town of Accrington. A fourth man, described by the Press Association news agency as “believed to be a white Muslim convert,” was also detained Tuesday in nearby Blackburn. The four men were all in their early 20s and were being held under counterterrorism laws permitting detention without charge or trial for limited periods.

According to British news reports, the suspected plot was related to calls on a British jihadist Web site last January by a previously unknown group identifying itself as Al Qaeda in Britain. But no concrete planning for an attack was under way, these reports said.

The Web site posting also urged the withdrawal of British forces from Afghanistan and Iraq.

After the fifth arrest, which was made in Derby, the police said officers were searching a house there and were likely to continue the investigation for several days.

The suspected conspiracy is unusual because previous plots ascribed to Islamic militants have been aimed at mass targets rather than individuals.

Arab citizens of Israel continue to pose a threat to their "nation." "Israeli Arab Members Of Islamic Jihad Cell Plotted To Target Air Force Pilots & Scientists," from Infolive, August 28:

Two Israeli Arabs suspected of setting up an Islamic Jihad cell near Ramallah and plotted to assassinate air force pilots and scientists were arrested this month by the Shin Bet.

Details released for publication on Thursday revealed that Anis Zfori,a twenty year old student of the Bir Zeit University near Ramallag and Hussam Halili, a 19 year old who studies in Jordan come from the western Galilee town of Shfaram. According to the Shin Bet both admitted to contacting Islamic Jihad headquarters in Damascus and raising funds to purchase weapons.

The pair confessed to contacting Islamic Jihad's headquarters in Syria and to raising funds to buy weapons. Cell members underwent weapons training and aside from plotting to assassinate prominent Israeli air force pilots and senior university professors, also planned to perpetrate a shooting attack on an IDF post outside of Ramallah.

Zfori said that after moving to Ramallah two years ago, he became friendly with members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and also befriended reporters who work at Hizbullah’s Al Manar television station. Zfori recruited Halili who he intended to use to transfer funds from Jordan to Israel. According to the Shin Bet Halili told investigators he was aware of Zfori’s plans to perpetrate terror attacks.

The two are due to appear in court next week.

¿Por qué no te callas, Hugo?

Jihad accelerating in South America, thanks to a short-sighted non-Muslim dictator. More on this story. "Venezuela Tightens Ties With Iran, Hizbullah," by Hillel Fendel for Israel National News, August 29 (thanks to Bob):

(IsraelNN.com) International terrorism experts fear that Venezuela will soon become a base for terrorist attack initiatives, in light of the tightening of ties between the South American dictatorship and both Iran and Hizbullah.

A top expert in the war against terrorism, speaking with the Los Angeles Times, said that agents of Hizbullah and the Revolutionary Guard of Iran have formed a special force designed to kidnap Jewish businessmen in South America and smuggle them to Lebanon. He said that Venezuelan employees of the international airport in Caracas have already been recruited to provide information about Jewish tourists who arrive in the country.

The Lebanese terrorist organization Hizbullah, which enjoys close relations with Venezuela, is reportedly building terror strongholds in the country....

They must not have gotten the memo that "jihad" is but another word for gay love. "Gay festival during Ramadan angers Bosnia Muslims," by Maja Zuvela for Reuters, August 29:

SARAJEVO (Reuters) - Plans to hold Bosnia's first gay festival during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan were denounced by the Muslim community on Thursday as an affront to religious feelings.

As in most of the Balkans, there is little tolerance for homosexuality in Bosnia, where for many it remains a taboo.

"Such an event dangerously threatens our religious feelings. It is not appropriate to hold it during the Ramadan," said Ezher Beganovic, a journalist with the Islamic magazine Saff.

Beganovic has spearheaded a debate about next month's four-day festival. He said in an article this week that the "festival of homosexuality", which is regarded as a sin and disease in Islam, could cloud the holy month of Ramadan and promt angry reactions from believers.

Organisers said the festival was planned a year ago without aiming to provoke.

"This is the festival of arts and culture and there are many believers in our population as well," said Svetlana Djurkovic, who heads the "Q Association" promoting the rights of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual population.

"It coincided with Ramadan unintentionally."

Sarajevo, a symbol of multi-ethnic co-existence and tolerance before the 1992-95 Bosnian war, is now predominantly Muslim.

One academic argued that the lack of sexual tolerance has contributed to the region's violent past.

"The lack of sexual freedom has made people in the region very prone to war mongering and crimes," philosophy professor Ugo Vlaisavljevic told a weekly newspaper.

Djurkovic said the reaction to a gay festival would have been the same, not [sic: no]matter when it was held.

"This is a traditional society in which most people still do not accept the existence of different sexualities or identities," she added.

Slovenia is the only former Yugoslave republic to legalise registered same-sex partnerships, while no other allows gay marriages and most have no laws protecting sexual minorities from discrimination.

Defending Islam by defacing and breaking things. More on this story. "Defending Islam, hacker defaces thousands of Dutch websites," by Andreas Udo de Haes for IT World, August 28:

August 28, 2008, 09:54 AM — WebWereld Netherlands — A 'hacktivist' has hijacked numerous Dutch sites in retaliation for the anti-Islamic short film "Fitna" which was made and released earlier this year by the Dutch right-wing politician Geert Wilders.

Over the last six weeks an activist hacker by the name of 'nEt^DeViL' has hacked many Dutch Web sites and posted ideological statements on their home pages. Such an attack is known as a website defacement.

The hacked sites feature an embedded YouTube video dubbed "Anti-Fitna", which the hacker states is "[a] Response to the Fitna Movie by 'Geert Wilders' Cow !" "This hax0ring is to defend ISLAM - The Religion of [ Abraham, Moses, Jesus & Muhammad ( Peace Be Upon Them All ) ] that Insulted by a Cow ! from Netherlands !"

Zone-H.org, a website that tracks website defacement attacks worldwide, has documented thousands of compromised websites over the last months. Zone-H reports that 'nEt^DeViL' has hacked 18,157 websites as of Thursday, August 28....

When his future gleamed brighter

"Sadr said the militia would now focus more on cultural programmes. 'We have set a cultural programme for the Mahdi Army...'"

A "cultural programme"? He doesn't mean a series of Mozart concerts, or Shakespeare in the park. He means the transformation of Iraq into a Sharia state, proceeding by means other than military.

More on this story. "Iraq's Sadr suspends militia operations," by Hassan Abdul Zahra for AFP, August 28 (thanks to James):

NAJAF, Iraq (AFP) - Radical Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Thursday ordered a halt to armed operations by his 60,000-strong Mahdi Army militia, blamed by Washington for some of the worst sectarian killings of Sunni Arabs in the war-torn country.

"The Mahdi Army suspension will be valid indefinitely and anyone who does not follow this order will not be considered a member of this group," Sadr said in a statement issued by his office in the Shiite shrine city of Najaf.

The militia, created after the 2003 US-led invasion to fight invading American troops, became the most active and feared armed Shiite group in post-Saddam Hussein Iraq, accused of operating death squads blamed for the killings of thousands.

In 2006, at the height of Iraq's communal bloodletting, a Pentagon report said the Mahdi Army was the greatest threat to the country's security, even greater than Al-Qaeda.

At that time Mahdi Army death squads reportedly carried out sustained campaigns of violence -- kidnapping, torturing and brutally killing members of the minority Sunnis Arab community across Iraq, especially in Baghdad.

Dozens of tortured and bullet-riddled bodies of Sunni Arabs used to be found dumped on the capital's streets, allegedly killed by Mahdi militiamen.

The US military cautiously welcomed Sadr's decision.

"We welcome this announcement that appears to be an effort to support the Iraqi people," military spokesman Major John Hall told AFP. "The proof is always in the actions and not just in words."

Sadr said the militia would now focus more on cultural programmes.

"We have set a cultural programme for the Mahdi Army and we have named it Al-Mumahidun (Supporters of the Mahdi), and everybody should abide by it and whoever does not agree with it will be expelled from the army."...

Canoeing! Exploring! Automatic weapons training!

Parody by Jihad Watch reader Bob, sung to the tune of 'Camp Granada' with apologies to Allan Sherman:

Hello Muddah,
Hello Faddah
Here I am at
Camp Jihad, Gaza
Things are fun and
en-ter-tain-ing
Hamas gives us
para-mi-li-tar-y training
I learn warfare
called 'guerrilla'
and explosives
that can kill ya
You remember
Ah-med Fah-my
He has taught me
how to do real
terror bomby.
Call it Camp Kukamunga - NOT!

"Summer camps in the Gaza Strip run by Hamas and other terrorist organizations inculcate youngsters with radical Islamic ideology and the culture of terrorism. Some camps offer military training to prepare future ranks of operatives for the terrorist organizations," from the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, August 24 (thanks to Bob):

1. Every year Hamas and other terrorist networks organize summer camps in the for Palestinians youngsters from the age of kindergarten to university. The camps indoctrinate them with radical Islamic ideology and the organizations' culture of terrorism (“the resistance”). It is part of a continuing process, which begins in kindergarten and ends with university students, to turn the children into at least supporters and if possible, operatives in the various terrorist organizations. For the Gazan population, which is economically distressed, the camps (which charge almost nothing and provide the children with hats and T-shirts) are a convenient and popular way of giving the children something to do during the summer vacation.

2. Several hundred camps are operating in the Gaza Strip this summer, with tens of thousands of campers. Most of them have been organized by Hamas or Hamas-affiliated Islamic institutions. The Islamic Block, Hamas's student organization, also organized a summer camp for Islamic University students. The PIJ camps have at least 10,000 campers. In addition to the usual games and other leisure-time activities, the children are exposed to propaganda promoting violence and terrorism as the means of achieving Palestinian goals (especially the “right to return”) and the glorification of shaheeds, who are turned into role models. As part of their camping experience, Hamas campers are taken on field trips to visit the graves of shaheeds such as Hamas leaders (such as Ahmad Yassin and Abd al-Aziz Rantisi) and others. 1

3. Some of the camps have paramilitary or even fully military activities intended to prepare the young Palestinians for enlistment into the ranks of the various terrorist organizations. These activities are integrated into the extensive training held by the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip in preparation for “the day after” 2 (For photos see Appendix 1). The training is often deliberately held in full view of the media....

Read it all.

First she was proclaimed too sexy, and that, among other things, jumping and shouting on stage were "banned" under sharia. Then, in an effort to not appear "closed-minded" or "childish," the Malysian government reversed the decision and allowed the show to go on. But since when did governmental decisions interest the devotees of sharia? Of course, it's their right to protest. The question is will these "protests" transform into mini-jihads? Considering that the goal of the protests is not to display displeasure, but rather "prevent it [concert] from taking place," suggests something of the sort.

"Muslim youths ordered to protest Avril Lavigne Malaysia show," from NME News, August 28:

Muslim youths in Malaysia will be ordered by the conservative Islamic party to protest outside an Avril Lavigne concert scheduled for this Friday (August 29).

Lavigne was recently given the go-ahead to perform in Kuala Lumpur, despite protests that her performance might be too racy for Malaysian youths.

Even with permission from the government to stage the concert, conservative muslims in the country are planning to protest outside the gig. They feel the performance will be an insult to their religion, as Ramadan starts just days later.

Nasrudin Hassan of the Pan Malaysian Islamic Party PAS announced the planned protest today, saying: "A concert of this nature is not conducive to teach the younger generation to become good citizens, upright and competitive, but instead would weaken them morally and mentally.

"If the concert organisers do not heed this warning to cancel the concert, PAS youth will order all muslim youth to turn up and protest the concert in order to prevent it from taking place."

And here we get that special "brand" of Islamist "protests" -- complete with orders, warnings, and threats of violence. Just as when nearby MILF initiates massive violence only to lay the blame on the Philippine government for not giving in to their demands.

Councillor Stephanie Eaton says: "Our community consists of a huge number of different religions, all of which should be valued, and no one religion should be accorded more status or influence than others." She is, of course, right about that, but she and all British non-Muslims should have seen this coming. It was inevitable, given the political and supremacist character of traditional Islam, that the calls for special accommodation of Muslim practices (which we have seen in Britain for years), would lead to the next step: demands that non-Muslims behave in accordance with Muslim sensibilities.

Step by step, Sharia is coming to Britain, and still very few Britons have noticed, or decided to resist. The mainstream parties are completely AWOL on this issue, leaving the field to race separatists who cloud the issue by bringing in questions of ethnicity that are actually quite distinct from the question of whether or not Britain will acquiesce to being subjugated under Islamic law.

"Muslim council chiefs ban ALL members from 'tea and sandwiches' in meetings which take place during Ramadan," from the Evening Standard, August 28 (thanks to Bark):

Muslim council leaders have sparked outrage after trying to ban all councillors eating in meetings until sunset during the holy month of Ramadan.

Politicians have hit out after the move to impose hardline Islamic rules on non-Muslim colleagues throughout September.

The bombshell has been dropped by Labour chiefs of the notoriously loony Tower Hamlets Council in east London.

The storm was sparked by an e-mail sent to all councillors this week highlighting arrangements for Town Hall committee meetings next month, which marks the Muslim fasting period of Ramadan.

The memo said that new council leader Lutfur Rahman and his deputy, Siraj Islam, had requested that meetings be kept to a minimum to accommodate fasting councillors.

They have also urged all other councillors to resist eating until the breaking of the fast at sunset.

Cllr Stephanie Eaton, leader of the Lib Dem group on the left-wing East End authority, said she would be ignoring the new Ramadan regime.

She insisted the new Labour leadership was favouring one religious group over others.

Cllr Eaton said: 'The Liberal Democrats have enormous respect for the contribution of all faith groups and cultures to the life of the community of Tower Hamlets.

'But we fervently believe that the rules of any one religion should not be imposed upon others.'...

Normally tea, coffee and sandwiches are set aside for councillors to nibble at during evening meetings.

But during Ramadan these will be reduced and complemented by special Muslim food packs containing chicken, lamb and vegetarian snacks.

But in his email, John Williams, the council's head of democratic services, said: 'It is requested that members do not partake of any refreshments until after the Iftar refreshments are served.'

Cllr Eaton said that was going too far. Speaking on behalf of all her stunned party colleagues, she said: 'I was rather disconcerted to see that the arrangements put in place for Ramadan, which we support for Muslim colleagues, have been imposed upon all councillors.

'We object to the request that non-Muslim councillors observe the fasting rules for Ramadan.

'This sends out the wrong message to our community. Our community consists of a huge number of different religions, all of which should be valued, and no one religion should be accorded more status or influence than others.

'Freedom of belief is an important human right, and we Liberal Democrat councillors, Muslim and non-Muslim, agree that this request is inappropriate.'

Cllr Eaton has also written to Town Hall bosses about her concerns that their move 'will not enhance community cohesion and asking for their reassurance that no faith is given any particular status or priority in the operation or decisions of the council'....

And prosecution insists that his actions had nothing to do with Shia rituals or practices (at least they did arrest him, always a good sign for otherwise dhimmified regions). "Shia Muslim convicted of child cruelty after forcing two boys to flog themselves," by Riazat Butt for the Guardian, August 28:

A Shia Muslim was convicted of child cruelty yesterday after he forced two boys to flog themselves during a religious ritual.

Syed Mustafa Zaidi, a warehouse supervisor, told the boys, aged 13 and 15, to beat themselves with a zanjeer zani, a wooden-handled implement containing five curved blades used when commemorating the death of Hussain, grandson of Muhammad and one of the most important figures in Shia Islam. Zaidi is due to be sentenced on September 24.

Manchester crown court heard how Zaidi, 44, flagellated himself at an event held in January in Manchester until his back was bloody and cut. Others at the event also flogged themselves. Some of those present, fearing Zaidi would seriously harm himself, asked him to calm down. Zaidi agreed, only to turn his attention to the two boys.

The 14-year-old, who was 13 at the time, told the jury that neither he nor the other boy wanted to injure themselves. He said Zaidi was insistent with the older boy, "pulling him and pushing him, 'keep doing it', telling people 'this is a sad moment and look, he's not doing it'.

"He goes, 'I don't want to do it, I don't want to do it'. He kept pressuring him, make him do the knife thing, pulling him, trying to get his T-shirt off, pulling and pushing him. He was saying, 'just do it, just do it'." He said the 15-year-old "swung it once or twice and said 'I don't want to do it any more'." The older boy was then pulled away by another man.

After the ceremony, the boys went home to their mother, who noticed several deep wounds on their backs and multiple slash wounds. She took them to Manchester Royal infirmary and the matter was reported to the police.

The boys, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted they wanted to beat themselves, but not under duress and not using Zaidi's zanjeer zani. They also said they had flogged themselves with a smaller zanjeer zani from the age of six in Pakistan.

Carol Jackson, for the Crown Prosecution Service, said the prosecution was not an attack upon the practices or ceremonies of Shia Muslims, adding that the prosecution relied partly on evidence given by the president of the local Shia community centre. It was the first case of its kind to be prosecuted by the CPS.

For Shia Muslims the death of Hussain is a period of intense mourning, leading some to beat and whip themselves. The practice is not compulsory and some Shia authorities prohibit it, while others say it should be done only if certain conditions are met.

Safdar Zia, general secretary of the Jaffria Islamic Centre, said Shia Muslims in Manchester would now try to work with the police and the CPS towards a code of practice: "We are not above the law."

Ahhhh, what "law" is that, Safdar -- Allah's or man's?

Here's the latest from Fjordman:

First of all, I'd like to say that I published an essay recently on why I don't think Islam can be reformed. All of my essays can be republished online for free, but this one can also be republished in print, as long as I am credited as the author.

I've read quite a few books on the history of science. One of them is The Beginnings of Western Science by David C. Lindberg, who has also written the book Theories of vision – From al-Kindi to Kepler, which I will quote more extensively from later this fall when publishing a multipart essay on the history of optics. Lindberg is a good scholar and well worth reading, but has a few minor flaws.

Chapter eight in the second edition of his book about the history of science is titled "Islamic science." Mr. Lindberg is not alone in employing this term, but I am not personally in favor of it. Nobody talks about "Buddhist science" or "Christian science," so I so no reason why we should use the term "Islamic science," either. It is misleading, since whatever existed of science in countries under Islamic rule relied heavily on contributions of non-Muslims and pre-Islamic knowledge. Some use the term "Arab science" instead, but this is hardly much better, since among those who were at least nominally Muslims, a disproportionate amount were Persians, not Arabs. Which term should we use, then? "Middle Eastern science" could be one possibility, as it puts emphasis on the region but not on the religion.

I don't think David C. Lindberg provides a full explanation of why the scientific tradition in the Islamic world stagnated, despite some promising beginnings. Those who want a better understanding of this can check out The Rise of Early Modern Science: Islam, China and the West by Toby E. Huff. This can be supplemented with the work of Edward Grant, for instance chapter eight "Relations between science and religion" in Science and Religion, 400 B.C. to A.D. 1550: From Aristotle to Copernicus. I will quote this book by Grant, and to a lesser extent Huff's book, extensively in this essay, and will include page references to each quote so that others can use the material if they want to.

By the end of eleventh century, Western Europeans were aware that both Muslims and Byzantines had access to philosophical and scientific texts that they did not have. After the capture of Toledo, Spain and Sicily from the Muslims in 1085 and 1091, respectively, a number of scholars translated Greek and Arabic texts, but tended to prefer the Greek ones because Greek was a related Indo-European language, which Arabic was not. A large number of the works which existed in Arabic were originally translations from Greek themselves, and it would obviously make more sense to copy directly from the Greek in Constantinople since a more precise rendering could be made, with fewer misinterpretations than from Arabic. The result was a major movement of translations from the twelfth century until the second half of the thirteenth century.

Many works in optics, astronomy, medicine and mathematics were translated, but it was Aristotle's work on natural philosophy that had the greatest impact. The two greatest translators from Greek to Latin were James of Venice (d. after AD 1147), the first major translator of Aristotle's works from Greek to Latin, and the Flemish scholar William of Moerbeke (c. AD 1215-c. 1286), who was the last. According to Edward Grant, page 166:

"William of Moerbeke translated at least forty-eight treatises, including seven on mathematics and mechanics by Archimedes, translated for the first time into Latin (Grant 1974, 39-41; Minio-Paluello 1974, 436-438). His Aristotelian translations are truly impressive. He was the first to translate Aristotle's biological works from Greek into Latin. In translating the rest of Aristotle's natural philosophy, Moerbeke found it useful to revise, expand, and even complete some earlier translations, including revisions of at least three treatises previously translated by James of Venice. In addition, Moerbeke translated Greek commentaries on Aristotle's works from late antiquity. Thus, he translated John Philoponus' Commentary on the Soul, and Simplicius' Commentary on the Heavens. One of the earliest beneficiaries of Moerbeke's translations was Thomas Aquinas."

Grant continues on page 167:

"With Moerbeke's monumental contributions, all of Aristotle's natural philosophy was available by the last quarter of the thirteenth century in translations from Greek and Arabic. Although many scientific works were translated from Arabic to Latin in the first half of the twelfth century by such translators as Plato of Tivoli, Adelard of Bath, Robert of Chester, Hermann of Carinthia, Dominicus Gundissalinus, Peter Alfonso, John of Seville, and others, the earliest translations of Aristotle's works on natural philosophy appear to have occurred in Spain in the latter half of the twelfth century. By far the most prominent translator of Aristotle's works on natural philosophy was Gerard of Cremona (c. A.D. 1114-1187), the most prolific translator from Arabic to Latin of works on science, medicine, and natural philosophy."

Gerard of Cremona and those associated with him translated dozens of works from Arabic to Latin, among them probably Alhazen's book on Optics, which could not have been translated from Greek since it did not exist in Greek. It is thus true that there were translations from Arabic and that some of these did have some impact in Europe. It would be historically inaccurate to claim otherwise. But although this translation movement was significant, we should focus at least as much on how these different civilizations used this information.

In this case, we are dealing with an example where three different civilizations, the Islamic world, the Christian East (the Byzantine Empire) and the Christian West had access to much of the same material, yet where the end results were quite different. I have read a lot about the history of mechanical clocks and eyeglasses, both of which were invented in Europe in the second half of the thirteenth century AD. These inventions had no counterparts in any other civilization and were important for later scientific and technological advances, which often benefited from more accurate timekeeping. The creation of microscopes and telescopes was to some degree an extension of the invention of eyeglasses and the use of glass lenses.

I cannot point out any significant piece of information that Europeans had access to at this time which Muslims didn't also have access to. If anything, Middle Easterners had more knowledge at their disposal since they had regular contacts with the major Asian civilizations and could supplement Greek natural philosophy with Indian and Chinese inventions. Europeans were prevented from having extensive direct contacts with these civilizations because they were geographically isolated from them by a large bloc of hostile Muslims. The only possible conclusion why Europeans invented mechanical clocks is that they were more efficient and creative than Muslims in using the body of information they had at their disposal. Muslims could have done the same, but they didn't. They failed, pure and simple.

The case of the Byzantine Empire is even more puzzling, as Byzantine scholars appear not to have taken advantage of the readily available treasure house of science and natural philosophy in their native Greek language. The Byzantine Empire was essentially a theocracy as the Emperor was regarded as the head of both church and state. According to Edward Grant in Science and Religion, page 228:

"[U]ntil the end of the sixth century, important contributions to natural philosophy were made in the Byzantine Empire by a number of commentators on the works of Aristotle, such as Alexander of Aphrodisias (fl. 2nd-3rd century A.D.), Themistius (c. A.D. 317-c. 388), Simplicius, and most important of all, the Christian neo-Platonist John Philoponus, whose ideas were destined to have a large impact on both Islamic and Latin natural philosophy. But the level of achievement was seriously affected in A.D. 529, when, on religious grounds, the emperor Justinian ordered the closing of Plato's Academy in Athens, forcing a number of philosophers to depart the Byzantine Empire and move to the East. After that natural philosophy and science played a minor role in Byzantine intellectual life. This is surprising when we realize that, as compared to their contemporary counterparts in Islam and the Latin West, Byzantine scholars were truly fortunate, because their native language was Greek. They could read, study, and interpret, without problems of translation, all the works available in the Greek language that had accumulated in the Byzantine Empire, especially in Constantinople, since the fifth and fourth centuries B.C. Indeed, most of our Greek manuscripts come from Byzantium."

Alhazen, when he made his work on optics, relied heavily on Greek mathematics, philosophy and medicine, most of which had initially been translated to Arabic from Byzantine manuscripts. Yet there was no Alhazen in Byzantium itself. Grant again, page 229:

"It is a paradox of history that the civilizations of Islam and Western Europe contributed significantly to the store of human knowledge, using translated works and often lacking important earlier texts, while the Byzantines, who had command of the Greek language and easy access to the manuscript sources of their great Greek predecessors, failed to capitalize on their good fortune."

There were some brief Byzantine "renaissances." The Empire wasn't static and did an invaluable job in preserving older knowledge, but few works of lasting significance were produced there during the Middle Ages. I still believe that my conclusion in the online essay The Legacy of Byzantium, inspired by Timothy Gregory's fascinating book A History of Byzantium, was largely correct:

It is true that the Byzantine Empire has received some bad press. However, scholars James E. McClellan III and Harold Dorn sum up the established wisdom in their book Science and Technology in World History, second edition, when they state that 'Byzantium never became a center of significant original science.' It is surely one of history's great ironies that the Greco-Roman knowledge that was preserved by the Byzantines had a greater impact in the West than it did in the Byzantine Empire itself. Although being for centuries at the front lines of Islamic Jihad certainly didn't help, this doesn't suffice to explain fully the failure of Byzantium to develop modern science. When studying the Byzantine Empire, one cannot help but notice that the separation of church and state which took place in the West after the papal revolution never happened there. Byzantium remained a somewhat autocratic state, thus in some ways resembling China – and perhaps later on Russia - more than Western Europe. The development of parliaments, autonomous cities and numerous universities that took place in the Christian West did not happen in the Christian East.

However, also in the Islamic world, Greek logic and natural philosophy was never fully accepted, and what initial acceptance there had been was largely nullified by the extremely influential Muslim theologian al-Ghazali (1058-1111). Al-Ghazali regarded theology and natural philosophy as dangerous to the Islamic faith and was skeptical of the concept of mathematical proof. As Edward Grant says, page 238:

"[Al-Ghazali] included the mathematical sciences within the class of philosophical sciences (i.e., mathematics, logic, natural science, theology or metaphysics, politics, and ethics) and concluded that a student who studied these sciences would be 'infected with the evil and corruption of the philosophers. Few there are who devote themselves to this study without being stripped of religion and having the bridle of godly fear removed from their heads' (Watt 1953, 34). In his great philosophical work, The Incoherence of the Philosophers, al-Ghazali attacks ancient philosophy, especially the views of Aristotle. He does so by describing and criticizing the ideas of al-Farabi and Avicenna, two of the most important Islamic philosophical commentators on Aristotle. After criticizing their opinions on twenty philosophical problems, including the eternality of the world, that God knows only universals and not particulars, and that bodies will not be resurrected after death, al-Ghazali declares: 'All these three theories are in violent opposition to Islam. To believe in them is to accuse the prophets of falsehood, and to consider their teachings as a hypocritical misrepresentation designed to appeal to the masses. And this is blatant blasphemy to which no Muslim sect would subscribe' (al-Ghazali 1963, 249)."

As Ibn Warraq sums up in his modern classic Why I Am Not a Muslim, "orthodox Islam emerged victorious from the encounter with Greek philosophy. Islam rejected the idea that one could attain truth with unaided human reason and settled for the unreflective comforts of the putatively superior truth of divine revelation. Wherever one decides to place the date of this victory of orthodox Islam (perhaps in the ninth century with the conversion of al-Ashari, or in the eleventh century with the works of al-Ghazali), it has been, I believe, an unmitigated disaster for all Muslims, indeed all mankind."

Al-Qaeda hates the House of Saud for what they see as its hypocrisy. "Yemen says 30 al-Qaeda suspects planned attacks in Saudi Arabia," from Middle East News, August 28:

Sana'a, Yemen - Yemeni authorities have arrested 30 suspected members of the al-Qaeda terrorist network believed to have been plotting attacks in neighbouring Saudi Arabia, official sources said Thursday.

The 30 men, all Yemenis, were captured in the south-eastern province of Hadhramout, where police forces dismantled an al-Qaeda cell on August 12, a police source was quoted as saying by the 26 September weekly.

'They were planning to join al-Qaeda members in Saudi Arabia to carry out joint attacks,' the unnamed source told the paper.

The arrests were made after police gained information about the suspects from documents and a computer found in the al-Qaeda house raided by police in Tarim town in Hadhramout on August 12.

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has said police discovered plots by al-Qaeda to strike targets inside the country and in Saudi Arabia....

The chickens of multiculturalism are coming home to roost. "BBC’s Terrorists in Need: How did cash from the network's telethons for children end up in the hands of the 7/7 London bombers?," by Mike McNally for Pajamas Media, August 27:

Those familiar with the BBC’s bias towards and promotion of the Islamic faith and its regular apologias on behalf of Islamic extremism will have barely raised an eyebrow at the news that £20,000 from one of the corporation’s charity appeals ended up in the hands of the Muslim terrorists who murdered 52 people in London in 2005.

The money, raised by the BBC’s Children in Need telethons, was given to a “community school” in the northern English city of Leeds — a hotbed of Islamic extremism — between 1999 and 2002. The school passed the money to an Islamic bookshop run by two of the men who bombed London on July 7, 2005, Mohammed Sidique Khan and Shehzad Tanweer. Khan and Tanweer used the money to produce propaganda videos and other materials that were used to radicalize other young Muslim men.

It should be said that neither the BBC nor the charity’s trustees knew the money was going to promote jihad. It’s also worth noting that the scandal was uncovered by the BBC’s own Newsnight program — although the program, which stands out among the corporation’s news operations in its willingness to tackle stories about Islamic extremism, airs on the BBC’s second channel in a late-night slot, and it was left to newspapers to give the story wider coverage. (You can watch the Newsnight report here.)

However, this isn’t the first time the BBC has found itself in the embarrassing position of trying to explain away links, however indirect, to Muslim terrorists. Last year it emerged that the corporation paid for two men who were later convicted of terror offenses to go on a paintballing trip as part of a documentary, and failed to notify police when one of the men admitted to a researcher that he knew members of the cell that tried unsuccessfully to bomb the Tube network two weeks after the July 7 attacks.

For an organization like the BBC to find itself associated with Islamic terrorists once could be considered unfortunate; for it to happen twice smacks of carelessness. But then the political and cultural mindset of the BBC, rooted as it is in the twin shibboleths of political correctness and multiculturalism, makes incidents such as these inevitable.

With regard to Islam, the mindset dictates that any religion which challenges the Judeo-Christian hegemony so despised by the Left must necessarily be a good thing — particularly if the majority of its adherents happen to have dark skin — and so under no circumstances must anything be broadcast that might possibly offend Muslims. (Don’t take it from me — take it from the leading BBC figures who admitted as much during an “impartiality summit.”)

It follows that when violence is done in the name of Islam, the only possible explanations are that the religion has been “hijacked” or that those who perpetrated the violence must have suffered some unbearable provocation. Thus, a person who blows innocent civilians to pieces on a Tube train can be seen as effecting an extreme but understandable response to some wicked act of Western imperialism....

Read it all.

A Shafi'i manual of Islamic law that was certified in 1991 by the clerics at Al-Azhar University, one of the leading authorities in the Islamic world, as a reliable guide to Sunni orthodoxy, stipulates that “the caliph makes war upon Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians...until they become Muslim or pay the non-Muslim poll tax.” It adds a comment by Sheikh Nuh ‘Ali Salman, a Jordanian expert on Islamic jurisprudence: the caliph wages this war only “provided that he has first invited [Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians] to enter Islam in faith and practice, and if they will not, then invited them to enter the social order of Islam by paying the non-Muslim poll tax (jizya)...while remaining in their ancestral religions.” ('Umdat al-Salik, o9.8).

Of course, there is no caliph today, and hence the oft-repeated claim that Osama et al are waging jihad illegitimately, as no state authority has authorized their jihad. But they explain their actions in terms of defensive jihad, which needs no state authority to call it, and becomes "obligatory for everyone" ('Umdat al-Salik, o9.3) if a Muslim land is attacked. The end of the defensive jihad, however, is not peaceful coexistence with non-Muslims as equals: 'Umdat al-Salik specifies that the warfare against non-Muslims must continue until "the final descent of Jesus." After that, "nothing but Islam will be accepted from them, for taking the poll tax is only effective until Jesus' descent" (o9.8).

That understanding of jihad is mainstream in Islam -- none of the other schools of Islamic jurisprudence contradict it in any particular. But in this new film, an opposition is set up between jihad as inner struggle and jihad as fight "on behalf of [the] community" -- a euphemistic phrase that will slide right by you unnoticed unless you stop and focus on it for a moment. And the whole idea here, we're told, is ultimately to question "those who use the lesser Jihad as a reason for conflict" -- but as always, I do not believe that this can be effectively done simply by ignoring or denying the basis in Islamic texts and teachings for violent jihad and Islamic supremacism.

Jihad: Inner Struggle is a film that is being shown at Edinburgh's Mela Festival.

"A stylish show that needs background knowledge," by Thom Dibdin for The Scotsman, August 28 (thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist):

USING hypnotic dance moves and a sexy modern soundtrack, Faroque Khan explores the concept of Jihad – meaning 'struggle' – by focusing on an Israeli and an Arab who live in the same house.

There are, according to Khan, two kinds of Jihad. The greater Jihad, in which a person fights their animal tendencies, and a lesser Jihad, in which they fight on behalf of their community.

The house is the home of Faroque, a hedonist who stays out all night clubbing and comes home to tumble into bed. In his dreams, an Israeli man, Yoran, stealthily comes into the house. He is on the run from the army – although he might even be a ghost – and is looking for peace.

The two clash, but this is not the classic fight between cultures of the Arab-Israeli conflict in Palestine – instead, Khan is uses this premise to demonstrate the clash between the two kinds of Jihad.

Faroque is fighting his own internal demons. He takes Yoran out clubbing and gets him loved up on pills. It is an alien world to Yoran who joined the army as soon as he could, and was happy to go out to defend his country. It was only when it came to actual killing that he began to balk.

Of course, in this propaganda fantasy world it is the Israeli who has to deal with the prospect of "actual killing," not the Muslim.

Though the show looks and sounds great, it demands too much prior knowledge to be a real success for the casual audience.

If you understand a bit about the concept of Jihad though, then the whole piece begins to take a shape that questions those who use the lesser Jihad as a reason for conflict.

Compassion. "TV reporters are not showing the Taliban's humanity, says BBC presenter," from the Daily Mail, August 25 (thanks to Anne Crockett):

A BBC presenter has attacked coverage of Afghanistan's ongoing war, claiming TV reporters are not covering the 'humanity of the Taliban'.

Lyse Doucet, a presenter and correspondent on BBC World News, was speaking at a discussion of TV reporting of the war in the country.

Doucet, who has been at the BBC since 1983, also spoke out against the nature of the reports on Prince Harry's deployment in Afghanistan.

The veteran correspondent and presenter, who played a key role in the BBC's coverage of the war in Afghanistan in 2001, told the Edinburgh International Television Conference: 'What's lacking in the coverage of the Afghans is the sense of the humanity of the Afghans.

'In the Prince Harry coverage for example, there were all these people out there but you never really saw them.

'You knew that the bombs were dropping in that direction and the guns pointing in that direction but you never got a sense of how Afghans are as a people.'

Asked what was missing in British coverage, she added: 'It may sound odd but the humanity of the Taliban, because the Taliban are a wide, very diverse group of people.

Like the Nazis! Wonderfully diverse folks, Adolf and the gang, doncha know!

'Some of them would like to talk to the British Government. Some of them don't want to be fighting British troops. Some of them would. This is the ideological Taliban.

'We never have the ability or sometimes the desire to present this in a different way, so that people would be interested... it's a regret.'...

Many aspects of this story raise an eyebrow, but one item in particular is that "Interviews with several Muslims reveal a mixed view on additional marriages under Islamic law. Some said it is not allowed under United States law and therefore is forbidden; others said it can be permissible under Islamic law anyway. We have seen this before, of course, and will certainly see it again, unfortunately.

"Principal of Islamic school in Buffalo ousted over sex allegations," by Mark Sommer for The Buffalo News, August 27:

The principal of an Islamic boarding school on Buffalo’s East Side has been forced to resign after allegations that he was sexually involved with one of his students and that he claimed to have taken her as a second wife.

Evidence suggests Mohammed Ibrahim Memon, a father of seven, persuaded Sajidah Khan, then 21, to marry under Islamic law as a pretense to sleep with her. [...]

One angle apologists sometimes pursue in defending Islamic polygamy is that it somehow cuts down on "infidelity." But no matter how one labels the act, the husband is still in a relationship with someone other than Wife #1. Polygamy only regulates and formalizes that activity, and moves the goalposts for establishing whether a sin (and/or crime) has been committed.

Memon also agreed to never teach in the girls school again if reinstated. [...]

“We were betrayed,” said Chaudhary A. Khan of Woodbridge, Va., Sajidah’s father, who has sent four children to Madania.

“I want families to know these people are not following Islamic laws, they are not following American laws. They claim they are serving Islam, but they are just serving themselves,” he said.

At issue is Memon’s relationship with Sajidah Khan, now 23.

Khan says Memon proposed to her at school in August 2006, and proclaimed within days he had married her himself, under Islamic law, with two witnesses present. He also told her to keep their marriage secret.

Interviews with several Muslims reveal a mixed view on additional marriages under Islamic law. Some said it is not allowed under United States law and therefore is forbidden; others said it can be permissible under Islamic law anyway. Even so, there are several steps required for an Islamic marriage to be recognized, and the description of Khan and Memon’s marriage violates those tenets.

Memon denies marrying or engaging in physical contact with Khan. He claimed to The Buffalo News only to have listened to Khan’s problems over the telephone when he should have referred her to her father. [...]

Sajidah Khan, observing strict rules of separation between the sexes, was relegated to listening from the next room.

Darul-Uloom Al-Madania consists of a complex of brick buildings, along with Masjid Zakariya, a former church cathedral.

Because interaction between the sexes is forbidden under Islam until marriage, girls and boys are not allowed to be in the same classroom or have outside contact.

When girls are taught by male teachers, they must listen in another room. [...]

Imam denies marriage

It was in her last year of study, Khan said, that Memon sought her out. Khan says he arranged a secret meeting on Aug. 30, 2006, in the locked basement of a heating room.

Khan said the imam flirted with her, and she had to repel him when he tried to have physical contact. That day marked the first time he talked of marriage, she said.

Until that day, Khan said, she could count the social contacts she had had with males on one hand.

“In our culture, we don’t even let girls sit with their male cousins, and this guy is a teacher. Why is this man, who has said we are not even allowed to chat with a boy, doing this?” she said.

“At the same time, I’m thinking, ‘He is a teacher, he is very famous, maybe he knows something I don’t know.’”

Hence Khan's susceptibility to Memon's assurances regarding the validity of the marriage, in spite of its secrecy.

Memon persisted with marriage requests. Khan says after she agreed, Memon told her he had finalized their marriage the next day, Sept. 8, in her absence. [...]

As odd as the above paragraph may seem, the bride need not be present for a nikah ceremony.

Khan said Memon was always concerned about covering his tracks so their relationship wouldn't be detected, although Memon's wife, Mariam, approved.

She was surprised to hear the educator make dismissive comments about the girls who studied at Madania, and "often said women were [on Earth] only to satisfy men."

While we're on the subject, what else are they teaching at Darul-Uloom Al-Madania?

Chaudhary Khan, Sajidah's father, said Memon eventually admitted marrying his daughter, but wouldn't send a marriage contract to confirm it. Later, the father said Ismail Memon told him his son divorced Sajidah in a ritual involving Memon family members.

The family's decision to go public occurred after two prominent Pakistan imams, Mufti Rafi Usmani and Mufti Taqi Usmani, told Sajidah Khan's brother, Ikram Haq, that the family had an obligation to speak up and inform other Muslims of what happened. [...]

But did the family have an obligation to speak out, in the imams' opinion, because practicing polygamy in a country where it is illegal is wrong, or because Memon didn't go about his polygamous pursuits correctly?

A former Madania student, who wished to remain anonymous, also told The News she had a relationship with Memon several years ago as a student. Days after accepting his marriage proposal, she said, Memon told her he married them both in front of two witnesses she came to believe never existed.

Also, like Khan, the former student said Memon told her not to tell anyone. But she did, and soon her father removed her from the school. The woman no longer believes she was married to Memon, and is bitter toward the school and its teachings.

"When I talked to [the former student], we realized it was almost the same story for both of us," Khan said....

Read it all.

Leave it to the Russians to shrewdly give in to sharia, only to profit. "First Bank Cards for Muslims Issued in Russia," from IC, August 27:

For the first time ever in the banker history in Russia special plastic cards for Muslims are now available for the followers of Islam. The cards are produced by one of the largest banks of the Republic of Dagestan of the RF.

The special feature of the cards is zero annual percent. It is known that Islam prohibits usury and the Muslim religion is against its followers getting profit from keeping money somewhere.

According to the pushful bank representatives, the cards are already gaining popularity with the Muslim republic citizens who previously to becoming a bank’s client had to write a paper confirming that they refused getting deposit percentage.

And you thought your in-laws were bad. "Girl suicide bomber shows 'al Qaeda's desperation,'" from the New Zealand Herald, August 27:

Police say they wanted to show "the desperate level al Qaeda has reached" when they released video footage of a teenage girl with an explosives vest strapped to her body.

In the footage the girl is seen handcuffed to a metal grid, her head repeatedly falling forward in apparent exhaustion as several policemen huddle around her.

After several minutes, the officers lift her flowered robe, remove the white vest hidden underneath and then take her for questioning, videotaping her in the presence of reporters. They prod her to confess to plans to stage a suicide attack, but she denies the allegation.

Police in Baqouba, where the girl - who says she was born in 1993 - was caught on Sunday, said she was fitted with the explosives by female relatives of her husband, whom she married five months ago.

One police official alleged that some in the girl's family had links to the al Qaeda in Iraq terror network.

Police wanted to "show the desperate level al Qaeda has reached, with members of one family driving each other to death," said Ibrahim Bajilan, head of the provincial council in the Diyala province, of which Baqouba is the capital.

The arrest of the girl, who gave her first name as Rania, heightened concern about a rise in suicide bombings by women in Iraq. The number of female bombers has more than tripled, from eight last year to 29 this year, say US military officials. That compares with a total of four in 2005 and 2006.

The circumstances of the girl's arrest remain unclear. US officials said she had turned herself in after being hooked to the explosives against her will. Local police said she was caught by a police patrol after arousing suspicion while walking in downtown Baqouba.

...which apparently indicates that the ceasefire is over -- as if that weren't obvious already. "MILF rebels execute gov’t ceasefire monitor," from AFP, August 28 (thanks to Mackie):

Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) guerrillas have executed a member of the government’s ceasefire observer after being snatched by the Moro rebels during the recent heavy military-MILF clashes in Maguindanao province, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said.

Lt. Col. Julieto Ando, Army’s 6th Infantry Division spokesman, said reports reaching the AFP point to missing GRP-MILF Joint Monitoring Action Team (JMAT) ceasefire observer, Army Sgt. Roger Emben, of the Army’s 64th Infantry Battalion, as having been summarily executed and buried in a shallow grave at the borders of Datu Piang and Mamasapano towns in Maguindanao.

The guerrillas abducted Emben and another companion last week in Barangay Balanakin, Datu Piang, and nothing has been heard from both since.

“We were informed by local officials and evacuees from Barangay Balanakin that the MILF faction that took Emben and his companion allowed the MILF ceasefire monitors to leave first before taking them captives,” Ando stressed.

Emben and companion were separately shot to death near their ceasefire monitoring post, Ando added.

Meanwhile, Christians in the area have had enough:

In similar fashion, a Christian vigilante group known as the Ilagas, warned yesterday that it will start executing 10 Muslim rebels for every civilian killed as violence in Mindanao intensifies.

The Reform Ilaga Movement, dormant for decades after gaining prominence in the 1970s during the early stages of the rebellion, has again been on the spotlight in the face of a new campaign by Muslim rebels.

Rebels last week killed scores of people in attacks on Christian villages and towns in fighting that has intensified since a breakdown in talks to end the insurgency by creating a semi-autonomous Muslim region.

“If the fighting continues, for every civilian killed, we will execute 10 MILF rebels,” said Mike Santiago, a spokesman for the vigilante movement.

“We are for arming civilians in areas targeted by MILF and for them to defend their families and property,” he told reporters in his hideout camp in the south of the country....

"'We have a message: Muslim Americans are as American as apple pie,' Lalani said. 'Ignoring us is the politics of exclusion and exclusion, I would suggest, is un-American.'" Fine. I don't want to ignore Muslim Americans. I want to ask them questions about their stance on bringing Sharia to the U.S., and related matters. But even asking such questions only gets you charges of "Islamophobia" -- and no substantive answers.

"US election: Muslim Democrats make political impact despite negative attacks: Muslim activists and political leaders say that they see no need to play down their political involvement," by Paul Harris in The Guardian, August 26:

The lilting sound of the Koran, sung in haunting Arabic, rang through the unlikely setting of a basement hotel conference room. A local imam intoned the verses, exhorting the audience of Muslim Democrats to reject Satan and give thanks to Allah.

Then a troop of Boy Scouts strode onto stage carrying the American flag and the entire room stood up, many with hands over heart, as the Star-Spangled Banner was sung with equal gusto.

For the first time Muslims have banded together to hold a political gathering as a united body at a Democratic convention. The event in Denver - called the American Muslim Democratic caucus - was the brainchild of retired Texan doctor, Inayat Lalani.

It could not have come at a more unusual time for Muslims in America. Their community is still suffering from suspicion in an age of the war on terror and the conflict in Iraq, but there is also an intense internet whispering campaign portraying Obama - who is a devout Christian - as a Muslim.

That has led to anger among Muslim Democrats that the mere accusation of being a Muslim could be seen as a political negative.

"So what?" Lalani said. "He is not a Muslim and he says that. But I am a Muslim and if I was running for office would it be right to hold that against me?"...

Not if you will be so kind as to clear and honest about your views on political Islam and your connections, if any, with Muslim Brotherhood-linked groups in the U.S.

At the Denver gathering, which featured Muslim Democratic delegates from all over the US, attendees said they would not be turned away from public life. "There is nothing un-American about Islam. The best ideals of America are the best ideals of Islam," said Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison, who in 2006 became the first Muslim to be elected to Congress.

He was later followed by Andre Carson, who admitted that any Muslim being elected to such high office in America was going to face difficulties. "Keith took the heat and the shots before me. He took the pain, though they came gunning for me too," Carson said.

But he added that no Muslim should be put off from running for office. "Muslims needs to be engaged more actively in public life in our country. Where are our Muslim councillors? Where are our Muslim mayors?" he said.

In fact Muslims are growing in political power in the US. [...]

He said that includes some 245,000 possible votes in the vital swing state of Michigan and another 63,000 in the equally important Pennsylvania.

That should make Muslims an attractive voting bloc for either political party, just like politicians court the Jewish vote or the Hispanic vote. But in 2008 nothing is that simple for Muslims.

At the Denver meeting the battle was not simply about the ballot box, it was also about fighting prejudice and expressing a genuine desire to belong.

"We have a message: Muslim Americans are as American as apple pie," Lalani said. "Ignoring us is the politics of exclusion and exclusion, I would suggest, is un-American."

Islamic law, of course, forbids a Muslim woman to marry a non-Muslim man. Sharia Alert: "Dad Arrested for Kidnapping Daughter to Stop Marriage to Non-Muslim," from AP, August 27:

FRANKFURT, Germany — Prosecutors in Stuttgart say they have charged a Turkish man with holding his daughter against her will in an alleged effort to prevent her marrying a non-Muslim.

Prosecutor Bettina Vetter says the 45-year-old man took his daughter's passport and return-flight ticket and left her with relatives in Turkey. The 25-year-old woman is a German citizen....

As I have pointed out many, many times, there is no reliable way to distinguish a peaceful Muslim from an actual or potential jihadist. There is no Islamic group anywhere in the world that has pronounced takfir upon Muslims who hold to the idea that non-Muslims must be warred against and subjugated -- that is, no Islamic group has declared such ideas to be un-Islamic. Consequently, the French patrol was foolish to entrust itself to this Afghan interpreter, whose loyalties they could not know.

"Leak may have led to Taliban ambush on French," from France24, August 27 (thanks to Jihad Watch's Marisol Seibold):

New information surfaced Wednesday on the death on August 18 of 10 French soldiers who, while on a reconnaissance mission in Eastern Afghanistan, were ambushed by Taliban insurgents. French satirical weekly Le Canard Enchaîné, reputed for its investigative reporting and political scoops, suggested that the French patrol may have been betrayed by their Afghan interpreter.

“A few hours before the soldiers departed on their mission on August 18, the interpreter who was supposed to accompany the small patrol disappeared,” said an article on Wednesday in Le Canard Enchaîné.

According to FRANCE 24 sources, this version of the facts was given to journalists by soldiers who had participated in the mission while they were being treated at the French military hospital in Kabul.

According to the newspaper, French officials speaking anonymously admitted that the insurgents knew about the French patrol’s mission “through the missing interpreter, or through Afghan police or soldiers.”

Franck Berruyer, FRANCE 24’s correspondent in Kabul, said that the presence of heavy artillery was clear evidence of an information leak. “Heavy mortars had been set up at the spot. The Taliban do not walk about with these weapons – you set them up when you know you’re going to use them.”...

Just another example of the hypocrisy sharia legalism breeds. On the one hand, the Muslim in this story makes it a point to follow the letter of the law, by wanting all women to wear burqas (to preserve their "modesty"), and by approving that men not shake hands with women. Very conservative indeed. However, to make his law firm appealing, he has no problem having two porn actresses -- i.e., according to the sharia he follows, two prostitutes, deserving of stoning -- represent his business. Why? Because sharia doesn't say anything explicit about that -- though one can argue that having pretty "prostitutes" represent your business in order that, beguiled consumers can find it more appealing, is more immoral than shaking hands with women. Doesn't matter; sharia commands the one and is silent about the other.

"'Sharia' Law Firm Secretaries Unmasked as Porn Actresses," from NISNews, August 27:

Faizel Ali Enait refuses to shake hands with women and prefers them to wear burqas. But on the website of his law firm, two hard-core porn actresses posed as its secretaries.

Faizel Ali Enait claims to be a lawyer. He works for Jairam Advocaten, a law firm for Muslims in the Netherlands. Ali Enait lost a court case last week against Rotterdam municipality, which he accused of discrimination.

The municipality rejected the Muslim for a job as client manager at the Social Services department because he refused to shake hands with women. The judges ruled that Rotterdam had the right to do so.

Ali Enait, who regularly appears on talk shows, also wants women to wear burqas. But on the home page of Jairam Advocaten, two porn stars posed as its secretaries. Although wearing clothes, they were identified by news website Geenstijl.nl as well-known 'adult entertainment' models Anetta Keys and Rahilla.

Based on cache data, Geenstijl.nl established that the pictures had already been on the website since 2005. They therefore seem to have been deliberately picked by the 'sharia lawyers'.

Jairam Advocaten removed the porn actresses' portraits from its website yesterday, replacing them with a picture of what appears to be its office. This time Geenstijl.nl discovered that the picture chosen was a prestigious office building in Rotterdam. In reality, Jairam Advocaten is located in a shabby building in Amsterdam.

Taqiyya Alert: In an editorial on the Brotherhood's own site, Ikhwan web, Khaled Salam claims that "Islamophobes" are responsible for linking the Muslim Brotherhood with American Muslim groups.

"Muslim Brotherhood Hits the Obama Campaign Trail," by Khaled Salam for IkhwanWeb, August 11:

The ongoing controversy in the U.S. surrounding resignation of Mr. Mazen Asbahi, Muslim-outreach advisor to presumptive democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama, is quite intriguing. Mr. Asbahi is an Arab American corporate attorney who resigned last week amidst allegations of old loose ties with individuals associated with organizations thought to be linked to the Muslim Brotherhood (MB). Mr. Asbahi’s crime is that he also appeared as a guest speaker before such organizations allegedly linked to the MB. Islamic organizations in the U.S. described the campaign against Mr. Asbahi as “nationwide efforts by Islamophobes who seek to deny Muslims access to the political process.”

The MB has repeatedly denied it has any representation in the U.S., nor does it maintain any links with any of the Islamic or charitable organizations in the U.S. We have previously clarified that moderate and pragmatic Islamic thought is not exclusive of the MB, however, there are many other Islamic movements and organizations throughout the world that have the same mainstream principles as the MB but not necessarily part of its organizational structure.

In this regard, the MB confirmed that it absolutely has no organizational links, ties, or associations with any of the Islamic organizations in the U.S., including but not limited to: The Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), The Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), the Muslim Student Association (MSA), the Muslim American Society (MAS), and the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT).

It isn't "Islamophobes" who have made this connection. Most of these organizations or their parent groups (in CAIR's case) were named as “friends” of the Muslim Brotherhood in the infamous May 1991 Brotherhood memorandum that spoke of Muslim organizations in the U.S. as being engaged in "a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and ‘sabotaging’ its miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and Allah’s religion is made victorious over all other religions.”

But wait! There's more!

There are however, ideological similarities between the MB and most of above mentioned Islamic organizations for the fact that these ideologies represent mainstream moderate Islamic thinking. However, some of the founders or members of these organizations were at some point in their lives either members or sympathizers of the MB in their native countries before they migrate to the U.S. or other countries....

And that opens the door again -- the very door that Salam was trying to close. Brotherhood leader Mohammed Habib opened it farther in a recent interview:

SM: Is there a Muslim Brotherhood in the U.S.?

Mohamed Habib: I would say yes. There are Muslim Brotherhood members there.

SM: Then what are they doing there?

Mohamed Habib: No, there are already existing institutions; there are laws and a constitution that they operate under in order to have a role in serving the American society. They are part of the American society and they want to an active positive role in it, and a part of that is to spread a positive image of Islam along with its values, culture, history and teachings.

SM: This is naturally very important. Who represents you in the US?

Mohamed Habib: Well, there are there those who do represent us, who do that role.

SM: But it’s not CAIR, right? The Council for American Islamic Relations? Many people say that they are your front. Other people say that its ISNA. But back to CAIR, some people from the Muslim Brotherhood have denied having a connection with CAIR. Do they really represent you?

Mohamed Habib: Ehh, this is a sensitive subject, and it’s kind of problematic, especially after 9/11 …

SM: For them to say that there is a relationship between you two?

Mohamed Habib: Yes. You can say that.

So the MB, contrary to Salam's claims, is in the U.S., and does have a relationship with CAIR -- at least. And this comes from the leader of the organization.

More Islamist skeletons in Obama's closet? And you thought Rev. Jeremiah Wright was bad? Wait till you see what this Obama supporter has to say about whitey. And then they wonder why Obama keeps distancing himself (at least publicly) from Muslims. "Another Radical Obama Association?" by Amanda Carpenter for Townhall, August 26:

Old videos appear to show a radical Muslim named Khalid Al-Mansour helped Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama gain acceptance into Harvard Law.

Civil rights activist Percy Sutton recalled being solicited by a man named Dr. Khalid A-Mansour to write a letter of recommendation to help Obama gain acceptance into Harvard Law in this undated television interview available HERE.

"I was introduced to him [Obama] by a friend who was raising money for him and the friends name was Dr. Khalid al Mansour from Texas,” Sutton said. “He is the principle adviser to one of the world's richest men. He told me about Obama. He wrote to me about him and his introduction was 'there is a young man that has applied to Harvard and I know that you have a few friends left there because you used to go up there to speak, would you please write a letter in support of him?'...I wrote a letter in support of him to my friends at Harvard saying to them I thought there was a genius that was going to be available and I sure hoped they would treat him kindly."

There are many videos available on the internet featuring a man named Khalid Al-Mansour, who describes himself as an author, scholar and businessman, blasting the Jewish culture and Christianity and preaching the virtues of Islam, reminiscent of the controversial clips discovered of Obama’s longtime friend and former pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright that rocked headlines earlier this spring.

In one of the videos, titled “Christians Designed Discrimination” uploaded by a YouTube user named IslamStudios, Al-Mansour said, “White people don't feel bad, whatever you do to them, they deserve it, God wants you to do it and that's when you cut out the nose, cut out the ears, take flesh out of their body, don't worry because God wants you to do it."

He also draws lines between whites and African Americans. “The Christianity that white people got and the Christianity that black people got was not the same,” he added.

In this video, Al-Monsour said white people fear Islam. “The whites are saying we can’t take over Islam, we are going to destroy it. They don’t care if you become a Buddhist, they don’t care if you are a Confuscist, you can be a Christian, you can be anything in this world you want, the only thing they are afraid of is Islam because there is 1 billion 200 million, they don’t want you with that league!

In another video, posted July 1, Al-Mansour styles himself as a political analyst, advising former president Bill Clinton when, where and how Clinton should endorse Obama for president. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBnBnXPQwyM

What are the implications of this for the idea that the jihadists constitute a Tiny Minority of Extremists among Muslims? Why, none, of course. The article here seems to consider the possibility only that Canadian officials have alienated the Muslim community with their ham-handed anti-terror efforts -- a fanciful notion at best.

"Canadian intelligence seeks support of Muslim leaders," by Ajit Jain for Rediff, August 27 (thanks to Twostellas):

[...] The Muslim leaders were invited for the round table as Canada's [Images] spy agency is reportedly frightened of potential terrorist attacks on Canadians and now are seeking the help of Muslim leaders.

"I want you to help... Us doing it alone is like one hand clapping," Ellis told the group on August 16 in Toronto.

Not many Muslims were interested in attending this round table and in fact some e-mails were reportedly circulated advising Muslim leaders to stay away from the meeting.

Ellis admitted that attendance was small, which was unfortunate for him. He conceded that prior to the meeting, certain opinion makers in the Muslim community had circulated e-mails suggesting it was best to give the meeting a pass, since no high level political officials from Ottawa were there.

It happened as "the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, CSIS and other agencies have lost credibility," one of about 20 Muslims who came for the meeting reportedly stood up to tell Ellis.

His reference was to 18 young Muslims who were arrested two years back for allegedly conspiring to commit terrorist acts within the country, targeting important buildings and some political leaders. Charges against many of them have been dropped.

"We don't target the Muslim community; we are trying to work with you," Ellis said. He reportedly stressed that CSIS and RCMP lawfully zero in on the tiny percentage of Muslims who are drawn towards violent extremism, and urged Muslim leaders to get past 'urban legend' and read up on what judges are actually finding....

And why not? Surely Muslims allow churches to flourish and tower high in Dar al-Islam, allowing Christians to exclaim five times a day, on megaphones, that "Jesus is the Son of God!" Oh, they don't; oh, some Muslim nations don't even allow the construction of churches. Never mind, then. More on this story. "Swiss government opposes minaret ban ahead of vote," from the AP, August 27:

The Federal Council recommended on Wednesday rejecting the ban when it goes to popular referendum in two months.

The coalition government includes all major political factions except the right-wing Swiss People's Party. It is the strongest in the country and most supportive of the ban.

The government says the proposal violates human rights and the Swiss constitution and would not help combat Islamic fundamentalism.

Supporters of the ban say the minaret is a symbol of Muslim conquest that challenges traditional order in Switzerland.

That it most certainly is. According to the subscription-only Brill Online Encyclopedia of Islam: “[T]hroughout the mediaeval period, the role of the minaret oscillated between two polarities: as a sign of power and as an instrument for the adhan (call to prayer). However, in evidence that it was mostly viewed as a sign of power, the entry concludes: “It [the minaret] seems on the whole unrelated to its function of the adhan calling the faithful to prayer, which can be made quite adequately from the roof of the mosque or even from the house-top.” Not to mention, devout Muslims are supposed to know when to pray and shouldn't need constant reminding.

Looking at the Left (thanks to Pamela) has this one and more pictures of the Iranian exhibit outside the DNC, in the shadow of the Colorado state capital building. Zombie has more at LGF. The exhibit is devoted to showing how wonderful life is inside the Iranian mullahcracy, and comes complete with a pseudo-mosque. Says Zombie:

The purpose of the exhibit was "transparently" to arouse sympathy for the Iranian people and discourage any US military action aimed at stopping the Iranian government from getting a nuclear bomb. Or so it seemed to me.

A Muslim in Europe says 9/11 was justified and discusses the Muslims' plans for Europe.

This video has been up for awhile, but it has just been posted today at Islam in Europe, where I saw it (thanks to Rudi).

As Muhammad said, baddala deenahu faqtuhulu: If anyone changes his religion, kill him. "An Egyptian Muslim's long journey towards Christianity," from AFP, August 25 (thanks to all who sent this in):

CAIRO (AFP) — Maher al-Gohari converted to Christianity 30 years ago, but the Muslim-born Egyptian only recently took the decision to make his conversion public.

The 56-year-old former policeman has put applied to the Higher Administrative Court to have his religion changed from "Muslim" to "Christian" on his official ID card.

In Egypt, citizens are required to carry their personal ID cards at all times. Without an ID card, one has no access to basic services.

It's ony the second time this year that such a request has been made in a country where converting to Christianity, while not illegal, is practically impossible.

In January, a court rejected a request by a Christian convert from Islam, Mohammed Higazi, to have his new religion written on his identity card.

The following month however, a court decision authorised 12 converts to Islam who then reverted to Christianity to have their original faith marked on their ID cards.

Which put their lives in danger, as explained here.

In Higazi's case, the judge based his decision on Sharia, Islamic law, to prove that one cannot convert to an "older religion".

"Monotheistic religions were sent by God in chronological order... As a result, it is unusual to go from the latest religion to the one that preceded it," the judge said at the time.

The Higher Administrative Court is due to hear on September 2 the case of Maher al-Gohari, whose chosen Christian name is Peter Ethnassios, and who has been in hiding after receiving death threats from his family.

"I was forced to leave my family home where I have lived with my mother and daughter," he told AFP.

"My family has threatened me with death after the press published reports about the legal request I made," he continued.

The rage felt by members of his family, many of whom belong to the police forces, comes from the fact they feel "dishonoured" by his choice and consider him an apostate, a crime in Islam, he said.

"I never insulted Islam. I simply wanted my rights and wanted the state to treat me according to the belief I have chosen," said Gohari, after years of keeping his conversion to himself. [...]

"My younger brother knew about it but since then he's been waiting for outside my building ... with a gun," he said. "He wants to kill me."

After January's court decision rejecting Higazi's official conversion, Gohari's case will once again test the issue of freedom of religion in Egypt, and even in Muslim countries.

A year ago, Ali Gomaa, Egypt's grand mufti (the government appointed interpreter of Islamic law) decreed that Muslims were free to change their religion despite an opposite trend in the Islamic world, where apostasy is sometimes punished by death.

The fatwa, or religious decree, was never officially implemented.

And Ali Gomaa himself backtracked.

The presence of a religion field on ID papers has been highly criticised by the New York-based Human Rights Watch as being at the root of discrimination against converts to Christianity and members of religious minorities.

It is good to see Human Rights Watch on this.

Yet another example of the projection and displacement of responsibility that we see so often from Muslim leaders: the Israelis have made concession after concession, endeavoring to show good faith for negotiations for a lasting peace, while both Fatah and Hamas have trampled upon truces, attacked civilians, and shown contempt repeatedly for any genuine negotiated settlement. If any group has demonstrated, again and again, that they "only understand the language of the gun," it is the "Palestinians." And with his bellicose and sometimes genocidal rhetoric, perhaps the Thug-In-Chief is showing that he also only understands that particular language.

"Ahmadinejad: Zionist regime only understands language of the gun," from the Jerusalem Post, August 26 (thanks to Eleytheria ´H Thanatos):

"The Zionist regime has always shown that it only understands the language of the gun," Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Tuesday.

At the end of a meeting with estranged and veteran PLO leader Farouk Kaddoumi, Ahmadinejad added that the Israel "is a corrupt, criminal and occupying" regime and that "all its supporters will collapse."

"The only way to fight against it is through the armed struggle of the Palestinian factions," he said.

"See that guy Spencer, Barack? He thinks he's Freakin' Batman!"

Now, don't get all excited about the title of this article. I'm not saying that Obama and Biden are like Osama bin Laden. (But just try saying that last sentence quickly.) I am not the first, nor will I be the last, to have fun with this little wordplay, and if the McCain-Whoever ticket left itself open to similar wordplay, I wouldn't hesitate. Anyway, here is my latest Human Events column:

Now that Obama has made his momentous choice, it is useful to recall that during a Democratic presidential candidates’ debate in April 2007, Biden was among those who did not raise his hand to affirm his belief in the existence of a “global war on terror.”

In this, Biden and the head of the ticket appear to be completely simpatico. This has been clear from the beginning of the presumptive Democratic nominee’s campaign: analyzing an Obama speech at the same time that Biden was denying the existence of the war on terror, a Washington Post editorial noted that the candidate “does not use the phrase ‘war on terrorism.’ More remarkably, he doesn’t mention Islam, much less Islamic extremism -- which Mr. Bush has described as a critical ideological threat to freedom inside and outside the Muslim world.”

Here is Allyson Rowan Taylor of Shariah Finance Watch, discussing the phenomenon on Fox News. It is surprising and encouraging to see this topic aired on TV news at this juncture -- bravo, Allyson!

Backlash. "Pakistan: Border Villages Rise Up Against Taliban," by Ashfaq Yusufzai for IPS, August 26 (thanks to Will):

PESHAWAR, Aug 26 (IPS) - "We are trend-setters. Others are following us," boasts Rauf Khan, mayor of Pakistan’s Buner district, where villagers killed six militants in the Dara Shalbandi area on Aug. 14.

In some parts of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), people are enlisting in anti-Taliban squads to take on the extremists who are blamed for a spate of abductions and arson attacks on girls’ schools, rural clinics and cyber cafes.

Rauf Khan is leading the village defence squads in Buner, a small valley between Peshawar and Swat. On Aug. 8, the Taliban had attacked the Pir Baba police station in Buner and killed nine policemen.

The village defence squad retaliated with indiscriminate firing that resulted in the deaths of eight militants, including Kamran Khan, the so-called chief of the Tehreek Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in adjacent Mardan district.

"Villagers had asked the militants to surrender before they laid siege," Khan told IPS. "But the militants requested safe passage. That was denied. Then the militants threw a hand-grenade in the direction of the villagers to break the siege," he recounts....

Confirmed: Not a Methodist, in an update on this story. Just another "misunderstander" of Islam, and one more misguided interior spiritual struggler in the ranks of the Tiny Minority of Extremists.

"White Muslim convert arrested over 'Gordon Brown assassination plot'," by Nigel Bunyan for the Telegraph, August 26:

The 25-year-old man was arrested at a flat in the Whalley Range area of Blackburn, Lancs, shortly before 7am on Tuesday.

He is believed to be a friend of two other men arrested by counter-terrorism officers at Manchester Airport on August 14.

The pair, who had been about to board a flight to Finland, live less than 100 yards from the home of the suspect held on Tuesday.

A fourth suspect, also from Blackburn, was arrested in Church, near Accrington, shortly after the arrests at Manchester Airport.

All four men are being questioned about a posting on an Arabic website that often carries messages from senior members of al-Qaeda.

The message, written in English, allegedly included a threat to target "all the political leaders, especially Tony Blair and Gordan (sic) Brown".

It appeared only briefly on January 24 and purported to have been written by Shaykh Umar Rabie al-Khalaila, who described himself as "the leader of al-Qaeda in Britain".

The latest man to be arrested changed his name when he converted to Islam four years ago.

Decent Fellows Alert:

A friend, who asked not to be named, said he was surprised by his arrest.

"He is a good lad," said the 25-year-old businessman. "I used to see him at the mosque and he doesn't have extreme views".

He was not surprised that police had made another arrest. "I've seen plainclothes police hanging around in cars for a few weeks now".

Police broke down the door to the suspect's flat at 6.40am. The property lies behind a butcher's shop and next to an Islamic bookshop.

Specialist search teams from the Lancashire Constabulary began a detailed search of the premises. They are not expected to complete the task until the weekend.

The three men arrested on August 14 are being held in Manchester. Counter-terrorism officers have until Thursday to decide whether to charge them, release them or seek an extension to their custody.

The mother of one of the arrested trio insists that her son is innocent.

Mariam Kanmi, 50, said her son, Ishaq, 22, a teacher, was arrested as he prepared to fly out to Helsinki, where he was due to spend the month of Ramadan at a conference.

"My son is an innocent boy and we are a well-respected family here," said Mrs Kanmi. "He is not involved in terrorism.

"He hasn't incited anyone to kill Mr Brown. He hasn't plotted with terrorists. We haven't even got a TV here or the internet.

"He was going to Finland for Holy month. There was going to be a grand opening but he has missed that. He's been going there for six years. He always teaches abroad"....

No word on how long that concern has been present, or increasing. But we reported on this here in 2006.

"Hezbollah presence in Venezuela feared," by Chris Kraul and Sebastian Rotella for the Los Angeles Times, August 26:

BOGOTA, COLOMBIA -- Western anti-terrorism officials are increasingly concerned that Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based Shiite Muslim militia that Washington has labeled a terrorist group, is using Venezuela as a base for operations.

Linked to deadly attacks on Jewish targets in Argentina in the early 1990s, Hezbollah may be taking advantage of Venezuela's ties with Iran, the militia's longtime sponsor, to move "people and things" into the Americas, as one Western government terrorism expert put it.

As part of his anti-American foreign policy, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has established warm diplomatic relations with Iran and has traveled there several times. The Bush administration, Israel and other governments worry that Venezuela is emerging as a base for anti-U.S. militant groups and spy services, including Hezbollah and its Iranian allies.

"It's becoming a strategic partnership between Iran and Venezuela," said a Western anti-terrorism official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the issue is sensitive.

Several joint Venezuelan-Iranian business operations have been set up in Venezuela, including tractor, cement and auto factories. In addition, the two countries have formed a $2-billion program to fund social projects in Venezuela and elsewhere in Latin America.

Those deepening ties worry U.S. officials because Iranian spies around the world have been known to work with Hezbollah operatives, sometimes using Iranian embassies as cover, Western intelligence experts say. [...]

See also: Nicaragua.

Hezbollah has long operated in the large Lebanese communities of Latin America. In addition to receiving a multimillion-dollar infusion from Iran, the militia finances itself by soliciting or extorting money from the Lebanese diaspora and through rackets such as smuggling, fraud and the drug and diamond trade in South America and elsewhere, Matthew Levitt, a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told Congress in 2005.

Three years ago, police in Colombia and Ecuador broke up an international cocaine-smuggling ring that functioned in Latin American countries, including Venezuela, and allegedly sent profits to Hezbollah in Lebanon. The lawless "tri-border" region connecting Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina has been a center of mafia activities and finance linked to Hezbollah, Western anti-terrorism officials say.

Hezbollah operatives based there participated, along with Iranian spies, in the car bombings in Buenos Aires of the Israeli Embassy in 1992 and a Jewish community center two years later that killed a total of 114 people, an Argentine indictment charges.

In the aftermath of that indictment, filed in 2006, Hezbollah and its Iranian sponsors, chiefly the Revolutionary Guard, decided to shift from the increasingly scrutinized tri-border area to countries including Venezuela, Western anti-terrorism officials say.

"Hezbollah's overseas apparatus and the Revolutionary Guard [are] building new infrastructures in Latin America," the Western security official said. "It preserves the capability of Hezbollah and the Revolutionary Guard to mount attacks inside Latin America. . . . It is very, very important to Iran and Hezbollah right now."

More on this story, and an update on Taliban encroachment in and around Peshawar: It looks like the latest truce between Pakistan and the Taliban, signed in July, is yielding familiar results. "U.S. Diplomat Attacked in Peshawar," by Jane Perlez for the New York Times:

[...] In the increasingly lawless northern city of Peshawar on Tuesday morning, three men with assault rifles and the long hair and beards of the Taliban attacked a vehicle carrying a top American diplomat, the provincial police chief said.

The bulletproof Land Cruiser carrying the diplomat, Lynne Tracy, the principal officer at the United States Consulate in Peshawar, was stopped by the three men who got out of a sport utility vehicle and fired, said the police official, Malik Naveed Khan, inspector general of the police in North-West Frontier Province.

Ms. Tracy, who was headed to work at the consulate from her home about a mile away, was unharmed, he said.

The men attacked as the Taliban, who virtually control the tribal areas adjacent to Peshawar, pressed in on the city, conducting suicide bomb attacks and kidnapping civilians.

The attack took place in a district known as University Town, considered one of the more secure areas with large houses protected by high walls and guards.

About 30 Americans work at the consulate, mostly managing economic development programs and as liaisons between the American military and the Pakistani Army. Since the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and the Pentagon, when Pakistan joined the Bush administration in the fight against terrorism, the movements of American diplomats in Pakistan have been restricted, and they have been advised not to travel outside major cities.

Lou Fintor, a spokesman for the American Embassy in Islamabad, said, “There was a security incident in Peshawar this morning involving a U.S. Consulate vehicle.” He said three employees were in the car.

A current focus of the consulate is a $750 million program to encourage economic development and to counter the influence of the Taliban in the nearby tribal areas. A number of Americans who work on that program but who are not officially employees of the consulate live in the city.

Two Americans were killed in 2002, when gunmen attacked a Protestant church in Islamabad. In 2006, a car bombing killed an American diplomat at the consulate in Karachi.

In the past year, suicide bombers have attacked Pakistani military targets in Peshawar. Last week, the Pakistani Taliban took responsibility for a suicide bomber who hit a bus carrying members of the Pakistani Air Force, killing 14.

And shots were fired at U.S. consulate staff in Peshawar. Pakistan Jihad Update: "Blast at Pakistan rally, shots fired at U.S. vehicle," from Reuters, August 26 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - A blast hit a rally promoting autonomy for Pakistan's gas-rich Baluchistan province on Tuesday, wounding more than 20 people, while in the city of Peshawar shots were fired at U.S. consulate staff.

Violent incidents have been increasing in nuclear-armed Pakistan in recent weeks, while its ruling politicians have been distracted by infighting. [...]

Allies and analysts fear the squabbling could keep the government from dealing effectively with economic problems and violent Islamist militants, especially in northwestern areas on the Afghan border where militants have sanctuaries.

In the northwestern city of Peshawar, near the border, gunmen fired four shots at a U.S. consulate vehicle carrying three staff members on Tuesday but there were no injuries, police said.

Peshawar is the capital of Pakistan's violence-plagued North West Frontier Province, and the United States has a heavily guarded consulate there.

"Gunmen in a landcruiser opened fire at the car but no one was hurt," said city police official Raziq Khan....

Infidel

"Those who applaud the new government and those who are against it must stop and turn to the strict application of Sharia." That is always and everywhere the goal.

Note here, yet again, the strong Islamic content of Al-Qaeda's communiques -- while the U.S. government has decided to refrain from any discussion of Islam and the jihad theology in connection with the terror threat. How they can make any sense of messages like this one while ignoring Islam and jihad is beyond me.

"Al-Qaeda denounces Mauritania's 'infidel' military junta: report," from AFP, August 25 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

NOUAKCHOTT (AFP) — The suspected head of Al-Qaeda in Mauritania urged the country's Muslims not to recognise the ruling military junta, calling it an "infidel regime," AFP learned Monday.

The denunciation came as the head of the African Union (AU) Commission said he held an "optimistic" meeting with the junta's leader General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, aimed at restoring a constitutional government.

In a two-page letter, handwritten in Arabic from prison and signed with his name, El Khadim Ould Esseman wrote that Muslims must not support or recognise the junta that seized power earlier this month.

"Even if (the head of the junta) linked by blood and membership of the same tribal group, the Muslim faith disqualifies him from leading the Muslim nation because he is comparable to an infidel," the letter said.

"Those who applaud the new government and those who are against it must stop and turn to the strict application of Sharia." [...]

The suspected head of Mauritania's branch of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb is accused of being the mastermind behind February's attack on the Israeli embassy in Nouakchott, for which Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility.

He was arrested at the end of April after he escaped prison in 2006.

A court charged him with "using the territory (of Mauritania) to lead terrorist acts against a foreign country" (Israel) and "belonging to a terrorist organisation."

Earlier this month a statement by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb appeared on the Internet condemning the coup in Mauritania and urging the Mauritanian people "to prepare for war."...

Some of the posts on "The Wall" at this Al-Qaeda Facebook page appear to be tongue-in-cheek, but not all of them.

There is also jihad recruitment propaganda from YouTube, posted there by the site administrator, Abdul Wahab Al-Nasralla.

Via the Jewish Internet Defense Force (thanks to Peter), where there is more.

Opening soon in the North West Frontier Province

The Taliban soldiers on in the North West Frontier Province, defying the ban that was just put on the group. They don't like barber shops because men run the risk of coming out of them clean-shaven, or with beards at least trimmed. All the schools of Islamic jurisprudence teach that shaving one's beard is unlawful, except for the Shafi'is. The Imam Shafi'i wrote two treatises about the issue, saying in one that shaving the beard was unlawful, but in another that it was merely offensive.

In any case, when the Taliban notes that something is forbidden in Islam, they mean to enforce the prohibition. And the same thing could happen anywhere that Sharia is the highest law of the land, and those in power wish to bring the society fully into compliance with it.

"Blast destroys barber shop in Mardan," from the Daily Times, August 26 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

MARDAN: A barber shop was destroyed in a bomb blast early on Monday. The blast also caused partial damage to several other buildings, including a private school. The local Taliban have been targeting barber shops, cinemas and music shops in the NWFP. They have also destroyed dozens of girls’ schools.

Including another one yesterday.

The headline to this WXII story is "Former Student Sentenced In UNC Crash." Crash? There was no "crash" in the sense of an accident. Taheri-azar, by his own admission, was trying to kill students by hitting them with the SUV, and did so -- again by his own admission -- because he believed the Qur'an directed him to kill infidels.

"Former Student Sentenced In UNC Crash," from WXII12.com, August 26 (thanks to WDW):

HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. -- The former college student who pleaded guilty to plowing his sport utility vehicle into a crowd at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will spend up to 33 years in prison.

Mohammed Taheri-Azar was sentenced Tuesday in Orange County Superior Court.

He pleaded guilty to nine counts of attempted murder earlier this month for the March 3, 2006 attack at a popular outdoor gathering spot on campus.

The 25-year-old said he was avenging the deaths of Muslims by the U.S. across the world....

Yes, and he said much more, also.

Gee, who could they be?

"Somalia: Plane Makes Emergency Landing After Bullet Damages," from the Shabelle Media Network (Mogadishu), August 26 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

A plane that transports Khat to Kismayo town has unpredictably landed at KM50 airport in Lower Shabelle region after unknown armed groups have opened fire on the plane while it was planning to land at Kismayo airport that redirect the plane to KM50 airfield in lower Shabelle region on Tuesday morning officials said.

More bullets were reported to have been struck on the plane.

The plane has landed at KM50 airport with spilling out fuel.

No human causalities were reported.

Kismayo town is under islamists control....

A strike against the governing order. "Suicide bomber kills 28 in strike on Iraq recruits," from Reuters, August 26 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest blew himself up in a crowd of Iraqi police recruits on Tuesday, killing 28 people and wounding 45, police said.

Initial reports had earlier described the attack, in the town of Jalawla in northern Diyala province, as a suicide car bomb attack at a security force checkpoint.

A police source said the bomber struck a large crowd of recruits lining up to apply to join the police. Recruitment stations have been frequent targets of militants in the past....

Ten currently operate in the UK, with around 95 per cent of their cases dealing with matrimonial issues. "Sharia courts rule on sex lives in Britain," by Graham Tibbetts for the Telegraph, August 26 (thanks to Shechild):

Unofficial Sharia courts are governing people's sex lives in Britain.

Although the hearings have no basis in British law, they are attended voluntarily by Muslim couples to settle disputes without referral to the recognised authorities.

In some cases they can order wives to be more attentive to their husbands' needs, or deal with releasing spouses from bad or forced marriages.

The first Muslim court was established in Birmingham in 1982 and others have followed in London and the Yorkshire towns of Rotherham and Dewsbury.

Although most of those who attend are from the Indian sub-continent, Sharia courts are also popular among those from Arab and Somalian backgrounds.

Sharia is based on the religious rulings in the Koran, of later judges and on the acts of the Prophet Mohammed.

It encompasses not just enforceable law but moral law too.

Earlier this year the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, came under fierce attack from the Government and his own church for advocating the adoption of parts of Sharia Law in Britain.

"It seems unavoidable and, as a matter of fact, certain conditions of Sharia are already recognised in our society," he said.

One thing to be a dhimmi, involuntarily; another to be a dhimmi due to one's masochistic tendencies -- such as this druid-in-priest's-guise, Williams, who would have his fellow countrymen, including Christians, believe that sharia is "unavoidable," and thus submit to it.

A new review for The Al Qaeda Reader, from the Terrorism and Political Violence journal, which was just brought to my attention by a terrorism analyst. Good to know that, while some in the government are still quarreling over what to call jihadists, others are bothering to find out, not only what the jihadists call themselves, but also how they think. “Islam and War: A Review Essay,” by John C. Zimmerman, for Terrorism and Political Violence, Fall issue:

In The Al Qaeda Reader, Raymond Ibrahim has translated and masterfully assembled a number of key statements by Osama bin Laden and his chief lieutenant, Ayman al Zawahiri, that shed light on their views. The centerpiece of this collection is a long exegisis by Bin Laden entitled ‘‘Moderate Islam is a Prostration to the West.’’ Most of Bin Laden’s communique´s are intended to be read in the West as well as byMuslims.3 However, this statement was solely intended for aMuslim audience. He denounces a declaration by Saudi intellectuals that seeks co existence with non-Muslims ‘‘as if one of the foundations of our religion is how to coexist with infidels’’ (p. 23).

Bin Laden rejects arguments that the West does not understand Islam. Rather, he acknowledges that there is a great deal of scholarship in the West on Islam. However, the reason for Western hostility is the Islamic doctrine of offensive jihad, which the West wants Muslims to abandon. Offensive jihad requires Muslims to attack non-Muslims and subordinate them to second class citizenship as dhimmis (non-Muslims under Muslim rule). ‘‘The West avenges itself against Islam for giving infidels but three options: Islam, jizya [a special tax imposed on non-Muslims] or the sword’’ (p. 42). Therefore, ‘‘Islam is spread with the sword alone, just as the Prophet [Muhammad] was sent forth with the sword’’ (pp. 46–47).

According to Bin Laden, Muslims cannot abandon offensive jihad because it ‘‘is an established and basic tenet of this religion’’ (p. 32). He asks: ‘‘Why else did the sword come as an important pillar, enslaving mankind to their Master [Allah]?’’(p. 33). Therefore, ‘‘Muslims, and especially the learned among them, should spread sharia [Islamic] law to the world–that and nothing else’’ (p. 33). Waging jihad ‘‘is our only option for glory, as has been continuously demonstrated in the [Islamic] texts’’ (p. 33). He states that ‘‘[b]attle, animosity, and hatred-directed from the Muslim to the infidel–is the foundation of our religion’’ (p. 43).

Actually, it's unlikely that he was a Methodist, since this story starts talking about jihadi websites. But rest assured, I will not rest in my determination to find a living, breathing illustration of what everyone knows to be true: that the Bible is just as violent, and just as likely to inspire violent acts, as the Qur'an. And that there is no essential difference between Western, Judeo-Christian culture and Islamic culture. After all, everyone knows these things are true, just as everyone knows that the threat of terrorism is over and the Islam and the Qur'an have nothing whatsoever to do with the upcoming election. Everyone knows these things. We'll find some proof eventually.

Anyway, this arrest could ultimately mean one less hole in Blackburn, Lancashire. "Terror police arrest in Blackburn," from the BBC, August 26 (thanks to Charles Martel):

A 25-year-old man has been arrested in Blackburn under the Terrorism Act, Lancashire Police said.

He was arrested at 0640 BST and an address in Whalley Range is being searched by specialist officers.

The arrest was part of an investigation by Lancashire Constabulary and Greater Manchester Counter Terrorism Unit.

BBC News has been told the arrest is part of an ongoing inquiry into threats made against Gordon Brown and Tony Blair at the beginning of this year.

Ch Supt Andy Rhodes said police would "endeavour to carry out any searches as quickly as possible", but inquiries can be "complex and may take time".

"This is a very sensitive time for all our communities and we are working hard to ensure everyone is kept up to date with as much information as we can give," he said.

He thanked locals for their co-operation and said he would "ensure people are kept updated in relation to the investigation".

Police Community Support Officers have been distributing leaflets explaining the anti-terror operation to locals.

Threats against the prime minister and his predecessor were made in January on a recognised jihadi website, by a group calling itself "al-Qaeda in Britain".

They also demanded the withdrawal of British forces from Iraq and Afghanistan as well as the release of Muslim prisoners from Belmarsh prison....

Definitely not as a Christian; sometimes as a Muslim apostate. Always as the best thing for Islam, no matter how much he "distances" himself from the faith. "Obama through Muslim eyes," by Daniel Pipes for the Jerusalem Post, August 25:

How do Muslims see Barack Obama? They have three choices: either as he presents himself, as one who has "never been a Muslim" and has "always been a Christian"; or as a fellow Muslim; or as an apostate from Islam.

Reports suggests that while Americans generally view the Democratic candidate having had no religion before converting at Rev. Jeremiah Wrights's hands at 27, Muslims the world over rarely see him as Christian but usually as either Muslim or ex-Muslim.

Lee Smith of the Hudson Institute explains why: "Barack Obama's father was Muslim and therefore, according to Islamic law, so is the candidate. In spite of the Koranic verses explaining that there is no compulsion in religion, a Muslim child takes the religion of his or her father... For Muslims around the world, non-American Muslims at any rate, they can only ever see Barack Hussein Obama as a Muslim."

In addition, his school record from Indonesia lists him as a Muslim. Thus, an Egyptian newspaper, Al-Masri al-Youm, refers to his "Muslim origins." Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi referred to Obama as "a Muslim" and a person with an "African and Islamic identity." One Al-Jazeera analysis calls him a "non-Christian man," a second refers to his "Muslim Kenyan" father, and a third, by Naseem Jamali, notes that "Obama may not want to be counted as a Muslim, but Muslims are eager to count him as one of their own."

A conversation in Beirut, quoted in the Christian Science Monitor, captures the puzzlement. "He has to be good for Arabs because he is a Muslim," observed a grocer. "He's not a Muslim, he's a Christian," replied a customer. Retorted the grocer: "He can't be a Christian. His middle name is Hussein." Arabic discussions of Obama sometimes mention his middle name as a code, with no further comment needed.[...]

BUT THIS excitement also has a dark side - suspicions that Obama is a traitor to his birth religion, an apostate (murtadd) from Islam. Al-Qaida has prominently featured Obama's statement "I am not a Muslim" and one analyst, Shireen K. Burki of the University of Mary Washington, sees Obama as "bin Laden's dream candidate." Should he become US commander-in-chief, she believes, Al-Qaida would likely "exploit his background to argue that an apostate is leading the global war on terror... to galvanize sympathizers into action."

In sum, Muslims puzzle over Obama's present religious status. They resist his self-identification as a Christian, while they assume a baby born to a Muslim father and named "Hussein" began life a Muslim.

The problem with this, of course, is that, not only does Islam permit deception (taqiyya), but Allah himself is described in the Koran as one of the "best deceivers" (3:54), though English translations are fond of euphemizing and translating m-k-r, which means "to deceive," to "plotter" or "schemer." More on this story, which was prompted by a sodomy case. "Invoking the name of Allah enough when swearing in Islam, says Indonesian Islamic scholars," by Mohd Nasir Yusoff for Bernama, August 26:

It is sufficient to invoke the name of Allah when swearing in Islam to prove one is telling the truth when others are doubtful, according to several Islamic scholars in Indonesia.

They were of the opinion doing this was enough to cast aside any doubts people may have on the matter sworn.

"From then on, it is in Allah's hands," said Dr Abdul Fatah Wibisono, the vice secretary of Majlis Tarjih PP Muhammadiyah, a religious non-governmental organisation in Indonesia.

He said any person implicated in the swearing should do likewise to clear his or her name but it was not compulsory to do so.

He added that it was up to the people to form their own conclusions when swearing is done according to Islam.

"But in terms of justice and punishment according to Syariah laws, the person making an accusation must provide evidence and witnesses," he said, adding that he hoped the sodomy issue involving Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) advisor Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim could be resolved soon in order to protect the sanctity of Islam.

Anwar's former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, 23, on Aug 14 swore according Islam at the Federal Territory Mosque in Kuala Lumpur that he was sodomised by the former deputy prime minister.

Anwar has since been charged in court with sodomising Saiful and the hearing is set for next month.

And this "excess of confidence" was nourished by their general ignorance of the nature of the jihad ideology, and of the tenacity and patience it would inspire in the Taliban. "Taliban threat ‘underestimated,’" by John Thornhill in Financial Times, August 24 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

A senior French general in Afghanistan has admitted that the international security force has underestimated the threat posed by the resurgent Taliban.

“We sinned through an excess of confidence,” said General Michel Stollsteiner, the French commander of the International Security Assistance Force in the Kabul region, following an ambush by the Taliban last week that killed 10 French troops and injured a further 21.

There are many things to worry about Barack Obama in his view of the Middle East and in his view of Islam, including his being opposed to the war in Iraq for all the wrong, and none of the right, reasons, and his dreamy belief that Afghanistan is the "central front" in the war -- when if one understood things better one would recognize that there is no "central front" in the war of self-defense against the Jihad that is being conducted worldwide. The Jihad is being waged both against Infidel nation-states, and against regimes in Muslim countries deemed insufficiently Muslim, as well as against non-Muslims in Dar al-Islam -- to push them back into submission, as with the Copts in Egypt, or to push them out altogether, as with Hindus and Christians in Pakistan.

There are many worrisome things about Barack Obama and those upon whom he has relied for information in the past (Rashid Khalidi), and at least some of whom he relies on in the present. He has shown no great understanding -- none at all, in fact -- of Islam. Most of his new, more "acceptable" (because mainstream) advisers, such as some taken over from Clinton -- including the egregious Albright and Dennis Ross -- are limited. They are wedded to the formulas and understandings and nostrums of the past, the past that was devoid of an understanding of the meaning, and menace, of Islam, and of the various instruments and manifestations of the Jihad -- from the killings of non-Muslims in Thailand and the Philippines to the persecution even within already Muslim-ruled lands of Christians, Hindus, and others (see Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Sudan).

Which is "Towelhead." The person who came up with that title is an "Arab-American," and sees nothing wrong with the title, which she selected to highlight racism in her novel by the same name. CAIR, however -- and true to its Islamist roots -- is only concerned with control and censorship. "'Towelhead' title draws objections," by Gregg Kilday for Reuters, August 26 (thanks to JCB):

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - An Islamic civil rights advocacy group has asked Warner Bros. to change the title of its upcoming film "Towelhead" because, it says, "the word is commonly used in a derogatory manner against people of the Muslim faith or Arab origin."

The studio said it plans to stand by the filmmakers, who chose the title to point out racial stereotypes, though it added, "We apologize for any offense that is caused by the title."

"Towelhead," directed by "Six Feet Under" creator Alan Ball and adapted for the screen by Alicia Erian from her novel of the same name, looks at the life of a 13-year-old Lebanese-American girl in the early '90s. A Warner Independent specialty title now being handled by parent studio Warners, it is scheduled to open September 12 in limited release in New York and Los Angeles.

The Greater Los Angeles Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations said Monday that because the moniker is a "racial and religious slur," Warners should consider calling the film "Nothing Is Private," the title under which it debuted at last year's Toronto International Film Festival.

Erian, who is Arab-American, said that although the title is an ethnic slur, she "selected it to highlight one of the novel's major themes: racism."

She called CAIR's work "admirable," but said that "the solution ... is not to force the artist to alter her work, but instead to use the occasion of that work as an entry point for meaningful debate and discussion."

Ball said he felt it was important to retain the title of Erian's novel because "she so effectively dramatizes the pain inflicted by such language, something many people of non-minority descent never have to face."

As random and destructive as Islamists may appear, they are often, one way or another, "supporting" the greater jihad -- which is precisely why they can get away (from an Islamic perspective) with being destructive and violent. These Somali pirates, for instance, are engaged in jihad al-mal (monetary jihad). Update on this story. "Piracy ransoms funding Somalia insurgency," by Daniel Wallis for Reuters, August 24:

NAIROBI (Reuters) - An explosion of piracy this month off the coast of Somalia is funding a growing insurgency onshore as the hijackers funnel hefty ransom payments to Islamist rebels, a maritime official said on Sunday.

A record four ships were seized in 48 hours last week off the anarchic Horn of Africa nation, meaning Somali pirates are currently holding hostage four cargo vessels, two tankers and a tug boat, along with about 130 crew members.

The spike in attacks at sea has coincided with a rise in assaults on land by radical al-Shabaab [the "youth"] insurgents, including the capture on Friday of Somalia's strategic southern port Kismayu.

The United States say al-Shabaab is a terrorist group with close ties to al Qaeda. Experts say some of the businessmen and warlords who command the pirates are also funding the rebels.

"The entire Somali coastline is now under control of the Islamists," Andrew Mwangura, head of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme, told Reuters in an interview.

"According to our information, the money they make from piracy and ransoms goes to support al-Shabaab activities onshore."

Piracy has been rife off Somalia since warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. Experts say at least 30 ships have been hijacked off the coast so far this year -- and the attacks have hit unprecedented levels this month.

"It's crazy. We have never seen anything like it in our years of tracking them," Mwangura said. "They've broken all records for piracy in this region and indeed the whole world."

RICH REWARDS

The main lure is money. Most of the hijacked ships have brought ransoms of at least $10,000, and sometimes much more.

Many pirates, particularly in the northern Puntland region, have quickly become local celebrities, flaunting their newfound cash by building palatial beachside villas, marrying extra wives or roaring around its dusty towns in flashy cars.[...]

Thursday -- a day before al-Shabaab fighters seized Kismayu following battles that killed at least 70 people -- was the worst day on record for piracy in Somali waters.

In the space of one day, gunmen hijacked a German cargo ship, an Iranian bulk carrier and a Japanese-operated tanker. That came after a Malaysian tanker laden with palm oil was seized in the same area on Wednesday.

The pirates are also holding a Thai cargo ship, a Nigerian tug boat and a Japanese-managed bulk carrier.

Mwangura said the captors of the Nigerian vessel had demanded a $1 million ransom to free it and its 10 crew.

He said there were also reports some Malaysian and Filipino hostages on board two of the other hijacked vessels might have been badly hurt by gunfire. But he said that was not confirmed.

His organization advises all shipping using the area to maintain a strict lookout for pirates around the clock, and to be especially wary of any small boats that approach them.

“Gulf oil producers are expected to earn a record $562 billion in 2008…” -- from this news article

That nearly $600 billion is just this year’s take. And it just counts the Gulf Arabs, not other Muslim states with plenty of oil dough to make mischief – think of Iran, or Libya. Since 1973 alone (there was plenty coming in before that, even though the real bonanza had not started for the likes of Saudi Arabia) the Muslim oil states have received -- by now -- about eleven trillion dollars. They have done nothing, and they do nothing, to deserve this money. No hard work, no clever entrepreneurial ideas. They simply sit on top of it.

And they are supposedly loyal to fellow Muslims, so one would think that they would share that wealth. But of course they don't. Or rather, some of the rich Arabs and Muslims "share" the teeny-tiniest amounts for very specific purposes. For example, sums are raised to supply a little money to those paladins of the most immediate neighborhood Jihad, the suicide bombers in Israel. But save for one or two ostentatious transmittals of money -- say, to Hariri's party in Lebanon -- there is no sharing of wealth with poorer members of the Umma. Instead, the rich Arabs have been able to inveigle the world into ignoring their incredible greed. And Saudi Arabia, according to J. B. Kelly, has for decades carefully inflated its population numbers in order to lower the published per-capita income figures as well as to engage in a little froggy throat-swelling. The rich Arabs deflect calls for wealth-sharing within the Umma, and most amazing of all, they convince the Western world, that is, the Americans and the Western Europeans, that it is they who should be shelling out aid to Egypt, to Pakistan, to Jordan, to the "Palestinian" warlords and "authorities."

Not just one, as we noted yesterday. "Two girls attempting suicide bombings caught by Iraq's Diala police," from KUNA, August 25 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

BAGHDAD, Aug 25 (KUNA) -- Iraqi police said Monday that they arrested two teenage girls caught wearing an explosives vests, prodding them in a video released today to confess to plans to stage a suicide bombing.

The girls appeared confused, but denied the allegation, saying that they never intended to carry out the attack and wanted to remove the vests. Still, the girls, who were arrested Sunday, heightened concern about a rise in suicide bombings by women in Iraq. The number of female bombers has more than tripled this year, from eight in 2007 to 29 this year, according to the US military, the circumstances of the girls' arrest remained unclear. US Officials said that one of the suspects had turned herself in, while local police said she was caught after arousing suspicion....

"That they'll now read from the Quran at a national political convention — that shows we have come a long way in this country," he says.

"That I'm here — that shows it, too." – Former accused jihadist spy and DNC delegate James Yee, in this article

Print that out.

Then put that in your neighbor's pipe and have him smoke it. But not before you have made sure that he reads a little. Sura 9 will do. The tale of little Aisha will do. The hadith about killing Jews will do. All three would be good. And, in a spirit of self-promotion, I will recommend my own "Islam For Infidels" that can be found online here, and printed out.

Explain to that friend, that relative, that colleague, or that person you meet on the subway or in the checkout line, that if he -- or she -- will only begin to read a little, only begin to find out a little, only begin to unstop his ears and uncover his eyes, things seen as if through a glass darkly will be made plain. He can go to the websites that deal with such matters, such as this one, and the less partisan those websites are, the better. Or he can go to the websites run by the unfoolable and relentless ex-Muslims, such as www.answering-islam.org or www.faithfreedom.org.

I just canceled my plans to vacation in lovely Qom.

Sharia Alert: "Iran: Beating up tourists in Shiraz," from the National Council of Resistance of Iran, August 24 (thanks to Islamo-Nazism):

Last week six women and a man touring the southern city of Shiraz were beaten and arrested. The State Security Forces (SSF) – mullahs' suppressive police – Chastity Unit patrolling the streets stopped a group of East Asians touring the city for not observing the strictly imposed dress code. Not having a translator, the group resisted the SSF agents and was severely beaten and arrested.

The Asian tourists then spent a few hours at the SSF custody before finally being released by their country's embassy.

This was not an isolated incident of the kind. In the past year there have been tourists harassed by the SSF enforcing the dress code in line with the suppressive "boosting public security plan."...

Will all the Sharia supremacists be gone from Iraq by the end of 2011? Of course not. The Iraqi Constitution already stipulates that no law can be made that contradicts Sharia -- a stipulation that Donald Rumsfeld long ago declared would not go into the document.

In any case, this ensures that both before and after 2011, the status of women and religious minorities will continue to erode, and whether the Sunnis or the Shia ultimately win out in Iraq, or come to some kind of accord (however improbable that may be in the long term), the country will increasingly become a Sharia state.

"Iraq, US agree no foreign troops after 2011," from AFP, August 25 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

BAGHDAD - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki on Monday said Washington and Baghdad have agreed that there will be no foreign forces in the war-torn country after 2011.

"There is an agreement between the two sides that there will be no foreign soldiers in Iraq after 2011," Maliki said in a statement issued by his office.

Washington and Baghdad have for months been negotiating a controversial military security pact to decide the future of US-led foreign troops in Iraq once a UN mandate expires in December.

On Friday, the chief Iraqi negotiatior Mohammed al-Haj Hammoud told AFP that the security pact had been finalised by both the sides and already approved by US President George W. Bush.

He said that under the 27-point deal all American combat troops will be withdrawn from Iraqi cities by next June ahead of a complete withdrawal by 2011....

And Biden, too. My FrontPage article today:

As the Democratic National Convention proceeds this week and the Republicans are gearing up for their own party, we are still not hearing the candidates being asked genuinely tough and illuminating questions about what they would do about jihad terrorism. And so I offer here, as a public service, a series of questions for interviewers and debate moderators to ask of the candidates. Will anyone have the good sense and chutzpah to ask Obama, McCain, Biden, or the Republican Vice Presidential nominee these questions?

1. What would you do to deal with the national security aspect of immigration? With plans afoot to bring large groups of Iraqis, including Iraqi Muslims, into the United States, what kind of screening will you implement to try to ensure that we are not importing jihad terrorists into the country? Will you reevaluate immigration levels from Muslim countries based on recognition of the fact that there is no reliable way to distinguish a peaceful Muslim from a jihadist sympathizer or potential jihadist?

"See that man, Barack? That's Ahmadinejad. He's tough, but reasonable. We can talk with him."

"Biden's political games have made him Tehran's favorite senator." "Biden's Blink on Iran," by Michael Rubin in the Washington Post, August 26 (thanks to JCB):

[...] As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Biden is well versed in policy debates and carefully choreographed trips. But his record on the Islamic Republic of Iran -- perhaps the chief national security threat facing the next president -- suggests a persistent and dangerous judgment deficit. Biden's unyielding pursuit of "engagement" with Iran for more than a decade has made it easier for Tehran to pursue its nuclear program, while his partisan obsession with thwarting the Bush administration has led him to oppose tough sanctions against hard-liners in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

[...]

Biden's political games have made him Tehran's favorite senator. As Gen. David Petraeus struggled to unite Iraqis across the ethnic and sectarian divide, Iran's Press TV seized on Biden's plan for partitioning Iraq and featured his statements with the headline "US plans to disintegrate Iraq." Biden's attack-dog statements about U.S. policy failures emboldened Iranian hard-liners to defy diplomacy. In the Dec. 7, 2007, official sermon, Ayatollah Mohammad Kashani speaking on behalf of Iran's supreme leader, declared, "This Senator [Biden] correctly says Israel could not suppress Hizbullah in Lebanon, so how can the U.S. stand face-to-face with a nation of 70 million? This is the blessing of the Guardianship of the Jurists [the theocracy] . . . which plants such thoughts in the hearts of U.S. senators and forces them to make such confessions." The crowd met his statement with refrains of "Death to America."

Obama picked Biden for experience, but he might also have considered judgment. When it comes to Iran, Biden could stare down dictators; too bad he blinks.

Yesterday I requested that those of you who are kind enough to send us links to jihad-related stories please send them to me at director@jihadwatch.org and to Raymond Ibrahim at topicsforjw@gmail.com. Please send them also to Marisol Seibold at marisolseibold@hotmail.com.

As longtime Jihad Watch readers know, Marisol is an extraordinarily talented and knowledgeable writer whose posts here (1,734 in all, as of this moment -- many more than anyone else who has ever written for this site except me) have been an invaluable asset to this site. She has tirelessly taken over daily duties when I am hurtling through the air in a tin can or otherwise unable to make the daily rounds, and has done so with a deft, informed and humorous touch. And on top of all that, she has policed the comments fields and kept them from growing material that could be used by the jihadists, their allies, and their dupes.

I am very grateful for her efforts -- and ask that those of you who kindly alert us to news stories related to the global jihad and Islamic supremacism will add her address to your lists, thereby helping to keep this site the principal source on or off the web where you can get a full picture of what the jihadists are doing and why. As old allies go wobbly and dilettantes grow distracted, this effort is needed more than ever -- because the jihadists are neither wobbly nor bored. They are keeping up their work, and we will keep up ours.

Frank J. Gaffney of the Center for Security Policy discusses the implications of Ingrid Mattson's appearance at the Democratic National Convention. "Democrats' 'soft' jihadist," from the Washington Times, August 26:

Ingrid Mattson, president of the Islamic Society of North America [spoke at the DNC yesterday]. With this choice, Barack Obama's campaign has committed a strategic error of the first order.

After all, the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) has been identified by the Department of Justice not only as a front for the Muslim Brotherhood - a global Islamist movement with the stated mission in America of "destroying Western civilization from within." Worse yet, it has also been named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the United States' largest alleged terrorism financing conspiracy.

Like other Brotherhood operations, ISNA's purpose is to promote what might be called "soft jihad" - the task of steadily insinuating the brutally repressive and subversive program the Islamists call Shariah through da'wa - proselytizing and social-networking.

The more one learns about Dr. Mattson and her organization, the more questions will be raised about Barack Obama's judgment and that of his party in affording them a prominent role in the 2008 Democratic convention. For example:

Ingrid Mattson is director of the Macdonald Center for the Study of Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations at the Hartford Seminary in Connecticut. Her program is used to credential Muslim chaplains for U.S. prisons and our military. (The armed forces require its chaplain candidates to take 72 credit hours from Dr. Mattson's program.) This credentialing was previously performed by organizations founded by Abdurahman Alamoudi, once among the most prominent Muslim Brotherhood operatives in America. Today, Alamoudi is serving a 23-year prison sentence for his involvement in terrorism-related crimes.

A course taught by Dr. Mattson at the Hartford Seminary entitled "The Koran and Its Place in Muslim Life and Society" featured readings from texts by two of the Islamofascist ideology's most revered figures: Syed Abul A'la Maududi and Sayyid Qutb. She has publicly credited the former with producing "probably the best work of [Koranic commentary] in English." As Robert Spencer has observed in his invaluable Jihad Watch blog (http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/022342.php), Maududi succinctly described the Islamists' Shariah agenda as follows:

"Islam wishes to destroy all states and governments anywhere on the face of the Earth which are opposed to the ideology and program of Islam regardless of the country or the nation which rules it. The purpose of Islam is to set up a state on the basis of its own ideology and program, regardless of which nation assumes the role of the standard bearer of Islam or the rule of which nation is undermined in the process of the establishment of an ideological Islamic State. ... Islam does not intend to confine this revolution to a single State or a few countries; the aim of Islam is to bring about a universal revolution."

As to Qutb, an amicus brief filed last week by the Center for Security Policy before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals noted that his "writings expand on [Maududi's] theme of Jihad against wayward Muslim regimes and the infidel West and the establishment of a hegemonic Shariah-based political order. His work has been credited as a central doctrinal source for al Qaeda's doctrine of Jihad, as well." According to the brief prepared for the Center by two of the West's foremost scholars of Shariah, attorneys David Yerushalmi and Stephen Coughlin (resident expert on the subject for the Joint Chiefs of Staff until he was purged by an ISNA admirer in the office of Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England), "da'wa is used to prepare the battle space for violent Jihad."

Unbeknownst to most Americans, such da'wa is being systematically advanced through the Islamists' takeover of the vast majority of U.S. mosques, Islamic centers and madrassas (Muslim parochial schools). This onslaught is being accomplished as Saudi money flows through another Muslim Brotherhood front spun off by ISNA, the North American Islamic Trust (NAIT), which acquires the mortgages of existing religious facilities or creates new ones. Along with titles to these properties comes Saudi Wahhabi influence in the form of virulently Shariah-adherent clerics, textbooks and other materials. In her capacity as president of ISNA, Dr. Mattson also is an ex officio member of NAIT's board.

Insofar as the Muslim Brotherhood explicitly seeks and is working for the destruction of our government and Western civilization more generally, it is engaged in a criminal conspiracy that constitutes treasonous sedition. That reality has two critical implications:

First, the Brotherhood must be formally designated a terrorist organization, putting an end to the reckless notion - promoted by, among others, the U.S. State Department - that practitioners of soft jihad are less dangerous and an effective antidote to co-religionists who are prepared to use violence immediately, rather than later on.

Second, under 18 U.S. Code 2382: "Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States and having knowledge of the commission of any treason against them, conceals and does not, as soon as may be, disclose and make known the same to [appropriate officials] is guilty of misprision of treason and shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than seven years, or both."

Mr. Obama, his party, Bush administration officials and, for that matter, ordinary citizens of the United States are obliged to take steps to counteract seditious Muslim Brotherhood activities in our midst. To do otherwise is not just suicidal. It is a crime.

Credentials on neutrality: Your mileage may vary with jihadist organizations.

Of course, there are many other reasons besides the flag with a big cross on it that Al-Qaeda would not appreciate Switzerland's traditional status in the West as a neutral party. An infidel state is an infidel state, and the foreign minister should be aware that a willingness to talk would not protect the Swiss either from violent attacks or the creeping subversion of their laws and civil liberties. "Swiss foreign minister would 'talk to bin Laden'," from Agence France-Presse, August 25:

GENEVA - Switzerland's foreign minister told top diplomats on Monday she favours direct talks with Osama bin Laden to tackle the threat of terrorism.

Micheline Calmy-Rey, who has raised both eyebrows and hackles with her controversial style, told Swiss ambassadors gathered in the capital Bern that they needed to talk to "heavyweight political figures" on the world stage even if they are considered persona non grata by other powers.

"This even goes as far as sitting down at the same table as Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden," she said.

Switzerland does not have any list of banned organisations to which it will not talk, unlike other countries.

Calmy-Rey said that groups as diverse as Hezbollah, the FARC guerrillas in Colombia, Tamil Tiger rebels in Sri Lanka and the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda are all "essential in the search for a resolution" of different conflicts worldwide.

She stressed however that any dialogue did not mean "accepting the unacceptable," and conceded that it could sometimes lead to tensions and "complex political blockages"....

Yes, Europe once had one of those. Around about 1938...

And what is particularly useful and revealing in this article is the item-by-item description of the Sharia-based objections. "Call to review women's rights," by Rebecca Torr for Gulf Daily News, August 24:

Bahrain could be forced to pass a family law and other new regulations if the country lifts reservations it has to a UN convention on discrimination against women, say campaigners.

Bahrain joined the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 2002, but submitted several reservations due to conflict with Sharia law, traditions and Islamic principles.

Since then women's activists and human rights groups have been campaigning for Bahrain to lift these reservations, saying women were still getting a raw deal.

"The implementation of CEDAW in Bahrain is not at the level it should be," Awal Women's Society and Bahrain Human Rights Society member and former president Dr Sabika Al Najjar told the GDN.

"If CEDAW is implemented in the correct way it means the state should review all the laws and regulations regarding women's rights to see which points are discriminatory and then they should implement new regulations for women.

"It should reform justice in education, health, at work and in issuing the family law.

"It should also make sure people and society are aware and convinced of the treaties and any social discrimination should be removed.

"I believe any development of women and any change in their status will develop the whole of the society because women are vital - they are the centre of the family."

Bahrain has five reservations on the optional protocol of the CEDAW, which refer to articles two, nine, 15, 16 and 29.

- Article two, paragraph two, states that a country should condemn all types of discrimination against women

- Article nine, paragraph two, states that women should enjoy the same rights as men in terms of giving citizenship to their children

- Article 15, paragraph four, states that women should be given the same rights as men in choosing their homes

- Article 16 states the need to provide equal marital rights for females and males, particularly in marriage contracts, raising children and custody

- Article 29, paragraph one, relates to disputes between two state parties.

Lifting these reservations could mean Bahrain would have to finally introduce a family law, which would stipulate in writing how family issues such as divorces and child custody cases should be resolved.

Such cases are currently handled by the Sharia Court, in which Sharia judges reach decisions based on their own interpretation of Islam - with critics saying they often favour men over women.

Funny how that keeps happening.

Objections

A draft family law was supposed to be drawn up by parliament in 2006, but it never saw light after Islamic clergymen voiced their objections....

Watch Fitna

Free speech is under concerted assault by the Organization of the Islamic Conference, which is putting pressure on the UN and Western governments to criminalize speech about Islam that they deem offensive (which includes speech about Islam that illuminates the motives and goals of the jihadists). But that is a slow effort. For the impatient, there is always thuggery.

"Hundreds of Dutch web sites hacked by Islamic hackers," by Dancho Danchev at ZDNet, August 25 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

In what appears to be a mass defacement, where several hundred domains take advantage of a shared hosting provider,Net Devilz Netherlands starting as of this Friday, an Islamic hacker known as nEt^DeViL — this is not the NetDevilz team that hijacked the DNS records of the ICANN and Photobucket in June — managed to successfully hack a couple of hundred Dutch web sites as a hacktivist response to the release of the Fitna film, a controversial film released by Geert Wilders, a member of the Dutch parliament in March, 2008. [...]

The message they left is still active at most of the sites :

“Anti-Fitna ( Response to the Fitna Movie by ‘Geert Wilders’ Cow ! ) This hax0ring is to defend ISLAM - The Religion of [ Abraham, Moses, Jesus & Muhammad ( Peace Be Upon Them All ) ] that Insulted by a Cow ! from Netherlands ! Show Some Respect ! so , I can Leave you in Peace ! [ You’ve Started it ! ] , I don’t have problems with your site but, that what Geert Wilders Cow! chose for you ;) If you think that ” Insulting GOD Religion is a Freedom of Speech as your country did , then allow me to show you my Freedom knowledge of Hacking ;) ”...

If you don't know why a Muslim would call Islam the religion of Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, read my Blogging the Qur'an series, exclusively at Jihad Watch.

A clear statement of intent, and a warning for prospective dhimmis, in Nigeria's Kano state. "‘We are in power to implement Sharia,’" by Nasiru Muhammad for the Daily Triumph, August 25 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

KANO state governor, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau, has said that he and his government are in power in the state courtesy of their promise to implement Islamic legal system.

The governor who made the remark Saturday during the launching of an Islamic book titled: “Sharia‘ar Musulunci, Muhimmancinta da Manufofinta,’’ said in his government’s effort to see the full implementation of Islamic legal system in the state, it formed establishments like the Sharia‘a Commission, Zakat and A Daidaita Sahu, among others.

The governor who was represented at the occasion by the state Attorney General and commissioner of justice, Barr. Aliyu Umar, explained that government has understood that Shari’a is not only restricted to capital punishment, but a complete way of life....

Pirates running wild

Piracy as a jihadist activity has a pedigree at least as old as the Barbary conflicts with Europe and the new United States, and the Islamic slave raiding pirates vividly described in Giles Milton's book White Gold. "Somali pirates seize 8 ships," from News24.com, August 25 (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

Nairobi - Around eight ships have been seized by pirates off the lawless Somali coast with gunfire being reported during one of the hijackings, an official said on Monday.

"Around eight ships have been seized, but we believe there were no fatalities," Andrew Mwangura, the head of the Kenya-based East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

"There was a shoot-out at one of the ships, but it was a quarrel between the gunmen," he continued. "We understand there were no injuries."

Earlier reports had suggested three sailors had been killed.

Mwangura said it was too early to give full details on all of the seized craft, but said that they were a mix of tankers and cargo ships.

Piracy off Somalia's lawless coast has surged in the last three months.

A total of four ships - from Germany, Japan, Iran and Malaysia - were seized last week alone....

Pirates, armed with rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons, use speedboats to pursue their targets....

...while the former University of South Florida professor who heads it up travels to Egypt to try to make peace among the warring factions of Palestinian Arabs -- a quixotic mission if I ever heard of one.

"Report: Terrorists hold kidnap training," by Dudi Cohen for Israel National News, August 25:

What are terror groups in Gaza doing now that a ceasefire technically prevents them from shooting rockets? It turns out that the Islamic Jihad has been spending its time in the southern part of the strip, holding 'training exercises' on how to kidnap Israeli soldiers in a manner similar to Hizbullah's 2006 attack. "Thousands of Palestinian fighters recently trained in how to kidnap Zionist soldiers," reported the London-based Arabic-language al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper on Monday, referencing the conservative Iranian Kayhan newspaper and Quds news agency....

And meanwhile: "Egypt intelligence chief meets with Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader," from the Associated Press, August 25:

Egyptian Intelligence Chief Omar Suleiman met with Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Ramadan Abdullah Shallah in effort to reconcile feuding Palestinian factions, Egypt's official news agency MENA reported Monday night.

Suleiman's discussions with the Islamic Jihad leader came as part of a push over the next few weeks to end Palestinian infighting, according to MENA, a day before Suleiman was set to meet with Defense Minister Ehud Barak, also to discuss the Palestinian issue....

Ramadan Shallah, one of the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists, was a professor at the University of South Florida in the 1990s -- due to the influence of another professor there, Sami Al-Arian.

Yet another child pressed into the service of the jihad. "Iraqis show video of teenage girl in suicide vest," by Karin Laub for Associated Press, August 25:

BAGHDAD - Iraqi police publicly questioned a teenage girl after she was allegedly caught wearing an explosives belt, parading her in front of reporters and pressing her to confess she was planning a suicide bombing. [...]

The girl gave her first name as Rania and said she was born in 1993. She appeared confused in the questioning, giving conflicting answers about whether she knew two women who put the vest packed with 33 pounds of explosives on her.

In the video of the arrest, a policeman standing next to the teenager could be heard saying that when she was picked up, she was initially unable to talk because she had been given drugs.

She denied under questioning that she planned to carry out an attack, saying she had been instructed to remove the vest when she got home.

The arrest heightened concern about a rise in suicide bombings by women. The number of female bombers has more than tripled from eight in 2007 to 29 this year, according to U.S. military officials. [...]

In the interrogation, she gives conflicting answers about whether she knew the women who gave her the vest.

"I swear to Allah that I do not know them. They were strangers," she is heard saying initially. But later she says "one of the women's names was maybe Fadhila and the other was called Widad."

When pressed about whether she knew the woman she then replied: "Yes." [...]

An Iraqi police officer said the girl came from a family of al-Qaida in Iraq supporters in Baqouba and that her father had carried out a suicide bombing. The officer said a relative is suspected of having recruited her. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information. [...]

Many Iraqi women wear long robes, ideal for covering bulky suicide vests, and Iraqi policemen hesitate to pat them down at checkpoints because of cultural taboos....

Yeah, that would create a problem. But the article goes on to say that the Daughters of Iraq are helping out.

Reversal of fortune

Yee was not exactly cleared. Back in March 2004, AP reported that "in dismissing the charges, Maj. Gen. Geoffrey D. Miller, commander of Joint Task Force Guantanamo, which operates the detention center, cited 'national security concerns that would arise from the release of the evidence' if the case proceeded."

National security concerns would arise from the release of the evidence if Yee's case proceeded? That's a very strange statement, and it cries out for an explanation (none was ever forthcoming, to my knowledge), but it is not quite the same thing as saying, "This man was completely innocent, and should never have been charged." Maybe they just don't want to admit a mistake. But questions persist.

In any case, this article says that Yee saw the Qur'an desecrated at Guantanamo, but in this report, he says of the desecration reports (which he was and is eagerly passing on) that he did not see any desecration himself:

The Korans were thrown on the floor by guards when they conducted cell searches. It has been reported and I have learned now that interrogators also were throwing the Korans on the floor or stomping on it. This was happening when I was there, and this was an issue.

Interviewer: You actually saw this happening?

Yee: I didn't see it because I wasn't a part of the intelligence operation, but I was aware directly from the prisoners, when they came to me with the complaints and concerns.

But now some time has passed, and memories have grown hazy, and lo and behold, he did see the Qur'an desecration:

"Denver latest stop on Yee's unlikely journey," by Danny Westneat for the Seattle Times, August 25 (thanks to all who sent this in):

DENVER — Nobody's come as far as James Yee to be a delegate to this Democratic National Convention.

Five years ago, Yee, an Army chaplain of Muslim faith, was shackled and tossed into solitary confinement for 76 days because the U.S. government felt — wrongly — that he was a terrorist sympathizer and spy.

Now the Olympia man is here, ready to cast his vote as part of the Washington state contingent for Barack Obama.

His story is a useful reminder, he says, of the danger of America chucking aside civil liberties. [...]

"There is some worry that I might be a lightning rod," Yee said Sunday. " 'Accused terrorist spy is national delegate for Obama,' " he intoned, imagining how Fox News might broadcast his story.

Yee, formerly a chaplain at Fort Lewis, is something of a celebrity at the convention. Fox, PBS, The Washington Post all have called. It's because of what happened to him at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, back when America was gripped in a war-on-terror fever.

Yee was no radical. A West Point grad, he was deeply committed to both his Muslim faith and the military — "serving both God and country," he says. He voted for George W. Bush in 2000.

Then he was sent to Gitmo in the fall of 2002, to minister to prisoners and be an unofficial Muslim spokesman for the U.S. military.

By the spring of 2003, though, he was objecting to the treatment of detainees and the "anti-Muslim hostility" that he says pervaded the place. He felt it came down from the top — from the "you're either with us or against us" doctrine that he now describes as "a terrorist mentality."

Some intelligence officers suspected Yee of conspiring with the enemy, and he was arrested that September.

Spying, espionage, mutiny and sedition — all were alleged by the government. Infamously, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. — whom Yee will probably meet at this convention — said Yee's arrest was proof that al-Qaida had infiltrated the U.S. military.

"Basically, they said I was a traitor," Yee says.

The case fell apart almost immediately. Eventually all charges were dropped, and in 2005 he quit the Army with an honorable discharge. [...]

"Some of it is because I challenged the system at Guantánamo," he said, "but most of it was because I am Muslim."

So now, in 2008, does he feel welcome in American politics?

It is not far from Yee's mind that the Obama campaign in the spring asked two women wearing Muslim head scarves to move so they wouldn't appear in the TV shots of the crowd behind him.

But Yee says he got active in politics after quitting the Army because he feels Muslims must "speak up, volunteer and engage," or continue to be marginalized.

"I can see why Muslims wanted to go underground after 9/11," Yee said. "But I have found that if you speak up in politics you can have a positive influence." [...]

When he says this, we are sitting outside what's billed as the first-ever "interfaith" event for a Democratic convention. We listen as Christians, Jews, Buddhists and, yes, Muslims, openly profess their faiths.

Then there's a reading from the Quran, the same book Yee says he saw desecrated, as a form of psychic abuse, at Guantánamo. It's a passage about how the true nature of righteousness is more about compassion than "whether you turn your face towards East or West."

Yee taps the passage.

"That they'll now read from the Quran at a national political convention — that shows we have come a long way in this country," he says.

"That I'm here — that shows it, too."

Al-Qaeda's nemesis

I am very pleased and honored to have Raymond Ibrahim, the author of The Al-Qaeda Reader, writing at Jihad Watch. And now Raymond wants to hear from you.

Have you ever wondered what those "thanks to..." parenthetical tags on Jihad Watch posts mean? I've seen recently some conspiracy theorists spin elaborate webs from them, as they assumed that the person I was thanking was the author of the post, or the Svengali behind the ideas expressed therein. The reality is somewhat more prosaic, but even more urgent: the person I thank in Jihad Watch posts is the person who alerted me to the article I am posting. The comments on it are all mine, but I might not have known about the article at all had the person being thanked not sent it to me, and for that, thanks are in order.

Anyway, I get over 500 emails daily at director@jihadwatch.org, not counting spam, and thank all who send in article links for their thoughtfulness. And now please send them to Raymond also, at topicsforjw@gmail.com. And thus our jihad coverage here will move onward and upward, until finally perhaps one day an increasingly sleepy West will wake up, shake off its demons, and stand up for itself. But until that great day, there is a great deal of work to do in regard to raising awareness. So if you see an article that you would like to see posted and commented upon at Jihad Watch, please send it to Raymond as well as to me. And...thank you!

Mattson, standing tall

The Muslim Brotherhood is engaged, in its own words, in "a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and ‘sabotaging’ its miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and Allah’s religion is made victorious over all other religions.”

The Brotherhood document from which this quote is taken concludes with “a list of our organizations and the organizations of our friends.” Among these organizations is the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). Ingrid Mattson is the President of the Islamic Society of North America. ISNA was also named an unindicted co-conspirator in a Hamas terror funding case.

Mattson herself has made a series of highly questionable remarks.

"Dems' message: 'Faith is what we live,'" by Aaron J. Lopez for the Rocky Mountain News, August 25 (thanks to Paul):

[...] "With all due respect to the commentators, we don't need to bring faith to the party. Faith is what we live," pronounced the Rev. Leah Daughtry.

"Democrats are, have been, and will continue to be people of faith. And people of faith are, have been, and will continue to be Democrats."

Daughtry, CEO of the Democratic National Convention Committee, served as emcee of an interfaith service - Faith in Action - that attracted about 3,000 people of various ages, races and religions to the Colorado Convention Center.

Among those in attendance were Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean, House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn and Gov. Bill Ritter, who welcomed the congregation to the first official event of the DNC.

"There is a tremendous intersection of faith and politics," Ritter said. "Politics at its deepest root is moral." [...]

Speakers included Rabbi Steven Foster, of Congregation Emmanuel in Denver; Bishop Charles Blake, of the Church of God in Christ; and Dr. Ingrid Mattson, president of the Islamic Society of North America. [...]

[Blake] received one of several standing ovations.

Another was reserved for Mattson, who said she tells Islamic leaders abroad that Muslims in the United States still face discrimination constantly.

Despite the difficulties, Mattson said she remains convinced that the United States "is still the best place in the world to practice our faith."

Muslims in the United States still face discrimination constantly? Muslims in the United States enjoy more rights than they enjoy in many majority-Muslim countries. And CAIR's attempts to document "hate crimes" against Muslims in the U.S. have been shown to be tissues of fabrications.

But in making this wild claim before the Democratic Convention, Mattson is laying claim to Protected Victim Status for Muslims, which would place them beyond the scrutiny and criticism that is necessary today to head off the Brotherhood's "grand jihad."

Fresh pile of taqiyya, attempting to set the "record straight" about Islam once and for all from the Saudi Gazette. "Islam and concept of peace," by Dr. Ghulam Mursaleen for the Saudi Gazette, August 25:

According to Islamic belief, Allah’s original message that was received by Moses and later by Jesus over time had been distorted. Thus Muslims recognize the Torah and Gospel as a combination of original revelation but later human additions were made, such as the elevation of Jesus from Prophet to the son of God. Therefore, the Qur’an is the Islamic scripture, which was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) from God through the Archangel Gabriel, to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), the last or ‘seal’ of the Prophets and hence the Qur’an is the eternal, literal word of Allah preserved in Arabic language.

The basic beliefs and tenets of the three beautiful and monotheistic religions are almost similar to each other as well as all the three are descendants of Abraham who worship the same God. However, I have taken this topic to counter the allegations that are being leveled against Islam and Muslims. Actually, Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance, which does not allow its followers to harm any one.

There are numerous verses in the Qur’an which emphasize peace, tolerance and tranquility while it strongly prohibits violence. The term Islam itself means peace and it is based on compassion, love, tolerance, gentleness and forgiveness whereas violence, aggression and cruelty are against its nature.

Muslims are made target of violence and terrorism in some places and they are themselves taking resort to violence and terrorism in some other places. Now, some questions arise in mind that in what circumstances Islam allows force and what are the Islamic ethics of war? When does use of force become terrorism and when does Islam allow terrorism in any situation? Can Muslims prevent violence against them by counter-violence?

There are many verses in the Qur’an and sayings of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) which confirm that offensive force is strictly prohibited in Islam.

But there are also such cases in the Qur’an according to which violence could have been answered with violence but it was not done, (e.g., Qur’an, 5:27-32)
Permission for use of force that leads to loss of human life and property was granted in a very specific situation. It was the time when Muslims were living in Madina in the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), the enemy targeted Muslims, attacked their land and some Muslims living in Makkah were also tortured, only then Allah permitted Muslims to use force against those who hurt them.

This permission to fight was not an offensive war to occupy other people’s land but it was a war to defend Muslims and to prevent such attacks in the future. It was the time when the aggressors were not only attacking Muslims in Madina but they were targeting Muslims elsewhere too and forcing people not to accept Islam. Thus the purpose of fighting a war was to end aggression.

Hence, use of force to punish for crimes, or to defend Islam and Muslims or to fulfil Allah’s mission or to regain human freedom and right to choose one’s way of life, is permitted only to the extent that it is necessary. Otherwise, it becomes itself an act of tyranny and aggression, which is strictly forbidden by Islam. The Qur’an does not give people the right to take the law into their own hands. Islam also does not encourage violence in response to violence.

Violence and terrorism

Some individuals or groups who are living under the jurisdiction of any other authority or state and resorting to violence, their use of force will be characterized as terrorism. Terrorism is an act of killing the enemy’s men without discriminating between belligerent and non-belligerent. As a result, innocents, particularly children, women and elderly people lose their lives and their properties are destroyed. Islam strictly prohibits all these acts of violence because as mentioned earlier, there is no place for violence or terrorism in Islam.

But some Muslims have engaged in violence and try to justify their actions. Many people, who have very little knowledge of Islam and Muslims, think as if Islam fosters violence and terrorism. But, this is not the case. Islam, like all other religions of the world, neither supports nor sanctions illegitimate violence. It only permits Muslims in very specific cases to defend themselves, their families, religion and community from aggression.

Violence and the current situation

Now an attempt to examine Islam’s position on violence may be in the fitness of things. For this, the most hot and explosive issue of Palestine may be discussed very briefly and then the cases of American aggression in the name of combating terrorism.

Palestine had been a Muslim majority land, which was occupied and subjected by the Jews who have been unleashing violence and oppressing its inhabitants since 1948 and especially since 1967.

The occupiers are not willing to vacate the land despite the UN resolutions and international pressure. The Palestinians are living without a homeland. In view of the known fact and situation of Palestine, one may say that the defensive use of force should be permitted by Islam to the Palestinians to defend their rights.

As a religion, Islam does not put itself in an attitude of conflict towards other heavenly religions. It is a religion of peace and tolerance and has always advocated the cause of human rights, brotherhood, freedom and equality and hence Islam is a model religion for the development of pluralistic society in the modern age of globalization. An Islamic society is not formed of Muslims only, but of Muslims, Christians, Jews and people of other faiths living together under the rule of Islam.

Today, the world is striving for peace; but unless there is greater understanding among the followers of different religions there is very little hope for success.

Conclusion

There is a misconception that Islam and Muslims are a thereat [threat] to the world peace. But my argument is that all this misunderstanding about Islam and Muslims is simply because of lack of proper knowledge about Islam and its followers. As far as Muslims are concerned, they should understand this reality that violence is not at all a strategy to deal with Muslims’ issues and problems. It is only a mistake, a big mistake that Muslims must realize and abandon the path of deviation. They should instead follow the path of righteousness, wisdom, patience and tolerance.

Because, the real weapons of Muslims are their Islamic character and their ideology in which they believe and which they want to communicate to the entire humanity. Since the Qur’an is a message of peace as well as a unique divine book – a source of guidance for the entire humanity, all people have an equal right to benefit from this eternal source of wisdom and guidance.

Habib, before the squirming

The stalwart Egyptian blogger Sandmonkey recently interviewed Mohammed Habib, who, he says, "is slated to become the next Supreme Leader of the Muslim Brotherhood."

Toward the end of the interview Sandmonkey asks Habib an uncomfortable question about the Brotherhood's relationship with the Council on American Islamic Relations, and you can practically see Habib squirm right on the printed page. "Ehh, this is a sensitive subject, and it’s kind of problematic, especially after 9/11," he says.

Why is it a "sensitive subject"? Why is it "kind of problematic"? Partly because the Muslim Brotherhood is on record as wanting to do more, much more, in the United States than simply "spread a positive image of Islam along with its values, culture, history and teachings." The Brotherhood is engaged, in its own words, in "a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and ‘sabotaging’ its miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and Allah’s religion is made victorious over all other religions.”

Is CAIR engaged in this effort? Is it trying to sabotage and destroy Western civilization so that "Allah's religion is made victorious over all other religions" here in the U.S.? Is it working in tandem with other Brotherhood entities to accomplish this?

And above all: why isn't there a single reporter in the entire United States who will ask Ibrahim Hooper or Ahmed Rehab or Corey Saylor or anyone at CAIR these questions?

From "An Interview with Muslim Brotherhood’s #2, Mohammed Habib," by Sandmonkey at Pajamas Media, August 24 (thanks to all who sent this in):

SM: Is there a Muslim Brotherhood in the U.S.?

Mohamed Habib: I would say yes. There are Muslim Brotherhood members there.

SM: Then what are they doing there?

Mohamed Habib: No, there are already existing institutions; there are laws and a constitution that they operate under in order to have a role in serving the American society. They are part of the American society and they want to an active positive role in it, and a part of that is to spread a positive image of Islam along with its values, culture, history and teachings.

SM: This is naturally very important. Who represents you in the US?

Mohamed Habib: Well, there are there those who do represent us, who do that role.

SM: But it’s not CAIR, right? The Council for American Islamic Relations? Many people say that they are your front. Other people say that its ISNA. But back to CAIR, some people from the Muslim Brotherhood have denied having a connection with CAIR. Do they really represent you?

Mohamed Habib: Ehh, this is a sensitive subject, and it’s kind of problematic, especially after 9/11 …

SM: For them to say that there is a relationship between you two?

Mohamed Habib: Yes. You can say that.

SM: Gotcha. What kind of relationship does the Muslim Brotherhood have with Hamas? Do you offer them support of any kind?

Mohamed Habib: Hamas, like any Muslim Brotherhood entity, is not related to the other entities. But we do support them. We support them with ideas. We support them with advice and vision. We incite the people — in Egypt for example — to donate money and care and understand about the Palestinian cause. Then the civil society institutions carry out the role of facilitators of our support.

SM: Thank you for your time sir.

Mohamed Habib: Thank you.

In the Fall 2007 issue of the Journal of International Security Affairs, I published an article, "Somalia: Rise and Fall of an Islamist Regime." But the fall of the short-lived Sharia regime there -- a regime that had been lauded by the mainstream media despite its Taliban-like brutality -- did not mean the end of the jihad in Somalia, any more than the current lull in jihad activity in the West means that it's all over, the threat is gone and we can go back to the Cold War and standing off those wicked Russians. Now, the jihadists are slowly, step-by-step, once again gaining control of the country.

More on this story. "Islamic militia control key Somali port," from AAP, August 24 (thanks to all who sent this in):

Islamic militants say they have seized control of Somalia's third largest city after three days of fighting that left about 70 people dead and saw thousands flee Kismayo.

The Islamic courts movement, which controlled the capital, Mogadishu, and much of the south for six months in 2006, said Saturday that it wrested control of the southern port city of Kismayo from clan militias....

In another development, two foreign journalists - a Canadian woman and an Australian man - were kidnapped while travelling near Mogadishu, two Somali civilians said.

The government confirmed the kidnapping, but the full names of the two captives were not immediately available. Journalists and relief