Osama Bin Laden Tape Threatens U.S. States Not to Vote for Bush

More on what was left out of virtually all reporting on the Osama video, from MEMRI. He is warning America to play the dhimmi and defeat Bush, or else:

The tape of Osama bin Laden that was aired on Al-Jazeera(1) on Friday, October 29th included a specific threat to "each U.S. state," designed to influence the outcome of the upcoming election against George W. Bush. The U.S. media in general mistranslated the words "ay wilaya" (which means "each U.S. state")(2) to mean a "country" or "nation" other than the U.S., while in fact the threat was directed specifically at each individual U.S. state. This suggests some knowledge by bin Laden of the U.S. electoral college system. In a section of his speech in which he harshly criticized George W. Bush, bin Laden stated: "Any U.S. state that does not toy with our security automatically guarantees its own security."

The Islamist website Al-Qal'a explained what this sentence meant: "This message was a warning to every U.S. state separately. When he [Osama Bin Laden] said, 'Every state will be determining its own security, and will be responsible for its choice,' it means that any U.S. state that will choose to vote for the white thug Bush as president has chosen to fight us, and we will consider it our enemy, and any state that will vote against Bush has chosen to make peace with us, and we will not characterize it as an enemy. By this characterization, Sheikh Osama wants to drive a wedge in the American body, to weaken it, and he wants to divide the American people itself between enemies of Islam and the Muslims, and those who fight for us, so that he doesn't treat all American people as if they're the same. This letter will have great implications inside the American society, part of which are connected to the American elections, and part of which are connected to what will come after the elections."(3)

Another interesting aspect of the speech is the fact that while bin Laden made his specific threat to each U.S. state, he also offered an election deal to the American voters, attempting to influence the election by these means rather than influencing it through terrorist attacks.(4) This peace offer is a theme that follows up on his April speech directed to Europe, in which he offered a truce.(5) The Islamist website Al-Islah explains: "Some people ask 'what's new in this tape?' [The answer is that] this tape is the second of its kind, after the previous tape of the Sheikh [Osama bin Laden], in which he offered a truce to the Europeans a few months ago, and it is a completion of this move, and it brings together the complementary elements of politics and religion, political savvy and force, the sword and justice. The Sheikh reminds the West in this tape of the great Islamic civilization and pure Islamic religion, and of Islamic justice..."(6)

MEMRI has excerpts of Osama's remarks here.

Story to break Wednesday?

I just checked ABC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, and even Fox and Drudge — none of them have a word about the story reported by the New York Post, that Al-Jazeera edited Osama's video to take out the parts where he talks about how much Al-Qaeda has been hurt by anti-terror efforts.

Will this story break hard on Wednesday morning?

Russia: Car bomb targeting Chechen security force injures 17 after earlier blast

The jihad against Russia continues. From AP, with thanks to Twostellas:

ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia (AP) - A car bomb exploded outside the main hospital in Chechny's capital, Grozny, on Sunday, injuring 17 people in an attack apparently targeting members of a Chechen security force bringing in wounded from an earlier explosion, officials said.

The first blast struck a vehicle carrying the Chechen security troops on a highway in the outskirts of Grozny, Federal Security Service spokesman Maj.-Gen. Ilya Shabalkin said on Russia's NTV television. As the injured were being taken into Grozny's Hospital No. 9, a second car exploded outside the building, he said.

A car laden with explosives detonated outside the hospital around 8 a.m. The blast dug a crater into the ground and shattered the hospital's windows.

Thirteen of the wounded were members of the Chechen presidential security service, headed by Chechen First Deputy Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov, said Maj. Igor Golubenko, a duty officer for the southern Russian headquarters of the Emergency Situations Ministry in Rostov-on-Don. Three other victims were hospital workers. The security service officers appeared to have been the target, Golubenko said. One child was also injured, he said....

Rebels have denied any part in those blasts, but radical rebel leader Shamil Basayev has claimed responsibility for a series of major terrorist attacks since.

PA cartoons: Bin Laden deciding US elections

He did it in Spain, after all. And America could end up voting to repudiate the anti-jihad effort, just as Spain did. A bulletin from Palestinian Media Watch:

The Palestinian Authority (PA) continues to revere Osama Bin Laden, and even suggests that he has the power to dictate America's future. In response to Bin Laden's taunting and vaguely threatening message to the US, released Saturday by Al-Jazeera, cartoons in two PA dailies today show a gloating Bin Laden determining the outcome of Tuesday's US presidential election.

The first cartoon shows a rifle-toting Bin Laden, triumphantly astride the conquered ballot box, while George Bush and John Kerry - depicted as much smaller and weaker than Bin Laden -- cower below him.

The second shows a smirking Bin Laden casting what is obviously meant to be the deciding vote in the US election....

Today's cartoons suggest that should he choose, Bin Laden has real power to determine the future of the US -- just as the train bombings in Madrid are believed to have changed the outcome of the Spanish elections.

Al Jazeera edited out Osama's complaints about Al-Qaeda's setbacks

"Osama bin Laden doesn't seem nearly so cocky in the unedited version of a videotape aired on al-Jazeera, complaining that the manhunt against him has hampered al Qaeda." From the New York Post, with thanks to Uncle Jeff:

October 31, 2004 -- Osama bin Laden doesn't seem nearly so cocky in the unedited version of a videotape aired on al-Jazeera, complaining that the manhunt against him has hampered al Qaeda.

Osama bin Laden's newest tape may have thrust him to the forefront of the presidential election, but what was not seen was the cave-dwelling terror lord talking about the setbacks al Qaeda has faced in recent months.

Officials said that in the 18-minute long tape — of which only six minutes were aired on the al-Jazeera Arab television network in the Middle East on Friday — bin Laden bemoans the recent democratic elections in Afghanistan and the lack of violence involved with it.

On the tape, bin Laden also says his terror organization has been hurt by the U.S. military's unrelenting manhunt for him and his cohorts on the Afghan-Pakistani border.

A portion of the left-out footage includes a tirade aimed at President Bush and his father, former President George H.W. Bush, claiming the war in Iraq is purely over oil.

The tape also sparked some concern that an attack aimed at disrupting Tuesday's election may be planned.

But those who have seen the tape have said there was no specific information regarding an attack.

Osama Tape Leads U.S. to Raise Vigilance

In the run-up to the elections. From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

WASHINGTON Oct 30, 2004 — Acting on the release of a new videotape from Osama bin Laden, the government has alerted state and local authorities to be extra vigilant ahead of Tuesday's elections.

The bulletin said the bin Laden tape and a second video from last week that showed a self-proclaimed American member of al-Qaida are "clearly intended to influence and instill fear in the American people."

"We remain concerned about al-Qaida's interest in attacking the American homeland, and we cannot discount the possibility that the video may be intended to promote violence or serve as a signal for an attack," according to the bulletin sent late Friday from the FBI and the Homeland Security Department.

It went to homeland security advisers, state and local police and select members of private industry.

British Muslim says UK troops are fair target

He is identified here as one of Britain's most prominent leaders. Watch now, however, as he is likely to be characterized in the coming days as a marginal figure to whom nobody really listens. From the Times Online, with thanks to Twostellas:

ONE of Britain’s most prominent Islamic leaders has declared that British troops are a legitimate target for Iraqi militants.

Dr Ahmad al-Rawi, an Iraqi-born British passport-holder who has lived in this country for three decades, is one of 93 Islamic international scholars who signed a “bayyan” (declaration) in August supporting uprisings against the “filth of occupation” by both Iraqis and Palestinians. The signatories included five Hamas leaders.

Defending the bayyan last week al-Rawi compared the coalition forces in Iraq with the Nazi invaders of France in 1940. He said: “If they (the British) attack, it’s the right of the civilians to resist the British. Any people who are occupied, they have the right to resist. I prefer it to be peaceful, but if they choose to resist by other means it’s their choice.”

Although he would prefer a peaceful overthrow of the occupation, al-Rawi said he could not condemn attacks on coalition forces that have been responsible for many of the deaths of 1,112 American and 69 British soldiers in Iraq.

“My opinion on the occupation is that it is illegal. I couldn’t call the resistance, even military resistance to the occupation, I couldn’t consider it criminal.”

Al-Rawi, who lives in Loughborough, is the president of the Federation of Islamic Organisations in Europe (FIOE) which speaks for millions of Muslims belonging to 52 Islamic organisations in 28 countries.

Arafat's illness not life-threatening

The ailing mujahid is expected to recover. From Reuters, with thanks to Kemaste:

CLAMART, France (Reuters) - Medical tests carried out on ailing Palestinian President Yasser Arafat have ruled out leukaemia or any other life-threatening condition, senior aides say.

"The latest tests have found that President Arafat does not suffer from any life-threatening illness and what he has is curable," senior aide Nabil Abu Rdainah told Reuters on Sunday.

Arafat, 75, underwent tests and scans on Saturday at a French military hospital the day after being flown from his shell-battered compound in the West Bank city of Ramallah after his health deteriorated sharply.

Abu Rdainah said doctors had carried out tests for leukaemia and found that the Palestinian president was not suffering from the blood cancer or any other critical illness.

Another aide said doctors were looking into the possibility of viral infection or poisoning. The final test results would be ready by Wednesday, the aide said, adding that until then Arafat's visitors would be limited to just a few people.

Mohammad Rachid, another aide, said Arafat was sleeping much better, eating moderately and keeping his food down.

Beheaded Japanese Hostage Found in Baghdad

The body has been identified as Shosei Koda. From The Scotsman, with thanks to Kemaste:

The Japanese government confirmed today that a decapitated body found in Iraq is that of a Japanese man taken hostage by Islamic militants earlier this week.

The body found in central Baghdad yesterday has been identified as Shosei Koda, 24, Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura told reporters at an emergency news conference.

Japanese Embassy officials in Baghdad had sent fingerprints of the body to the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo, and police experts had positively identified the body, Machimura said.

Islamic guerrillas had threatened on Tuesday to behead Koda within 48 hours unless Japan pulled its troops out of Iraq. Tokyo immediately refused, and the deadline passed with no word of Koda’s fate. The group has not yet made a claim of responsibility.

Iraqi officials found Koda’s decapitated body in Baghdad on Saturday. Associated Press Television News videotape showed the severed head with the hostage’s long black hair and features.

Terror threat in Australian prisons

This is happening in American prisons also. From The Daily Telegraph, with thanks to Kevin:

AS many as six of the State's most dangerous prisoners have become supporters of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden after converting to radical Islam while in jail.

Intelligence obtained by the Corrective Services Department reveals some of the inmates to be supportive of bin Laden and terrorism.

Authorities are concerned by the potential for a terrorist cell to be formed inside NSW prisons....

The jailed bin Laden followers - who are of Aboriginal and Caucasian backgrounds, as well as Middle Eastern - are under close scrutiny and prison security measures have been tightened.

That means that some are converts.

A recent planned attack on Spain's National Court was plotted behind bars.

Seventeen people have been charged with terrorist offences for plotting to bomb the court with 1000kg of explosives earlier this month.

The attack was planned by inmates within a terrorist cell formed in prison.

The Sunday Telegraph can reveal that one of the converts to Islam is serving a life sentence in Goulburn's maximum-security Supermax prison for a shooting murder.

Prison authorities say he is open about his new faith.

Corrective Services Commissioner Ron Woodham said the inmate was of concern, given his background and extreme views.

But Mr Woodham said he was not among those prisoners who were openly supportive of bin Laden and terrorism activity.

"The other inmates who are supportive are in for murder, serious assault - they are extremely dangerous in their own right.

"Prisoners convert to faith all the time, but our intelligence has revealed that up to six have taken on very extreme views that are of great concern to authorities - particularly with recent events overseas, where the prison system has been used as a recruiting ground by terrorist organisations.

"We're watching every move they make, and we are working with law-enforcement agencies in other states to ensure that they are closely monitored."

U.S. warns of possible attack on Qatar hotels

From CNN, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States warned Americans in the Gulf state of Qatar Friday to avoid major hotels in Doha over the next week due to the possibility of a terrorist attack.

"The embassy advises Americans to continue to avoid major hotels in Doha during the upcoming week. The embassy is not at this time recommending that Americans defer travel to Doha," the U.S. Embassy in Qatar said in a message to Americans.

It said Qatari security services were aware of the threat and taking measures in response.

Kashmir: jihadists torture, kill father and son

From the Press Trust of India, with thanks to Twostellas:

JAMMU: Terrorists on Saturday shot dead a man and his son and critically injured his daughter after brutually torturing the trio with hot iron rods in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir, official sources said.

A group of four to five Hizbul-Mujahideen terrorists barged into the house of one Bashir Ahmed in village Maswa-Deeda in Mahore tehsil, they told PTI.

The terrorists tied 55-year-old Bashir, his 12-year-old son Akram and daughter Nazia and branded them with hot iron rods and inflicted injuries on them with sharp edged weapons, they said.

Later, the terrorists opened fire on the three, they said, adding, the father-son duo died on the spot while the girl was critically injured.

Pakistani kids imbibe lessons on jihad

A new story about something we have noted here many times: Pakistan's schools are "universities of jihad," and the Pakistani government is disinclined to do anything about it. From the Press Trust of India:

NEW DELHI: It is not just in seminaries, jihad and shahadat (martyrdom) are keywords in the curriculum of primary schools in Pakistan and the Education Ministry endorses the importance of these words, a media report said.

"The official Curriculum Document, Primary Education, Class I-V specifically prescribes 'simple stories to urge jihad '. Under Activity 4, the specific prescription for three and eight-year-old Pakistanis is: 'To make speeches on jihad and shahadat '," Pakistani weekly The Friday Times said in an article.

Shahadat, of course, is martyrdom: "Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their goods; for theirs (in return) is the garden (of Paradise): they fight in His cause, and slay and are slain..." (Qur'an, Sura 9:111)

The article, entitled 'An Endangered Species: Who is going to save the moderate Pakistanis', says the National Curriculum of the Ministry for social studies for Classes I-V "formally endorses the following 'learning outcome': Recognise the importance of jihad in every sphere of life."

Under the heading 'Evaluation', "the officially certified direction to teachers and textbook writers is: 'to judge their spirits while making speeches on jihad, Muslim history and culture," while the 'affective objective' is 'Concepts of Ideology of Pakistan, Muslim Ummah and Jihad'....

The Friday Times said the National Bureau of Curriculum and Textbooks, in its social studies curriculum for Classes VI-VIII, gives similar recommendations for jihad, tableegh (proselytize) and shahadat.

Out of the 17.4 million primary students, four million entered middle school and are given further tutoring on jihad.

Of these four million, 1.6 million enter the high school where the Ministry sanctions the following "'Learning Outcome: Must be aware of the blessings of jihad ", it said.

But surely they are just teaching jihad as a spiritual struggle, right? Nope:

"The Curriculum Wing of the Ministry of Education, more often than not, equates jihad with guerilla warfare. Our primary, middle and high school curricula continue to equate Pakistan, Islam and jihad. Our Ministry continues to inspire our children to become guerilla fighters," the article said.

Jihad in Liberia

No indication in this piece as to why the "violence between Muslims and Christians" erupted. However, in nearby Nigeria, the international media routinely portrays jihad violence as "Muslim/Christian strife."

This reminds me of the Liberian cab driver who drove me and Dr. Andrew Bostom across Washington last year. He (the cabbie, not Bostom) was nursing hopes of returning home and running for President of the country, and he discoursed on its internal condition at great length. Along the way he told us that Al-Qaeda was establishing a significant presence in Monrovia, and that they were causing increasing trouble there. I have no independent confirmation of that, so I give it to you for what it's worth. It isn't every day that one can ride a cab driven by a man who has plans to become a national politician in any country — although another of my colleagues was given a ride in another major American city by a driver whose name stuck in his mind, and who later turned up on FBI wanted lists as a senior member of Al-Qaeda. If he had known who he was driving, he could have stopped a leading anti-jihadist. Thank God he didn't.

From AP, with thanks to Ireneo Funes:

MONROVIA, Liberia, Oct. 29 (AP) - Violence between Muslims and Christians engulfed Liberia's war-battered capital on Friday, with machete-wielding crowds rampaging through the streets and United Nations peacekeepers firing warning shots and tear gas to restore order.

At least three people were killed, crushed under the wheels of a United Nations armored vehicle that was moving in to disperse a crowd, a policeman said.

Bangladesh: emerging hub of terror

"Bangladesh is the next favoured destination of the Al Qaeda." From The Daily Pioneer, with thanks to Fanabba:

The global war on terrorism, it appears, is missing a critical battlefront: Bangladesh. While US-led forces are concentrating on Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan, forces of terror are regrouping in Bangladesh, a perfect haven for sundry groups operating in Pakistan, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and other Southeast Asian nations. After the terrorists in Pakistan came under American pressure, Bangladesh has emerged as a fertile ground for terror groups to spawn, recruit and set up training camps and strengthen their network. Two reasons can be cited for the rise of terror in India's east: Geography and history. Bangladesh is a country sandwiched between West Bengal, Tripura, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Assam with its southern borders flanking the Bay of Bengal. The last four States have been struggling with insurgency for more than five decades, fuelled by vested powers and armed by smuggling networks, some operating with state complicity and others independently, that run through Southeast Asian mainland. As a result, there are well-trodden arms smuggling routes through mountainous terrain that also offer enclaves for terrorist training camps. The long coastline of 580 km offers a safe route for gun-runners, smugglers, terrorists and criminal syndicates including those who indulge in human trafficking. Geography, in some ways, has shaped the history of this country.

As for history, Bangladesh, in existence for 33 years, has had a tradition of religious groups, some quite extremist in their viewpoint, jostling for political space, often left vacant by frequent bouts of political instability and military interventions. These religious groups, particularly the Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI) which emerged as Bangladesh's third largest party during the October 2001 elections capturing 17 seats in the 300-strong parliament, have gained strength in recent years as the country was dragged into impoverishment and public disillusionment caused by gross misgovernance and religious bigotry. These factors also helped terrorist groups like the Al Qaeda and its various tributaries to set up bases and operate quite freely from Bangladesh. One such group is Harkat ul Jihad al Islami (HuJI), Al Qaeda's operating arm in South Asia, with growing links in Southeast Asia....

The troubling aspect of the rise of HuJI in Bangladesh is its links with religious groups which have been successful in gaining control over the political space in a country facing economic collapse. In the days to come, HuJI's success in carving out a space for itself is likely to trigger a wave of copycat terrorism, with smaller religious extremist groups like Islami Oikyo Jote (IOJ) taking to terror tactics for power and profit. In the process, they will help the Al Qaeda to firmly establish a network of grass-roots level groups to carry out terrorist missions. In Pakistan, the Al Qaeda has been quite successful in coopting various religious and sectarian groups to work for the larger "cause" of global terror. Bangladesh is the next favoured destination of the Al Qaeda.

The Best Osama Could Do

An encouraging assessment of what has been done so far. From a New York Post editorial (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

Osama's goals have been to sow death and destruction in the name of his own sick religion. But things haven't been working out so well.

The 9/11 attack was intended principally to provoke a swift, indiscriminate American military response so terrible it would provoke the Muslim masses to rise against moderate Islamic governments in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and elsewhere.

That, in turn, would have allowed al Qaeda — then enjoying the patronage of Afghanistan's Taliban government — to extend itself into newly radicalized regions of the Mideast and beyond.

But while America's response was swift, it was disciplined, targeted and extraordinarily effective.

There were no uprisings.

No governments fell, except two; the Taliban and Saddam Hussein's.

And while it is true that Osama remains free — however temporarily — it is also true that he's also now the world's most famous homeless person.

Moreover:

* Individual al Qaeda-linked cells throughout the world have no central base to which to turn for aid.

* Training camps are closed.

* Funding sources have dried up.

* The medieval regime that offered him succor is itself gone. Afghanistan just held its first democratic elections.

* Iraq is moving toward free elections — doubtless to Osama's chagrin.

Clearly, yesterday's tape was meant to influence Tuesday's U.S. election — much as al Qaeda caused Spain to show yellow in the War on Terror — though it remains that it was only a tape.

There was no Madrid-like terror bombing in America, but you can bet your last dollar that Osama and his bloody-handed henchmen wouldn't hesitate to attempt one if they thought for even a moment that they could get away with it.

Indeed, they've failed to pull off any such strike on U.S. soil since 9/11.

Thank President Bush — and the U.S. military — for that.

Someday Osama will be rotting behind bars next to, say, Saddam Hussein — unless he's killed first....

Clearly Osama's little lecture yesterday was meant to dampen George Bush's electoral prospects; in that sense, it betrayed a truly fundamental misunderstanding of the United States.

If 9/11 didn't make Americans flinch, it's not likely that an appearance by Osama on a TV channel best known for its videos of beheadings and other gruesome events will do anything more than stiffen the nation's spine.

Again, for the record: If Osama could have carried out an act of terror, he would have carried out an act of terror.

He can't — and that speaks to the fundamental success of the War on Terror.

Read it all. I think the Post is certainly right about Osama between 9/11 and now. Right after 9/11 he boasted that many more planes would soon be falling out of the skies. They didn't. But of course, we're not quite out of the woods yet. Eight years passed between the first WTC bombing and the one that brought down the Towers. The ideology that breeds Islamic terrorists is still alive and well. Until it is combatted forcefully, this conflict will continue.

Sudanese rebels demand Islam be kept out of Darfur

Just yesterday I came across a Muslim writer (as part of a an attack on this site that was long on rhetoric but short on facts) asserting that the conflict in Darfur has nothing to do with jihad, but is ethnic -- despite clear statements from Khartoum indicating otherwise. And now this: secularism must not be allowed in Darfur -- it must be ruled by Sharia, or else. What do you say now, Jo?

From MiddleEastOnline, with thanks to Twostellas:

ABUJA - Sudanese rebel leaders demanded that Islam be kept out of government in the war torn region of Darfur on Friday, opening up another potentially dangerous rift between them and the Khartoum government.

Speaking as African Union peace talks in the Nigerian capital Abuja moved on to discussion of a political settlement to the 20-month-old civil conflict, rebel leaders called for a clear division between religion and the state in Sudan.

"We are now prepared to start deliberations on the political issues, following the appeal of the international observers and facilitators," said Mahgoud Hussein, spokesman for the rebel Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM).

"Firstly, we'll start with the declaration of principles. We want a clear distinction between the state and religion. Right now in Sudan you have a situation where Islam is given prominence over other religions," he added.

"This shouldn't be so. Even though I'm a Muslim, we want religion to be a personal thing with every citizen having the freedom to practice what he believes in," he explained.

The rebel demand was immediately rejected by government negotiators, who insisted that mainly-Muslim northern Sudan, including Darfur, should be governed under the principles of Islamic law.

"Darfur is in the north, so Sharia law should apply. It is not negotiable," said Abdul Zuma, media adviser to the Sudanese government at the talks.

Suicide Bombers 'ready to target Russia'

From the BBC, with thanks to Twostellas:

More than 80 suicide attackers have been trained on foreign soil to launch strikes in Russia, according to the country's security services chief.

During a debate on national security, Nikolai Patrushev told parliament that some attackers had been "neutralised".

But he said he could not guarantee there would be no further attacks.

Suicide bombers have been responsible for many attacks in Russia, including the bombing of two planes in August, which killed more than 90 people....

"For the secret services it is nakedly clear that the ideologists of the terrorist attacks in the North Caucasus are [Chechen separatist leader Aslan] Maskhadov and Basayev and men from al-Qaeda. As for the Beslan attack in particular, it was organised by Basayev," he said.

Prosecutor General Vladimir Ustinov told the Duma that existing legislation made it hard to fight terrorism effectively.

He suggested detaining relatives and confiscating finances could be efficient deterrents for would-be suicide bombers.

"Detaining relatives and showing terrorists what may happen to their relatives could help save people's lives, so let's not close our eyes or put a diplomatic face on it," AP quoted him as saying.

"When you live by the sword, you die by the sword."

Gadahn's conversion story still available at MSA website

When I wrote about Adam Gadahn last June, I made reference to his conversion story, which was available courtesy the Muslim Students Association at University of Southern California.

It's still there (thanks to Ixnay for the heads up). I don't know if the MSA still thinks of Gadahn as a positive role model, or if they just haven't gotten around to taking it down yet, but in any case, you may find it interesting reading.

Weyrich on Stability for Tragic Kosovo

A commentary on the ongoing tragedy in Kosovo from the courageous and insightful Paul Weyrich. From CNSNews.com, with thanks to Sparta:

Many Americans' view of Kosovo -- if they have one at all -- is shaped by the tragic stories they see on CNN.

Some may even remember that our country, as part of NATO, participated in bombings there in 1999 to protect Albanian refugees as part of a war that lasted for over two months. Most Americans pay Kosovo little mind, viewing it to be the staging ground of a conflict that holds no important consequence for the United States.

However, Kosovo is more essential to the security of America and the West than many people realize.

The ability of our country, our NATO allies and the United Nations to promote stable governance that ensures minority rights very well could make the difference between peace and war in a historically and still volatile region, the Balkans, situated between Adriatic and Black Seas.

Islamists recognize the strategic importance of Kosovo and, left unchallenged by a complacent West, could use it to gain a strategic foothold in Europe.

The Serbian population is the minority. They are predominantly Christian and face persecution from an energized Albanian majority.

Right after a wave of violence shook the country in March, Damjan de Krnjevic-Miskovic, then the managing editor of The National Interest and a senior fellow of the Institute on Religion and Public Policy, wrote in National Review Online the article "Kristallnacht in Kosovo." In it he stated: "...Kosovo's Serbs have for years been warning of the real nature of Albanian nationalism, and the U.N. and the West have assumed they were exaggerating." ...

Many Albanian Muslims are marginally religious and, up to now, the relations between them and Albanian Christians (mostly Orthodox, some Roman Catholic) have been stable compared to the animosity directed by Albanian Muslims against the Serbs.

Middle Eastern organizations are devoting great resources to building mosques and other Islamic institutions. Given the poverty of Kosovo, it could easily become a breeding ground for Islamic extremism as we have seen in Afghanistan and elsewhere.

The history of Kosovo, only some 4,200 square miles, is quite complicated: It became Christian in 874 A.D., only to become part of the Ottoman Empire when Muslims invaded Serbia in the late 14th Century. In 1912, Kosovo and Methohija were liberated from the Ottoman Empire and incorporated into Serbia, and then entered into as (at least theoretically) an autonomous state at Yugoslavia's founding in 1919.

Kosovo has remained part of Serbia since then, with the exception of World War II when Kosovo was administered as a part of Greater Albania by the Axis powers. During that time, churches and monasteries were destroyed.

Throughout the 1920s, 30s, and 40s there had been a simmering conflict between the Albanians -- largely, but not completely, Muslim -- and the Serbs who generally belong to the Serbian Orthodox Church.

The Albanians in Serbia collaborated with the Nazis against the Serbs. In 1945, Yugoslavia became a Communist country, and the authorities covered up ethnic tensions through force, intimidation, mass resettlement of Serbs from Kosovo, and ideological propaganda.

Yugoslavia's grip on its provinces diminished over time, greater autonomy was granted to Kosovo, a state of Serbia with a population composed of ethnic Serbs, Albanians, and Montenegrons. After Yugoslavian Communist Dictator Tito died, the tensions between ethnic and religious groups resurfaced.

Eventually, as Communist rule weakened, Slobodan Milosevic, a Serb, became the President of Serbia, only to crack down on the Albanian extremists bent on seeking independence through force of arms which led to bloody confrontations in 1998 between the Serbian troops and the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a largely Albanian terrorist outfit. A ceasefire negotiated by NATO fell apart, setting the stage for the NATO air strikes that started in March 1999, designed to bring Milosevic to heel.

Our participation in the effort was premised on our being part of NATO; we ignored Russian arguments in favor of the Serbs. Some have called this "Monica's War" because it came soon after the Clinton impeachment. However, our effort also led to the removal of the KLA from the State Department's list of terrorist organizations.

Many Albanians and Serbs in Kosovo became refugees. A peace agreement was signed after a 78-day bombing campaign. Control of Kosovo was divided between German, French and American sectors, with the primary duties of peacekeeping divided between the armies of NATO countries and agencies of the United Nations.

Neither NATO nor the United Nations has been effective in keeping a lid on the animosity. For one reason, the missions of the armies are mixed. French and German soldiers are there only to protect persons. Our soldiers, numbering less than 2,000, are there to protect both persons and property. Kosovo's population is beset by high joblessness and substandard living conditions as well as crime and ethnic and religious rivalry.

Since the end of the conflict in June 1999, violence has been perpetrated against Serbian Orthodox Churches and holy sites. Over 120 holy places, including many that date back to the Middle Ages, had been desecrated or destroyed by December 2003.

At the same time, at least 200,000 Kosovar Serbs and other non-Albanians have been "cleansed" from their homes, only 10,000 have returned. In March 2003, apparently false reports of violence perpetrated by Serbian children against young Albanians ignited what was called the "March Pogrom" in which 35 churches and monasteries were destroyed. Strong suspicion exists among many in Kosovo, even those within NATO's Kosovo Force (KFOR) peacekeeping forces, that the March Pogrom was anything but a spontaneous event.

Members of the delegation visited the Devic Monastery -- founded in the 15th Century -- which had been ransacked and burned by a mob. French troops took the nuns to safety but they refrained from doing anything further, given that the definition of their mission was to protect people. In fact, the French troops left an ailing nun to be attacked by the mob. Thankfully, she escaped unharmed. The looters smashed crosses on graves, even trying to open the sarcophagus of a saint (whose relics had already been moved). This unfortunate monastery had been rebuilt after having been badly damaged by the (terrorist?) KLA in 1999.

Japan Says Body Found Not Iraq Hostage

So who is it? From AP:

TOKYO - The Japanese government is "almost certain" a body earlier believed to belong to a Japanese hostage held in Iraq is not that of the captive, officials said Saturday.

The government had said a body found in central Iraq resembled that of hostage Shosei Koda, 24, and that it was being sent to medical experts for identification.

A Japanese doctor and officials in Kuwait examined it but found the body's characteristics differed from Koda's, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda.

"It is almost certain the body is not Mr. Koda," Hosoda said. "We are now collecting more information and turning our full efforts toward rescuing Mr. Koda."

Foreign Ministry spokesman Hatsuhisa Takashima told a news conference there were several discrepancies, including that the body was dressed in Middle Eastern clothing; the face, though mutilated, had traces of a beard; and the person seemed to be about 50 years old, was overweight, and had a different dental structure.

The discovery came a day after a deadline set by militants who threatened to behead Koda unless Japan withdrew its forces from Iraq — a demand Japan rejected.

Arafat May Be Suffering From Leukemia

From AP:

PARIS - Physicians specializing in the treatment of leukemia were examining ailing Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on Saturday to determine whether he suffers from the blood disorder, Palestinian sources said.

The 75-year-old Arafat has been sick for the past two weeks and blood tests have revealed he has a low platelet count — a possible symptom of leukemia, other cancers or a number of other maladies.

Arafat received a transfusion of platelets shortly after being rushed Friday to France for treatment at the Hopital d'Instruction des Armees de Percy, a military teaching hospital southwest of Paris that specializes in blood disorders and trauma care.

A Palestinian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there was a strong possibility that Arafat was suffering from leukemia and that a team of French physicians specializing in the disorder had examined the Palestinian leader on Friday....

Israel long refused to guarantee that if Arafat leaves his Ramallah base he will be allowed to return — a refusal that kept the Palestinian leader pinned down in his compound. But Israel, concerned it would be blamed if his health condition worsened, lifted the ban on Thursday and promised to allow Arafat to return.

More Bombs Explode in Thailand's Troubled Muslim-Dominated South

From VOANews, with thanks to Twostellas:

Two more bombs went off in Thailand's Muslim-dominated south Friday morning injuring at least 20 people during a week of continuing violence. The blasts come as Thailand's prime minister prepares to address the nation on his government's deadly handling of a Muslim protest Monday.

The first bomb exploded Friday morning near busy tea shops in the provincial capital of Yala 12 hundred kilometers south of Bangkok. About 90 minutes later a second blast occurred as a bomb squad was clearing the area. Most of the injured were police.

Another bombing Thursday night killed several people and wounded more than a dozen in Narathiwat.

The bombs appeared to be targeting security forces, accused of using excessive force to quell the violence in the mostly-Muslim provinces of Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat that border Malaysia.

American Muslim leader: Muslims 'need strong media campaign to boost image'

Interesting that he suggests that the Jewish lobby is strong because Muslims are weak. But most preposterous is his shoot-the-messenger assertion that "Western propaganda" has damaged the image of Islam. Osama bin Laden has damaged the image of Islam. The jihadists whose statements and actions I report and comment on here have damaged the image of Islam. But Ahmad has nothing to say about them. Instead, it's all the fault of those who tell the American public about these things. From GulfNews.com, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

Abu Dhabi: The Muslim world needs a strong media presence to counter Western propaganda that damages the image of Islam, an American Muslim leader told Gulf News.

Responding to a question about the media in the West and its portrayal of Islam and Muslims, Khalid Ahmad, president of American Congress of Muslim Youth, said it was the weaknesses of Muslims that had led to the deteriorating image of Islam.

"To an American, most of the terrorist activities are coming from the Muslim world. I suggest Muslims need to have a strong media front to counter the Western media and improve the image of Muslims," he said.

Ahmad said Muslim and Arab countries, particularly the GCC states, need to give full support to American Muslims to help form a strong lobby in the United States to serve Muslim interests and influence American foreign policy and decision-making.

Despite a population of seven million Muslims in the US, Jewish interest groups have a strong lobby and hold considerable sway over American foreign policy, he said.

"The Jewish lobby is strong because all Muslims in the US are not citizens, thus they have no right to vote and influence policy.

"Muslims are divided, in a sense, when they migrate to the US. They stick to their own communities. For example, we black Muslims care for domestic issues rather than political issues linked to the Muslim world. We care about taxes, social services, employment and so on. Israel is the last thing we are concerned about. But Arabs are more concerned about the political uncertainty in the Middle East."

Jihadists kill 16 people in attack near Algerian capital

From AP, with thanks to Susan:

ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) - Suspected Islamic militants killed 16 people in a pre-dawn attack south of the Algerian capital on Saturday [October 23], an official statement said. It was the first bloodshed since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The victims, mostly youths, were driving to Algiers for a soccer match when ambushed on the road near the city of Medea, 50 kilometres south of the capital. They were buried Saturday....

Algeria's Islamic rebels have in the past intensified their campaign of violence during Ramadan, killing about 1,200 people during the month of fasting in 1997 at the height of the insurgency.

But in recent years the bloodshed has decreased. An average of 50 soldiers and civilians were killed over the Muslim holy month in 2003 and 2002.

The North African country has been fighting the insurgency since 1992, when the army cancelled national elections to prevent victory by a Muslim fundamentalist party. The violence has killed an estimated 120,000 people.

Al-Jazeera Airs Videotape by Bin Laden

Among other things that this tells us, it shows that he is alive. No other statement since shortly after 9/11 had Osama on video talking about any contemporary events.

Also, will this finally silence all the corrosive drivel about how the CIA and/or Mossad pulled off 9/11?

From AP:

CAIRO, Egypt - Osama bin Laden, reading a statement to the American people in a new videotape aired Friday, directly admitted for the first time that he ordered the Sept. 11 attacks and said "the best way to avoid another Manhattan" was to stop threatening Muslims' security.

This is, of course, what certain American and European analysts have been saying since 9/11: if we just stop bothering them, all this will go away. But this founders on history. Before Iraq, before Afghanistan, before the founding of Israel, before the founding of the USA, there was still jihad. If Osama didn't have the grievances he trots out, he would have others: they are mere pretexts, as changeable as stage sets. Jihadists like to point to the abolition of the caliphate in 1924 as the source of all their woes and the cause of their struggle today -- but there were other jihads, and other pretexts, long before 1924.

I think this point may be one of the most difficult of all for Americans to grasp.

It was the first footage of the al-Qaida leader to surface in more than a year. The video, broadcast on Al-Jazeera, showed bin Laden with a long gray beard, wearing traditional white robes, a turban and a golden cloak reading from papers in front of a plain, brown curtain....

There was no way to determine when the tape was made, although it did refer to next week's presidential elections in the United States.

"We decided to destroy towers in America," bin Laden said, referring to the World Trade Center.

"God knows that it had not occurred to our mind to attack the towers, but after our patience ran out and we saw the injustice and inflexibility of the American-Israeli alliance toward our people in Palestine and Lebanon, this came to my mind," he said.

He accused President Bush of "misleading" the American people since the 2001 suicide airline hijackings that hit the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

"Your security is not in the hands of (Democratic candidate John) Kerry or Bush or al-Qaida. Your security is in your own hands," bin Laden said.

"To the U.S. people, my talk is to you about the best way to avoid another disaster," he said. "I tell you: security is an important element of human life and free people do not give up their security."

"If Bush says we hate freedom, let him tell us why we didn't attack Sweden, for example. It is known that those who hate freedom do not have dignified souls, like those of the 19 blessed ones," he said, referring to the 19 hijackers.

"We fought you because we are free .. and want to regain freedom for our nation. As you undermine our security we undermine yours."

I am not a Wilsonian. I do not think that every human heart harbors a natural longing for democracy. I would be inclined to tell him, sure, freedom for your nation. Run your nation according to your own devices, and may God help you. But many in your nation have the idea that they should make war against those in my nation who resist the imposition of your idea of the ideal system of government. As Sayyid Qutb said, "The foremost duty of Islam is to depose Jahiliyyah [the government and society of unbelievers] from the leadership of man." And to do so, he makes clear, by force. That is not a prescription for peaceful coexistence; no doubt many Westerners will think that that is what Osama is offering, but it isn't.

UPDATE: Drudge has a full transcript.

California imam identifies "Azzam the American" as Gadahn

Welcome assistance from the man who converted Gadahn to Islam, and was later assaulted by him. From FoxNews, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. — The director of a California mosque told FOX News on Friday he believes the man threatening the United States on a mysterious videotape is that of a young American he converted to Islam.

Haitham Bundjaki, the Orange County imam who converted Adam Yahiye Gadahn to Islam and whom Gadahn later assaulted, told FOX outside his mosque on Friday that it sounds like Gadahn on the tape.

The FBI believes the 25-year-old Southern Californian has possible ties to Usama bin Laden's terror network Al Qaeda.

Question: do young men join terror groups for the glamor of it all? Was there any other life path that Adam Gadahn could have chosen that would have made him the top story on international news? Of course, most terrorists don't ever play this role, but even the incessant beheading videotapes suggest that there may be a bright-lights-big-city aspect, and/or a sense of joining in a significant, important, and dangerous work, in what attracts recruits to terror groups.

Report: Japanese Hostage Killed in Iraq

The latest from AP:

TOKYO - A Japanese civilian taken hostage in Iraq by militants has been killed, Kyodo News agency reported Saturday, citing a member of Japan's ruling party. But national broadcaster NHK said the government was still trying to confirm the information.

Government officials could not be reached early Saturday to comment on the report.

Islamic militants threatened on Tuesday to behead hostage 24-year-old Shosei Koda within 48 hours unless Japan withdrew its troops from Iraq. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi firmly rejected that demand, saying he would not give in to terrorists.

Kyodo said a body found near the city of Tikrit had been identified as Koda.

However, the Iraqi Interior Ministry had dismissed an earlier report that the body of an Asian man was found near Tikrit. The ministry said the body was that of an Iraqi man.

It was unclear whether the new Kyodo report referred to a new identification of the same body or a second body found in Tikrit.

The election, Thomas Sowell, and Daniel Pearl

The primary issue in this election is who is better equipped to fight back against the global jihad. The key word here is better. It makes little sense to eschew voting on the grounds that one candidate may be better than the other, but still not perfect.

Every other issue — the Supreme Court, taxes, Social Security reform — depends upon our national survival. Prescription drug costs will matter very little if the Sears Tower is a smoking hole in the ground or if a large portion of Los Angeles is replaced with a radioactive crater.

Why did it take vast amounts of public pressure to force ABC News to air the tape of 'Azzam the American'? Today Thomas Sowell has an excellent piece on the disgraceful performance of the media in this election. “The issue is whether their main function -- supplying information to the public -- is corrupted by double standards in how they report or withhold news that could help or hurt their favorite causes and candidates.” It is clear that ABC News has a quite definite opinion on which candidate is superior on the issue of national security. Whether you agree or disagree with their backhanded assessment, you should be aware of what the stakes are in their coverup. The less Americans know about what we are up against, the less they will be able to make an informed choice on Tuesday.

It is also clear that the useful idiots in the media have learned nothing from the kidnapping and murder of Daniel Pearl. Perhaps they believe they will be safe if they carry their dhimmi clippings in their wallet. No doubt they are in denial about the realities of the jihad ideology; many clearly believe that we can go back to September 10, 2001 if we just get rid of that awful George W. Bush. But whatever you think of Bush, there is no way to sustain the argument that the global jihad began with him.

The media has been quick to attack any use of 9/11 in the Bush campaign despite the fact that it is clearly the most important issue facing us today. They are quick to warn him not to “wave the bloody shirt.” (No report yet on what they think of Curt Schilling appearing with Bush today in New Hampshire to wave the bloody sock.) But whichever candidate you vote for, remember: basing your vote on prescription drug costs or taxes or anything but the reality of global jihad is tantamount to voting for September 10. It would be to pretend that a world that has vanished forever is still with us, or can be easily recovered.

UPDATE: Todd from Manchester tells me that Schilling had to cancel his planned appearance.

Canada: Islamic leader apologizes but won't quit

The latest on Elmasry from the Globe and Mail, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

Mohamed Elmasry, the embattled president of the Canadian Islamic Congress, apologized again yesterday for his controversial remarks but did not resign -- despite repeated calls to do so from other Muslim and Jewish organizations.

Instead, the CIC issued a statement yesterday saying it accepted Mr. Elmasry's apology for saying that all Israelis over the age of 18 are fair targets for suicide bombers, but not his offer to resign, noting "one unintentional mistake does not wipe out his exemplary 30-year record."

An unintentional mistake that happens to coincide with fatawa issued by many Islamic clerics and the opinions of other spokesmen?

"It has always been a core belief of mine that killing civilians -- any civilians for any cause -- is an immoral act of the worst kind and I will never change in this conviction," Mr. Elmasry said in the media release.

Of course, he did not address the widespread view, articulated by several Islamic clerics, that there are no civilians in Israel.

"Failing to articulate my beliefs clearly, completely, and forcefully on that occasion was the biggest mistake in my 30 years of public life."

Indeed, but what kind of mistake was it?

While the CIC says it has been "overwhelmed" by calls of support from Muslim, Jewish, Christian and Arab communities, yesterday several organizations reiterated their belief that Mr. Elmasry has done lasting damage to the credibility of his organization, to the cause of Palestinians and of Muslims.

Indeed he has. But not because he is a loose cannon. More because he is articulating a view that is not just his own.

Spain: 13 Islamic radicals arrested for new bomb plot

Evidently dhimmi Spain still can't jump high enough for its jihadist masters. From Expatica, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

MADRID - Spanish police have arrested 13 more suspected Islamic extremists in connection with an alleged plot to bomb the country's national court.

Eight of the new arrests were made late Thursday in Madrid, Cadiz and Valencia while five suspects were already in custody.

They bring to 30 the number of arrests in connection with the alleged plot.

National Court Judge Baltasar Garzon imprisoned 17 suspects - ten of them already in prison for other crimes - last week on suspicion of being members of a group called Martyrs for Morocco.

"These [new] arrests are the result of all the documentation seized from the detainees last week and all the information gathered by the judge during their interrogations," a police source said.

The terrorists are said to have planned to detonate a lorry loaded with 500 kg of explosives near the Audiencia Nacional, Spain's national criminal court where all terrorist cases are heard.

US expert believes Osama network active in Bosnia

Bosnia, of course, is held up by some "experts" as a bastion of Islamic moderation. And in many ways it is just that; but the moderates' lack of a theological foundation within Islam makes them always vulnerable to radical encroachment. From AFP, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

BANJA LUKA, Bosnia-Hercegovina : Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden is actively directing terrorist cells in the former Yugoslav republic of Bosnia, a top US terrorism analyst told a local daily.

Yossef Bodansky, director of the Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare of the US Congress, told the Glas Srpske daily that terrorists responsible for the bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad last year were trained near the central Bosnian town of Zenica.

"There is a terrorist network in Bosnia, composed of several well-trained and connected groups, which are directly or indirectly responsible to ... Osama Bin Laden," he was quoted as saying in the Serbian-language paper.

He said the cells were using Bosnia as a training ground and a gateway to send terrorists to western Europe or to hide them on their way to the east if they were on the run.

"The network in Bosnia ... is training and controlling terrorists who later travel to Western European countries," Bodansky said in comments translated from Serbian.

"On the other hand, terrorists for whom arrest warrants have been issued in the west are coming back to Bosnia where 'liaison officers' welcome them and provide accommodation and hiding places, and they are later transferred to the east." ...

Foreign Muslim fighters were ordered to leave Bosnia under the 1995 peace accords, but some of them stayed and obtained citizenship either on the basis of their army service or by marrying local women.

Sudan: Reports of new attacks

While the peace talks continue, the jihad still rages. From SA, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

Abuja - Rebel accusations that fresh government air-raids killed 26 civilians in Sudan's troubled Darfur region have cast a pall over peace talks in Nigeria, where African Union mediators trying to end the conflict are making little headway.

Mahgoup Hussain, a spokesperson for the rebel Sudan Liberation Army, said on Wednesday that the bombings occurred on Tuesday and Wednesday in the town of Allaiat, in eastern Darfur.

But Lieutenant General Mohammed Ismail, the deputy chief of staff of the Sudanese army, said there had been no fresh violence in the area.

"It is still continuing," Hussein said of the bombings, claiming the 26 dead included a pregnant woman. "Definitely this round (of negotiations) will not go well. It is not logical. You are coming here for peace, and you are bombing people over there."

"Grace be to Islam. Islam is coming. We are all Salaah-Ud-Deen!"

In Al-Azhar, an impromptu speaker on the glories of political Islam vies with another who attracts security officials by talking about Egypt's current oppressive government — a common refrain of members of the Muslim Brotherhood. Both show that political Islam is alive and well in Egypt: "We are all Salaah-Ud-Deen [Saladin]!" From MPACUK, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

CAIRO, Egypt - The turbaned sheikh had finished his sermon, but others were just getting started. As he walked from the prayer hall, other speakers stepped in looking for an audience among the thousands of worshippers still crowded into the Al-Azhar Masjid.

But the 1,000-year-old Al-Azhar Masjid, which is also one of the first universities in the world, is no sanctuary of free speech.

Helmeted riot police ringed the Masjid, while inside was the more subtle presence of plainclothes state security officers, who hung back until needed....

As most worshippers filed out, a few hundred stuck around to debate. Inside the Masjid's main hall, men shouted and pushed as two speakers tried to outshout each other.

One man stood with arms folded, telling of Salaah-Ud-Deen, the Islamic hero who recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusaders in 1187. The other tried to interrupt him with a more modern tale: of Egyptians' struggle for freedom under what he called an oppressive government. Scores of listeners surrounded them.

"We need to speak about political work in Egypt," shouted Nagy Said, an accountant, sweat pouring off his face. "Al-Azhar doesn't reflect the pulse of the nation."

A listener objected, saying politics had no place at the Masjid.

Suddenly, the security agents materialized from the crowd, checking IDs and questioning the people crowded around the political speaker. They were less interested in the man talking about the ancient Islamic victories.

His listeners remained as the others filed out.

"Grace be to Islam. Islam is coming," called a voice from the crowd. "We are all Salaah-Ud-Deen!."

Shakespeare the Muslim and the Collapse of the West

The latest from Jihad Watch director Robert Spencer looks at the upcoming Islam Awareness Week at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, and its implications for the non-Muslim world. From FrontPage:

“We know what we are, but know not what we may become,” observed Shakespeare, who no doubt knew not that four hundred years after his death, he himself would be proclaimed a Sufi Muslim. “Shakespeare would have delighted in Sufism,” said the Islamic scholar Martin Lings, himself a Sufi Muslim who also goes by the name Abu Bakr Siraj ad-Din. “We can see he obviously knew a lot about some kind of equivalent sect or order.”

According to The Guardian, Lings will argue that Shakespeare’s “work resembles the teachings of the Islamic Sufi sect” in the International Shakespeare Globe Fellowship Lecture at Shakespeare’s own Globe Theatre in London. Lings will speak in November during Islam Awareness Week, which will also feature other Muslim speakers, while Islamic scenes are projected on the Globe’s outside walls. “On the final weekend,” says The Guardian, “a souk will take over the premises, with stalls selling eastern wares.”

By the pricking of my thumbs, something preposterous this way comes. “It’s impossible for Shakespeare to have been a Muslim,” David N. Beauregard, a Shakespeare scholar and coeditor of Shakespeare and the Culture of Christianity in Early Modern England, told me. Beauregard has argued that there is a “growing consensus that Shakespeare was a Roman Catholic.… he maintained Roman Catholic beliefs on crucial doctrinal differences.” He notes that “this is not to say that Shakespeare was occupied with writing religious drama, but only that a specific religious tradition informs his work.” And it isn’t Sufism.

But of course, the Globe’s Islam Awareness Week is not so much about Shakespeare as it is about present-day Britain’s anxiety to appease its growing and restive Muslim population. Shakespeare is just the latest paradigmatic figure of Western Christian culture to be remade in a Muslim-friendly manner: recently the State Department asserted, without a shred of evidence, that Christopher Columbus (who in fact praised Ferdinand and Isabella for driving the Muslims out of Spain) was aided on his voyages by a Muslim navigator.

It is a sign of the times when this kind of thinking is no longer confined to Islamic apologetics websites, but is taken up by the Globe Theatre and the U.S. State Department — hardly representatives of the cultural fringes — and even American textbook publishers. The state of American education is so dismal today that teachers themselves are ill-equipped to counter these historical fantasies. They will become willing propagators of the new history: nothing to fear from Muslims, you see. Shakespeare was one of them. Oh yes, and Goethe. And Abraham Lincoln’s mother. And Napoleon Bonaparte. What? You didn’t know the Napoleonic Code was based on Sharia law?

Sharia law — aye, there’s the rub. No doubt there will be no mention at the Globe Theatre’s souk of the fact that many Muslims in Britain believe that the British government, and indeed any government, has no legitimacy unless it implements Sharia. No admirer of the Sufi Shakespeare is likely during the festivities to quote the Egyptian Muslim writer Sayyid Qutb, whose writings are revered today by radical Muslims worldwide. Qutb declared that “the foremost duty of Islam is to depose Jahiliyyah [the government and society of unbelievers] from the leadership of man.” Radical Muslim leaders everywhere today call upon Muslims to recover the teachings of the Qur’an and Islamic tradition that enjoined them to institute Islamic hegemony by force if necessary.

But it has become a rule of the public debate that such aspects of Islam cannot be mentioned. We must accept on faith that no Muslim among those streaming into Western countries has any plans to interfere with the constitutions of those countries, now or in the future. And if they do, what of it? Muslim Spain, after all, was a paradise of multiculturalist harmony. Shakespeare was a Muslim. And on and on.

The Syrian writer Sadik Al-Azm recently declared that there was no clash of civilizations, because the West was so strong and the Islamic world so weak that any conflict would inevitably result in the triumph of the West. Al-Azm didn’t consider, however, that the West itself would look upon Othello’s boast of smiting “a malignant and a turban’d Turk” and decide that he should go for some sensitivity training. If radical Muslims like Britain’s notorious Sheikh Omar Bakri ultimately realize their dream of seeing the black flag of Islam flying from #10 Downing Street, and continue to advance elsewhere in the West, the fault, as Cassius told Brutus, will be not in our stars, but in ourselves.

Denmark: Iranian refugees are being followed and threatened by their countrymen

Sometimes Muslims come to the West in order to get out from under the full or partial enforcement of the Sharia, and to secularize and live their lives in peace. And sometimes their radical brethren don't allow them to do this. From the Copenhagen Post, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

Iran's clerical regime is resorting to shady tactics against its opponents in Denmark. Daily newspaper Information reported that Iranian refugees in the country have been subjected to extortion and pressure, presumably by agents from the Iranian Embassy in Copenhagen. Informants from the nation's Iranian émigré community have passed on information to agents that has in many cases had drastic consequences for family members in Iran.

Several Iranian refugees spoke with the newspaper for its report, including defected Iranian diplomat Perviz S. Khazai, who represents the National Council of Resistance in Iran (NCRI) in Scandinavia.

‘I believe the Iranian regime has 50-60 very active 'Gestapo' style agents in Scandinavia - predominantly embassy workers and refugees who forward information on other refugees. In Denmark alone, there are at least 5-10. I know one of them by name,’ said Khazai.

Terror tape warns of Bush, Cheney consequence; ABC withheld portions from CIA

Another siren from Drudge.

ABCNEWS withheld portions of an alarming new al Qaeda videotape which warns the next terror attack will dwarf 9/11 from the CIA when they submitted the video for analysis, a top federal source tells the DRUDGE REPORT....

"What took place on September 11 was but the opening salvo of the global war on America and that our Lord willing, the magnitude and ferocity of what is coming your way will make you forget all about September 11," the man, whose face is covered by a headdress, warns in the video. "After decades of American tyranny, now it's your turn to die."...

A top goverment source said from Washington that ABC withheld the final 15 minutes of the tape from the CIA -- the portion of the tape where the man warns of retribution for Americans electing Bush and Cheney.

"You are guilty, guilty, guilty. You're as guilty as Bush and Cheney. You're as guilty as Rumsfeld and Ashcroft and Powell...," the man states.

He goes on to warn of an upcoming horror: "The streets will run with blood," and "America will mourn in silence" because they will be unable to count the number of the dead.

"People of America, that was the verdict now for the sentencing: as participants and partners in the crimes of the regime, you too shall pay the price for the blood that has been spilled."

One ABC source, who demanded anonymity, said Thursday morning, the network was struggling to find a correct journalistic "balance" before airing any story on the video.

"This is not something you just throw out there while people are voting," the ABC source explained.

Especially if you are trying as hard as you can to make sure that one of the candidates gets elected.

CIA, FBI Authenticate New Qaeda Terror Tape; ABCNEWS Executives Consider Political Implications of Airing

Drudge has his screaming siren going.

ABCNEWS has to be very careful reporting this NEWS because it might affect the election. A NEWS organization can't just go around reporting NEWS willy nilly.

Arafat diagnosed with gallstones

Not at death's door after all. From the Jerusalem Post, with thanks to Kemaste:

Yasser Arafat has a large gallstone, a Palestinian hospital official said Tuesday, as the weakened Palestinian leader broke his Ramadan fast and underwent more medical tests at the urging of his doctors.

The gallstone is not life threatening and can be easily treated, the official told The Associated Press.

Palestinian officials insisted Arafat, 75, was simply recovering from a lengthy bout of the flu. However, Palestinian medical sources said he has been inexplicably exhausted in recent weeks and Israeli officials have speculated he is suffering from stomach cancer.

Teams of Egyptian and Tunisian doctors have examined him in recent days. On Monday, he underwent an endoscopy, or exam of the digestive tract. And he has not led Muslim evening prayers at the makeshift mosque in his compound, as he has done in the past during the fasting month of Ramadan.

UPDATE: The staff here in Secure Undisclosed Locationville is having fun with this one. "Arafat has gallstones? It figures: he's sure got a lot of gall." Etc. You fill in the blanks. (Extra update, with apologies to the commenters: I hadn't read the comments before I added it. I should have figured you'd be ahead of us at the office on this.)

Syria-Iraq WMD locations?

Satellite images. From 2LA.org, with thanks to Ali Dashti.

Schwartz/Spencer at FrontPage

Stephen Schwartz has replied, in a manner of speaking, to my remarks in yesterday's FrontPage; his reply (at today's FrontPage) consists mainly of declaring that he will not reply. My additional remarks follow.

Spencer's Continuing Attacks on Me By Stephen Schwartz

[...]Third, I do not feel compelled to reply to Mr. Spencer's disquisitions on my religion because I not not consider him in the slightest manner competent to comment on my religion. He has a magpie knowledge of what he imagines Islam to be based on fairy tales and armchair reading. His obvious aim is to instil fear of Islam in Western readers who know even less than he knows about the faith of Muhammad. I do not in general respond to comments on Islam by non-Muslims, except when they are made by apologists for Wahhabism. I am more interested in convincing Muslims of the need for moderation, than in wasting my time trying to persuade biased non-Muslims that moderate Islam exists.

Fourth, I consider that Robert Spencer has disqualified himself from serious consideration on any matters having to do with interfaith relations by publishing the writings of Srdja Trifkovic, the well-known apologist for Serbian war crimes in Bosnia-Hercegovina, whose testimony at the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia, in the Stakic case, was discredited....

*

Silencing Non-Muslim Voices
By Robert Spencer

I was saddened to read Mr. Schwartz's letter, particularly its heading, since I have never attacked him in any way. I have merely asked questions about his recommendations for a reconfiguration of Islam so as to make it no longer a refuge and motivating force for international terrorists. Had Mr. Schwartz answered these questions honestly, fully, and civilly, we might have been on the way to a fruitful dialogue that could have helped accomplish what he professes to work for: "convincing Muslims of the need for moderation.”

But instead, we learn that he does not “in general respond to comments on Islam by non-Muslims.” In this I suppose Schwartz demonstrates his bona fides as a moderate Muslim, for while his radical coreligionists want to kill, convert, or subjugate us (cf. Qur’an 9:29), Schwartz merely won’t speak to us. Thank heaven for small favors. But I can’t help but wonder: this Islamic Ozymandias may demand that I tremble silently before his mighty works, but what of other non-Muslims? Does he really mean to dismiss out of hand the great scholarly works on Islam of John Wansbrough? Patricia Crone? A. S. Tritton? Arthur Jeffrey? Joseph Schacht? Bat Ye’or?

Are ex-Muslims acceptable? Would Schwartz deign to respond to Ibn Warraq? Ali Sina? Or does leaving Islam disqualify one from understanding it? What about, then, the heroic Iranian dissident Ali Dashti, author of a revealing study of Muhammad’s career, 23 Years, who as far as anyone knows never explicitly renounced Islam? Would Schwartz have responded to Ali Dashti before he was tortured and killed by Khomeini’s thugs? Yet many of the questions I have raised about Islam and the Qur’an are raised also by Ali Dashti. Are they valid questions coming from him, but not from me?

Unfortunately for Schwartz, his stance is self-defeating. I have asked him a number of questions about the Qur’an and Islam. He has chosen not to answer them, but to characterize them as personal attacks and to content himself with impugning my knowledge of the subject. The result is that for every person of good will, the questions remain. Islamic texts are widely and easily available today. Do they mean one thing when non-Muslims read them and another when Muslims read them? If only Muslims possess the secret key to understanding them, and will not share that key with anyone else, non-Muslims will continue to read these texts, and to see the easy use to which Muslim radicals put them in recruiting and motivating terrorists. But Schwartz will not share his secret decoder ring with us, and so instead of demonstrating true Islamic moderation, he leaves the field to the radicals.

As for Schwartz’s guilt-by-association attacks on Srdja Trifkovic, they are all the more beneath contempt for the fact that Trifkovic himself over a year ago supplied in this very publication a string of quotations from his own work going back to 1990 showing that he was an early and consistent opponent of the Milosevic regime. Trifkovic, of course, does not need me to defend him.

It is true that in Sharia courts, the testimony of non-Muslims need not be considered; but Stephen, we are now in a different court: the court of public opinion.

Algeria: “We cannot invite people to Islam when our party is sinking in immorality”

Algeria's radical Muslims in scandal and disarray. Much of the problem seems to come from the harshness of Islamic law itself, which sees "sexual assault" as the inevitable consequence of the simple presence of a man and a woman alone in a house. From Arab News, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

Led by Abdallah Jaballah, Islah is the second political bloc in the Algerian Parliament. Last April it fielded Jaballah as its candidate in the presidential election, which the incumbent President Abdelaziz Bouteflika won in a landslide. Jaballah came in third.

Scandals surrounding the party broke out earlier this week when a member of the leadership, who must remain anonymous for legal reasons, filed a lawsuit claiming that his wife had been “sexually assaulted” by Sadiq Sulayemah, another party leader.

The plaintiff has accused the party’s leadership of trying to cover up the incident along with other instances of “illegitimate sexual activity” at the highest levels.

Sulayemah, a well-known poet, and a life-long friend of Jaballah, has denied the charge, explaining his presence in the plaintiff’s house as an accident.

Party sources said yesterday that the poet had met Jaballah and “confessed to his sins” and asked for pardon. Jaballah is reported to have asked the poet to keep the incident a secret so as not to harm the party.

“It is hard to know what happened at the house,” says Abdul-Ghafour Saadi, the party’s deputy leader. “There were no witnesses to see what our comrade and the lady did.”

Sulayemah has published an ode lampooning unnamed party leaders for their obsessions with adultery and sexual deviation. The scandals come as a blow to a party that has built its platform on the claim that the Algerian society has become corrupted by Western influence.

Last year the party presented a bill to make Algeria alcohol-free by banning the sale of drinks in public places. The bill failed to get enough support for inclusion in the parliamentary agenda. The party has also campaigned to make polygamy legal again, and opposed reforms presented by President Bouteflika to improve the condition of women.

Juhaid Yunesi, the party’s number-three and one of those who have resigned, yesterday blamed Jaballah for “creating a dictatorship to cover immorality with an Islamic vocabulary.”

Another prominent party leader to resign is Miloud Qadiri who led Islah’s group in the National Assembly.

“We cannot invite people to Islam when our party is sinking in immorality,” Qadiri said.

Jaballah first made his name in 1993 when he was named as one of the nine men to form a Majlis Al-Shuyukh (Council of Seniors) at a Pan-Islamist conference held in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital under the chairmanship of Hassan Turabi. Among the council members was Osama Bin Laden.

Arafat Collapses As His Health Worsens

One of the world's leading jihadists may be on his deathbed. From AP, with thanks to Ethelred Smith:

RAMALLAH, West Bank - Yasser Arafat collapsed Wednesday evening, was unconscious for about 10 minutes and remained in a "very difficult situation," Palestinian officials said. A team of Jordanian doctors was urgently summoned to treat the ailing Palestinian leader.

Within hours, three senior Palestinian officials formed a special committee to run Palestinian affairs during Arafat's illness, according to a Palestinian official in Arafat's office.

The committee includes Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia, his predecessor, Mahmoud Abbas, and Salim Zaanoun, head of the Palestinian National Council.

The committee was to run the PLO and the Palestinian Authority until Arafat recovers, the official said on condition of anonymity.

Arafat was eating soup during a meeting with Qureia, Abbas and another official between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. (2 p.m. or 3 p.m. EDT) when he vomited, according to a bodyguard who was in the compound at the time.

The 75-year-old Arafat was brought to the clinic inside the compound, where he collapsed and was unconscious for about 10 minutes, the guard said. His doctors were urgently summoned.

Al Qaeda Site Urges Iraqis to Join Bin Laden

From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

CAIRO, Egypt — An online Al Qaeda magazine is urging Sunni Muslim fighters in Iraq to join hands with Usama bin Laden to defeat its enemies.

"We are urging all the leaders of Sunni holy warriors to fight for God's word to prevail over that of the infidels, to join hands with the leader of Islam's soldiers today, Usama bin Laden," said an editorial in the bimonthly Al Qaeda military publication Al-Battar Camp.

It said bin Laden would bring "victory [over] infidels from the atheist Crusaders."

Atheist Crusaders. Hmm. So they are finally noticing that the West is no longer Christian.

Al-Battar, Arabic for "sharp sword," is a slick Web magazine featuring a table of contents and op-ed page and a letters to the editor section.

The leaders of Sunni Muslim fighters in Iraq "should follow the lead of holy warrior leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, may God keep him, who initiated this good precedent, may God reward him," the magazine said.

Drudge: ABC News holds terror warning tape

This was just put up over at the Drudge Report:

In the last week before the election, ABCNEWS is holding on a videotaped message from a purported al Qaeda terrorist warning of a new attack on America, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.

The terrorist claims on tape the next attack will dwarf 9/11. "The streets will run with blood," and "America will mourn in silence" because they will be unable to count the number of the dead. Further claims: America has brought this on itself for electing George Bush who has made war on Islam by destroying the Taliban and making war on Al Qaeda.

ABCNEWS strongly denies holding the tape back from broadcast over political concerns during the last days of the election.

Yeah, surrrre.

The terrorist's face is concealed by a head dress, and he speaks in an American accent, making it difficult to identify the individual. A top goverment source tells DRUDGE, US intelligence officials believe that man may be Adam Gadhan - aka Adam Pearlman, a southern California native who was highlighted by the FBI in May as an individual most likely to be involved in or have knowledge of the next al Qaeda attacks.

One year of Jihad Watch

Tomorrow marks one year of Jihad Watch.

It has been a tumultuous year, and I thank all those who have helped make this samizdat effort take off in so many ways. If I named you all by name, it would make this a very long post; but please know that I am grateful to each of you.

Jihad Watch is dedicated to breaking the media blockade on Islam, and to introducing into the public debate the elements of Islam that give rise to fanaticism and violence, so that both non-Muslims and Muslims can take appropriate action.

It is a small effort, but growing steadily. And it is a samizdat effort because what we say here is not allowed to be said by most major media outlets. Yet it is the truth.

The truth about Islamic radicalism is available now to everyone. They can read books by Bat Ye'or, Ibn Warraq, Serge Trifkovic, and even by me. And there are books by so many others. These authors represent a broad spectrum of approaches and intellectual levels. The problem in America and the West today is not that the truth is not out there. It is that it is still widely ignored. It is consciously and systematically ignored and obfuscated by the media establishment.

If Serge Trifkovic wrote for the New York Times instead of Chronicles, the world would be different. People would know what we were facing, and Jihad Watch might not be necessary. If Ibn Warraq wrote for Simon and Schuster instead of Prometheus Books, people would know. If Bat Ye'or were on NBC and CBS, people would know.

But the media establishment has a virtual stranglehold on getting this information OUT. Instead of being featured and lionized as they deserve, people like Ibn Warraq and Bat Ye'or are smeared or simply ignored. On Monday I was in the Cleveland airport, having a casual conversation with a pilot. He didn't know who I was, and I didn't tell him, but he happened to bring up the subject of Islam. He told me it was a peaceful religion that has been hijacked, that the Bible is just as violent as the Qur'an, etc. Has he ever read the Qur'an? Or Trifkovic? Or Ibn Warraq? Or Bat Ye'or? No. And he certainly hasn't read my books. He was just repeating what the media told him.

There are millions of people like that out there. How to reach them? Jihad Watch is one small, very small, effort to do so. But the larger question of how to break the media stranglehold still preoccupies me. Since it is a willful and conscious rejection of the perspective that we bring on the question of Islam and terrorism, I don't have any idea how to break through it -- except to keep on telling the truth, here, day after day.

Nor is this simply a problem of the liberal control of the major media. Even the "conservatives" O'Reilly and Hannity passed on having me on their shows when my publisher, Regnery, offered them first crack at my book Onward Muslim Soldiers -- although they often do feature Regnery authors. Had they even read my book, or Trifkovic's, or any of Bat Ye'or's? I doubt it. They just figured it was out of the bounds of polite discourse, and that was that.

This is THE problem facing America today: it has become improper and unacceptable to talk honestly about the primary challenge that our nation faces: Islamic terrorism. How will we ever defeat the global jihad if we cannot acknowledge what it is, and where it comes from? Yet this perspective continues to be obfuscated by red herrings: "not all Muslims are terrorists," "all religions can give rise to violence," "you are saying that we must go to war against all Muslims," etc. These caveats are all either untrue or irrelevant, and I have answered them many times here over the past year. Yet they continue to be raised, every day: the Crusades! The IRA! My sweet Muslim neighbor! But how, after all, does the fact that Christians once waged Crusades help us in any way to deal with Islamic jihad today? The government and media establishments continue largely to refuse to acknowledge that there is any problem with Islam itself -- and thus the problem continues to fester for both non-Muslims and Muslims. If you won't admit it's broken, you certainly can't fix it.

So one year of Jihad Watch is complete, and I have signed on for another. The samizdat journalists of the Soviet Union ultimately prevailed; it is not beyond the realm of possibility that we will someday also -- no matter how bleak the situation may seem today.

And once again, I am extremely grateful for all your support and kindness over the past year.

Indians Put Security Forces on Red Alert After Ben Laden Sighting in Pakistan

From the South Asia Tribune, with thanks to Kemaste:

NEW DELHI, October 25: Fugitive Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has been spotted in the Tibet-Laddakh region, close to the North-Eastern tip of Pakistan, bordering India and China, Indian and US officials believe.

A high-ranking official of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) flew from Islamabad on Sunday to meet top Indian officials here in Delhi after reports of Bin Laden’s presence in the region.

According to sources, following the meeting between Indian security bosses and the FBI, the New Delhi Government has put its security forces in the North Western region, specially the Kashmir Valley, on 'red alert.'

Vigilance on the Kargil-Leh Highway and area along the Tibetan border has also been increased. Security forces are likely to undertake combing operations in the Laddakh region before the start of snowfall.

These sources in the Indian Home Ministry told this correspondent that intelligence agencies had received information that Bin Laden has been spotted traveling. Some such reports were also published in a section of the Pakistan media.

Suspected terror fund-raiser attended event for Kerry

Strange bedfellows? From WND, with thanks to Sparta:

A militant from a group some have connected to al-Qaida and that many have claimed is financed in part by the international drug trade and prostitution rings, recently attended a John Kerry fund-raiser, where he wrote a check and later boasted about his getting "paid back" in future favors from the presidential candidate.

According to Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, Brooklyn-based Florin Krasniqi, a member of the Kosovo Liberation Army, is featured in the recently released Dutch documentary "De Brooklyn Connectie" attending a Kerry fund-raiser with several KLA members, where he writes a check, and then makes clear he expects a quid-pro-quo for his donation.

"With money you can do amazing things in this country. Senators and congressmen are looking for donations. If you fund them and raise the money they need for their campaign they pay you back," Krasniqi says in the documentary.

The video later shows Krasniqi, a known KLA member and fund-raiser, purchasing weapons from an American gun store. He reminds viewers that in the past, such weapons have been smuggled into Kosovo, disguised as humanitarian aid.

Toward the end of the documentary, Krasniqi warns that "just in case NATO pulls out, or we don't get our independence peacefully, then we'll use those weapons."

Many have called the KLA, also known as the UCK, a terror organization, charging it led a violent campaign against civilian Kosovo Serbs, and linking it to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida and Iran. As recently as 1998, the U.S. State Department recognized the KLA as a terrorist group.

Terrorists hope to defeat Bush through Iraq violence

Jihadists are busy electioneering for John Kerry in Iraq. I hope they don't try something like the Madrid 3/11 attack in the U.S. -- and I suspect that they know that it would probably backfire here. From the Washington Times, with thanks to JJP Mackie:

BAGHDAD — Leaders and supporters of the anti-U.S. insurgency say their attacks in recent weeks have a clear objective: The greater the violence, the greater the chances that President Bush will be defeated on Tuesday and the Americans will go home.

"If the U.S. Army suffered numerous humiliating losses, [Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John] Kerry would emerge as the superman of the American people," said Mohammad Amin Bashar, a leader of the Muslim Scholars Association, a hard-line clerical group that vocally supports the resistance.

Resistance leader Abu Jalal boasted that the mounting violence had already hurt Mr. Bush's chances.

"American elections and Iraq are linked tightly together," he told a Fallujah-based Iraqi reporter. "We've got to work to change the election, and we've done so. With our strikes, we've dragged Bush into the mud."

Akyol and Spencer on Islamic reform

My latest reply to Stephen Schwartz is up today at FrontPage along with an extended essay from Mustafa Akyol on the same topic: the reformation of Islam.

Akyol here argues that the Hadith and Sira should be jettisoned, leaving only the Qur'an. He seems to be suggesting that virtually all the features of Islam that are not in accord with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights come from those secondary sources, not from the Qur'an itself. I don't agree that an Islam that follows only the Qur'an would emerge as tolerant and peaceful, and perhaps even more importantly, I doubt it will be possible for an Islamic movement rejecting Hadith and Sira to emerge. Here are Akyol's main points, with comments from me:

· According to the secondary sources, apostates from Islam must be killed. There is no basis for this in the Koran and in fact several verses which emphasize religious freedom, such as "let him who please believe, and let him who please disbelieve" (18:29) render such killings impossible.

"Let him who please disbelieve" does not actually apply to apostates at all. The Qur'an directly addresses apostasy in Sura 4:89: "They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): but take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (from what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case) take no friends or helpers from their ranks..." The verse is clear: those who "turn renegades" and "reject Faith" are to be killed by the believers.

On these points, however, Akyol is largely correct:

· Secondary sources ban all fine arts, especially painting and sculpture. There is no such commandment in the Koran, and instead, the statues that Prophet (King) Solomon had built for himself are praised. (34:13)

True. This comes from Muhammad's statements, including this one: "Whoever makes a picture will be punished by Allah till he puts life in it, and he will never be able to put life in it" (Sahih Bukhari, Volume 3, Book 34, Number 428).

· Secondary sources define a very strict dress code for women and this is generally applied to all women under Muslim rule. The Koran orders a dress code only for Muslim women and it is open to interpretation. No verse explicitly orders the headscarf — let alone the all-covering burka.[ii]

Largely true. The Qur'an says that women "should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty" (Sura 24:31). Muhammad is more explicit: "'When a woman reaches the age of menstruation, it does not suit her that she displays her parts of body except this and this,' and he pointed to her face and hands" (Sunan Abu Dawud, Book 32, Number 4092).

· Secondary sources favor the seclusion of women from men. There is no basis for such segregation in the Koran. Instead, Koran tells about civilized dialogues between prophets and women. (28:25, 27:44)

This is a bit disingenuous. The fact that men and women talked to one another on some occasions doesn't mean that women were not generally secluded from men. Even today in Sharia states such as Saudi Arabia and Iran, women may speak to men — when they are addressed first.

· Secondary sources try to punish every sin and supposedly immoral behavior. There are, for example, punishments for drinking alcohol or refraining from prayer. These, again, have no basis in the Koran, whose penal code is focused mostly on crime, not sin or immorality. The stoning of adulterers, a brutal command of the secondary sources, is also totally unsubstantiated on a Koranic basis.

It's interesting to note here that the Hadith notes the absence of the stoning penalty from the Qur'an, but insists that it originally was there and denounces those who will attempt to make anything out of its absence:

'Abdullah b. 'Abbas reported that 'Umar b. Khattab sat on the pulpit of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said: Verily Allah sent Muhammad (may peace be upon him) with truth and He sent down the Book upon him, and the verse of stoning was included in what was sent down to him. We recited it, retained it in our memory and understood it. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) awarded the punishment of stoning to death (to the married adulterer and adulteress) and, after him, we also awarded the punishment of stoning, I am afraid that with the lapse of time, the people (may forget it) and may say: We do not find the punishment of stoning in the Book of Allah, and thus go astray by abandoning this duty prescribed by Allah. Stoning is a duty laid down in Allah's Book for married men and women who commit adultery when proof is established, or it there is pregnancy, or a confession. (Sahih Muslim, Book 017, Number 4194)

But in any case, Akyol is correct about at least some of these points: they are based on Hadith, not Qur'an. But can it be done? Can Muslims reject Hadith and Sira? Imagine for a moment that Akyol becomes the leader of a large movement of Muslims who reject Hadith and base their faith on the Qur'an alone. What will they make of verses like these?

Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in Allah and the Final Day, and who engages much in the Praise of Allah. (Sura 33:21)

O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those charged with authority among you. If ye differ in anything among yourselves, refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if ye do believe in Allah and the Last Day: That is best, and most suitable for final determination. (Sura 4:59)

But no, by the Lord, they can have no (real) Faith, until they make thee [Muhammad] judge in all disputes between them, and find in their souls no resistance against Thy decisions, but accept them with the fullest conviction. (Sura 4:65)

The answer of the Believers, when summoned to Allah and His Messenger, in order that He may judge between them, is no other than this: they say, "We hear and we obey": it is such as these that will attain felicity. (Sura 24:51)

So take what the Messenger assigns to you, and deny yourselves that which he withholds from you. And fear Allah; for Allah is strict in Punishment. (Sura 59:7)

It is not fitting for a Believer, man or woman, when a matter has been decided by Allah and His Messenger to have any option about their decision: if any one disobeys Allah and His Messenger, he is indeed on a clearly wrong Path. (Sura 33:36)

I have quoted so many of these (although there are many more) to illustrate that it is a repeated emphasis of the Qur'an that a Muslim must obey Muhammad. How can a twenty-first century Muslim obey Muhammad? Why, by obeying his commands as transmitted in the Hadith and Sira.

So we are back to square one: Akyol says Muslims should obey only the Qur'an, but the Qur'an leads Muslims out to the Hadith and Sira. As I am deeply interested in seeing a genuine movement for tolerance and peace arise within Islam, I will be interested to see what Mr. Akyol makes of this.

Finally, one related but tangential point. Akyol also says:

Prof. Khaleel Mohammed, Assistant Professor at the Department of Religious Studies at San Diego State University notes, "[while] the Koran viewed Judaism as the chief monotheistic religion . . . It was the Hadith, the revisionist interpretation of the Koran from the medieval period, that demonized the Jews and Judaism."

I don't know what Qur'an Khaleel Mohammed is reading. Here are some quotes about Jews from the one Muslims read:

And well ye knew those amongst you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath: We said to them: "Be ye apes, despised and rejected." (Sura 2:65)

Of the Jews there are those who displace words from their (right) places, and say: "We hear and we disobey"; and "Hear what is not Heard"; and "Ra'ina"; with a twist of their tongues and a slander to Faith. If only they had said: "What hear and we obey"; and "Do hear"; and "Do look at us"; it would have been better for them, and more proper; but Allah hath cursed them for their Unbelief; and but few of them will believe. (Sura 4:46)

O Messenger! let not those grieve thee, who race each other into unbelief: (whether it be) among those who say "We believe" with their lips but whose hearts have no faith; or it be among the Jews,- men who will listen to any lie,- will listen even to others who have never so much as come to thee. They change the words from their (right) times and places: they say, "If ye are given this, take it, but if not, beware!" If any one's trial is intended by Allah, thou hast no authority in the least for him against Allah. For such - it is not Allah's will to purify their hearts. For them there is disgrace in this world, and in the Hereafter a heavy punishment. (Sura 5:41)

O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors: They are but friends and protectors to each other. And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them. Verily Allah guideth not a people unjust. (Sura 5:51)

The Jews say: "Allah's hand is tied up." Be their hands tied up and be they accursed for the (blasphemy) they utter. Nay, both His hands are widely outstretched: He giveth and spendeth (of His bounty) as He pleaseth. But the revelation that cometh to thee from Allah increaseth in most of them their obstinate rebellion and blasphemy. Amongst them we have placed enmity and hatred till the Day of Judgment. Every time they kindle the fire of war, Allah doth extinguish it; but they (ever) strive to do mischief on earth. And Allah loveth not those who do mischief. (Sura 5:64)

Strongest among men in enmity to the believers wilt thou find the Jews and Pagans... (Sura 5:82)

The Jews call 'Uzair a son of Allah, and the Christians call Christ the son of Allah. That is a saying from their mouth; (in this) they but imitate what the unbelievers of old used to say. Allah's curse be on them: how they are deluded away from the Truth! (Sura 9:30)

To the Jews We prohibited such things as We have mentioned to thee before: We did them no wrong, but they were used to doing wrong to themselves. (Sura 16:118)

Let's see. They're liars, idolaters, blasphemers, corrupters of the Scriptures, etc. etc. But the Qur'an doesn't demonize Jews? Khaleel, do you have a suspension bridge to sell me too?

Spencer on the Essential Election Issue

The Free Congress Foundation's News on Demand service has a two-minute statement by Jihad Watch director Robert Spencer on the most important issue facing American voters in the election of 2004. Listen to an mp3 or Real Audio here.

Zarqawi behind Aussie bombing -- and did the press know?

More questions of jihadists in the press corps. From News.com.au:

Senior officials described as authentic the claim of responsibility early yesterday by Zarqawi's al-Qaeda Group of Jihad for Monday's car bomb attack, which killed three Iraqi civilians and injured 16 others, including three Australian soldiers.

Defence Minister Robert Hill yesterday played down suggestions the attack was specifically aimed at Australian troops, but warned further attacks could occur as insurgents tried to sabotage elections scheduled for January.

Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Australia was investigating whether some media in Iraq had prior knowledge of the attack that enabled them to turn up at the scene within minutes of the bombing just outside the capital's fortified Green Zone.

Talking animal promotes massacre with AK-47 on PA TV program for Palestinian children

The talking mujahid

The full article at PMW shows a picture from a second-grade Palestinian textbook, depicting Israeli soldiers destroying trees. In that context it is quite clear who the "little boy" is. From Palestinian Media Watch, with thanks to Thor:

Talking animals are commonplace on broadcasting for young children around the world. They are used to entertain and educate in a way that makes it easy for children to internalize educational messages. A children’s program this week on official Palestinian Authority (PA) TV was dedicated to the importance of trees. "Tarabisho" - the Talking Chick -- was, as usual, at the center of the discussion. The child moderator asked the talking chick what he would do if someone, specifically a “little boy,” were to chop down his tree. In his squeaky little voice, Tarabisho answered that he would shoot the little boy with an AK-47 automatic rifle, create a massacre, make a riot, etc. It should be noted that the child moderator twice checks her notes while asking the questions, indicating that this was not a spontaneous discussion but was a deliberate educational message, planned by the writers and producers. Click here to see the footage from PA TV. [...]The following is the full text of the dialogue between the child moderator and Tarabisho, the Talking Chick: Girl: “If a boy comes in front of your house where a tree is planted, and cuts it down, what would you do?”

Talking Chick: “I have two trees in front of my house.”

Girl: “If a little boy cuts them down, what will you do to him?”

Talking Chick: “What I'll do to him?
I'll fight him and make a big riot,
I'll call the whole world and make a riot.
I'll bring AK-47s [assault rifles] and the whole world,
I'll commit a massacre in front of the house".

Bat Ye'or vs. Mustafa Akyol on Islam's "Golden Age"

The peerless historian Bat Ye'or replies to Muslim apologist Mustafa Akyol at FrontPage today. Akyol and I, of course, have carried on a dialogue here and at FrontPage. Score now: jihadists 5, Akyol 0.

From Bat Ye'or:

The hope inspired by Mr. Mustafa Akyol’s long article in Front Page Magazine is tempered by his deception. Mr. Akyol speaks of the necessity to re-interpret the fundamental teachings and scriptures of Islam, particularly the hadith and sira (the biography of the Prophet). Finally we see here a potential Muslim effort to continue and improve the critical exegesis initiated by the great Orientalists of the 19th century, particularly Ignaz Goldziher, whose work has since become anathema to the Muslim intelligentsia. However, Mr Akyol does not explain on what authority a selection of hadith and events of the sira will be made, since, he himself, in the course of his argumentation, simply uses them to prove the justice of Islam.

Disputing the veracity of the claim in the sacralized biography of Muhammad regarding the massacre of the Qurayza Jews is most welcome since it negates the Muslim command to kill Jews in order to emulate the Prophet. This assertion must be fully encouraged, because the treatment of the Jews by the Prophet has became the standard by which the classical Muslim jurists formulated their policy toward non-Muslims, as embodied in the Shari'a and in the jihad’s rules. Hence, when non-Muslims (primarily Hindus and Christians) were killed in Bali, Amrozi, the Indonesian terrorist, invoked the fate of the Jews in the oasis of Khaybar, perhaps confusing them with the mass slaughter of their co-religionists, the Qurayza. Although many of the Jews of Khaybar were killed in an unprovoked jihad campaign by Muhammad, those vanquished Khaybar Jews who surrendered were not killed, but were dispossessed and became exploited dhimmi tributaries, until, within a decade later, they were expelled by the "Rightly Guided" Caliph Umar.

In fact, there is no way for us, in the 21st century, to know what really happened in a small Arabian oasis in the seventh century given the lack of contemporary evidence. But Mr. Akyol again contradicts himself by implying that the Qurayza’s punishment was justified, because they acted treacherously while of course there are no objective proofs for such accusations, which rest merely on the demonization of the victims. Moreover the problem does not concern only the Qurayza Jews but the Jews and Christians throughout the Hedjaz, who were, soon afterward dispossessed, and within a decade of Muhammad’s death, expelled, according to his professed (i.e., again, in the sira) deathbed wishes.

As Mr. Akyol stated rightly, this was not exceptional at that time. The problem now is that such acts have been attributed to the Prophet Muhammad who is the model to be emulated by all Muslims. Hence, while even worse wars might have been perpetrated in the world by rulers long since forgotten, the acts and sayings of Muhammad concerning non-Muslims are still binding for over a billion Muslims today. To decry Dr. Bostom’s analyses, based on 13 centuries of Islamic teaching and writing, and accepted today in all Muslim countries, is almost surrealistic.

It is true that now we see an effort by Muslim theologians to contextualize the actions and words attributed to the Prophet Muhammad, and thereby introduce an element of relativity between the seventh century, and the present. But this timid and belated tendency has not the slightest influence on the current jihadist war of terror against the West overwhelmingly approved in the Muslim countries.

Mr Akyol’s explanation of jihad itself is particularly disingenuous. In a democracy “a final jihad on western secular materialism” is shocking. This is especially concerning given that the word “faith” can be understood in its Muslim sense which states that the only true faith is Islam. (Qur’an 3:17).

What exactly is “western secular materialism”? Will that be replaced by a Shari’a morality? Much of Mr. Akyol’s reasoning seems inspired by the International Institute of Islamic Thought set up in 1983 in the U.S.A. to teach the Islamization of Knowledge. This program, financed by Saudi Arabia, was developed under the guidance of, among others, Ismail Raji al-Faruqi, a Palestinian Professor who taught at Temple University. A document from the Islamization of Knowledge program summarized its objectives:

“The new reform effort should present a systematic and methodological approach to rebuild Islamic knowledge on the same firm foundation that supported Islamic Civilization in its first cycle. The Muslims, being an Ummah (nation) of a Divine message, can only rise to civilization dominance if they carry the message in its original clarity, purity, and relevance.”1

The program to reform Islamic religious thinking thus aims at reinforcing traditional teaching through modern reasoning. Thus, one is imprisoned within a circular argumentation which goes back to its Islamic starting point. While I understand the difficulties of reforming a religion, a process that takes centuries, and does not relate to Islam alone, I deplore the violent animosity displayed against those writers and researchers in the West who denounce, very courageously, the brazen acts of terrorism perpetrated throughout the world, primarily against non-Muslims, by Muslims invoking the very texts that Ibn Warraq, Bostom, Spencer, and so many others have analyzed, and brought to public attention.

Mr. Akyol denies their self-evident interpretations, and that is his right, but he should try to convince – not a Western audience – but over a billion Muslims who curiously share the views of the Muslim texts and authorities quoted by the courageous authors mentioned above. Mr. Akyol prefers to try and persuade Westerners of the perfection of Islam, simply denying that the horrors that occurred in Muslim history, chronicled with great accuracy by Dr. Bostom, either didn’t happen, or were not done by Muslims. This sort of twisted logic is little removed from the warped thinking which justified the bizarre accusations that the CIA, Americans, or Zionists must have perpetrated 9/11 because Muslims could not commit such horrors. Many books elaborating this preposterous thesis were disseminated in Europe, and in the Muslim world.

It would be meaningless to answer all of Mr. Akyol’s affirmations, accusations and denials, including the genocide of the Armenians. His total rejection of the history of dhimmitude, despite copious documentation by both Muslim and non-Muslim sources, and its replacement by a glorification of a just and peaceful Islamic rule over tens of millions of subjected, non-Muslim peoples, precludes any understanding between those who call a jihad a genocidal war, and those who call it a liberation (even having the temerity to deny the jihad genocide of the Armenians). Mr. Akyol invokes testimonies which are contradicted, multiple times over, by others he chose to ignore.

A mass of documents from a vast array of sources describe throughout the centuries and even till today, the trials of populations - Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, Hindus, Buddhists, Animists - vanquished by the Muslim armies. The affirmations of modern scholars that he quotes, just confirm the political rewriting of history but do not suppress, by overlooking them, the veracity of the facts enunciated by Dr. Bostom. Mr. Akyol’s affirmation that it was not Muslims who perpetrated the acts described is merely his personal opinion based on his current appreciation of Islam. Finally, while Mr. Akyol’s efforts to modernize religious beliefs are praiseworthy, they should be directed exclusively at convincing his coreligionists, not attempting to persuade the non-Muslim victims of Muslim aggression that their ordeal did not happen or was an idyllic era for which they should be grateful. Spare us another “Golden Age”.

Notes

[1] Amber Haque ed., Muslims and Islamization in North America: Problems & Prospects, Amana Publications, Maryland, 1999, p.19.

And from Akyol:

It appears that both Ms. Ye'or and Mr. Bostom believe that terrorists such as al-Qaeda spring from and represent the supposedly inherent violence of Islam. I argue, on the other hand, that the current "Islamic terrorism" we face stems from a distortion of the true Islamic faith.

In order to defend my case, let me shortly answer the questions, counter the criticisms and unveil the misjudgments of Ms. Ye'or.

The first issue is about the traditional, post-Koranic Islamic sources. Ms. Ye'or welcomes my critical approach to the hadith and sira traditions but criticizes me for failing to "explain on what authority a selection of hadith and events of the sira will be made." (Hadiths are sayings attributed to Prophet Muhammad and sira are his biographies.) I feel free to question these traditional sources, because they are very late constructs. The earliest sira was written about 150 years after the Prophet. Hadiths were compiled even later. And it is already known that these sources include many fake, irrational stories. I just argue that the inauthenticity is wider than commonly acknowledged.

But how will we judge these sources, as Ms. Ye'or rightly asks. Robert Spencer raised the same question, too. My answer is the Koran. The Koran must be the sole infallible Islamic criterion and hadiths should be compared with its verses and the overall message. There are some modern scholars who reach this conclusion. Professor Hayri Kirbasoglu, a theologian in Ankara University and an expert on hadiths, argues that a new method is necessary to evaluate the hadith collection and compatibility with the Koran -- a criterion much neglected before – should be its basis. The same holds for sira as well.

With this reasoning, I see the sira and hadith accounts about the massacre of the men of Bani Qurazya as incompatible with the Koran. Thus I reject it.

An interesting argument. But can a peaceful, tolerant Islam be constructed from the Qur'an, without serious reexamination of that book also? I doubt it. In any case, read the whole exchange; there is more from Akyol and a final reply from Bat Ye'or.

Apes and pigs? I meant grapes and figs

Canadian Muslim leaders backpedal furiously, but not convincingly. From CBC News; link and headline courtesy Kemaste:

VANCOUVER - Two high-profile Muslim leaders in Canada have been forced to issue clarifications for anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli comments.

In East Vancouver, the head of the Dar al-Madinah Islamic Society came under attack for calling Jews "brothers of monkeys and swine" during a recorded lecture following Israel's killing of Sheik Ahmed Yassin, the spiritual leader of Hamas, last spring.

Now Sheik Younus Kathrada says the comments were taken out of context.

As Ibn Warraq has noted, the "out of context" defense is the last refuge of dishonest politicians everywhere. Kathrada has to hope that his Western audience now will be ignorant of Qur'an 2:62-65, 5:59-60, and 7:166, all of which call Jews apes and pigs.

In a statement posted on the society's website, Kathrada said his comments were aimed at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, not all Jews.

"Any name-calling has been aimed at those perpetrating crimes and acts of terrorism and showing open aggression towards Muslims," reads Kathrada's statement.

"We do not perceive the entire Jewish population as having these traits or qualities. It is not our belief that Jews are sub-human."

The Canadian Jewish Congress has filed a formal complaint with the hate crimes unit. The RCMP is investigating.

Kathrada came under the scrutiny after media learned a young Vancouver man killed in Chechnya had frequently attended the Dar al-Madinah mosque. Family and friends of Rudwan Khalil Abubaker said he had no interest in Muslim extremism and was headed for Azerbaijan to attend a friend's wedding.

These sorts of explanations would be more convincing if they weren't advanced in every single instance. Yes, Cat Stevens gave money to Palestinians, but he didn't know it was going to Hamas; he meant it to be for building schools and hospitals. Yes, Sami Al-Arian raised money for Islamic Jihad, but he was shocked, shocked, to find out that the group engaged in terrorist acts. Yes, Abdurahman Khadr trained with Al-Qaeda, but that was "just the normal thing to do in Afghanistan." These poor fellows are so woefully uninformed -- they should have been reading Jihad Watch.

Meanwhile, the president of the influential Canadian Islamic Congress, Mohamed Elmasry, also came under attack after a television interview last week, in which he said any Israeli over age 18 was a legitimate target for suicide bombers because adult Israelis were required to do military service.

"They are part of the Israeli army, even if they have civilian clothes," Elmasry argued on the Ontario current affairs show The Michael Coren Show....

"I sincerely regret that my comments were misunderstood and, as a result, caused offence," Elmasry was quoted in a web posting over the weekend.

"Dr. Elmasry, did not, does not, and will not condone the widely held Palestinian view that any form of armed resistance against civilians that includes suicide bombing constitutes a legitimate military operation against the Israeli occupation, and not a terrorist activity," said the posting.

Well, then, why did he say it? Are we simply to believe now that black is white on his word?

Palestinian Led Sinai Blasts, Egypt Says

Now where did this "disgruntled Palestinian" get the idea that he should kill as many Israeli tourists as possible? Could it be that he has learned such attitudes since he was a child?

I don't know if the statement that he is not tied to Al-Qaeda is meant to be reassuring. In fact, all it does is emphasize how widespread the principles of violent jihad are among Muslims everywhere -- and not just those who belong to terrorist organizations. From the New York Times, with thanks to Teri:

CAIRO, Oct. 25 - A disgruntled Palestinian who worked as a driver and was bent on killing as many Israeli tourists as possible organized the bombings of three resort areas along the eastern Sinai coast that left 34 people dead this month, the Egyptian government said Monday.

The Interior Ministry announced that of the nine men involved in the Oct. 7 attack, two of them, including the ringleader, died unintentionally in one attack, the huge explosion at the Taba Hilton. It said two bombers remained at large, and five suspects with lesser roles were arrested....

Mr. Saleh did not appear to be connected to any specific Palestinian faction, or to Al Qaeda, said the investigator. Egyptian investigators have favored the theory that the attacks were linked to the violence against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza.

Dutch Muslim leader: every Dutch soldier's death is a victory

I profile Dyab Abou Jahjah in Onward Muslim Soldiers. He is a virulent opponent of assimilation, which he calls "cultural rape," and strongly exhorts European Muslims to retain all their traditions -- i.e., to bring Sharia to Europe. From Expatica, with thanks to Susan:

AMSTERDAM — The leader of the Dutch-Belgian Arab European League (AEL) has come out in support of killing Dutch troops serving in Iraq.

"I consider every death of an American, British or Dutch soldier as a victory," Dyab Abou Jahjah said in an interview with Flemish newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws on Monday....

Yet despite his open support for the jihad in Iraq, Abou Jahjah is not above a bit of taqiyyah. Blithely ignoring Qur'an 47:4, he says:

Despite his praise for the deaths of coalition troops, Abou Jahjah said he was opposed to the beheadings of hostages in Iraq. "Beheading is ethically and religiously wrong. Muslims don't even butcher a sheep in this way," he said.

Thailand: violent protest against the detention of six Muslim men

From the BBC, with thanks to Susan:

Thailand's three southernmost regions are emerging from a curfew that was imposed after violent clashes left six people dead. Police fired water cannon and tear gas to disperse at least 1,500 protesters gathered in Narathiwat province.

The incident was one of the most serious to have taken place in Thailand's troubled south in months.

The men had gathered at a police station to protest against the detention of six Muslim men....

Despite the curfew, that was due to end at 0600 local time (2300GMT), Reuters new agency reports that during the night, protesters set fire to a school building and burned tyres on major roads.

During the earlier clashes, Thai television showed footage of soldiers in riot gear firing M-16 automatic rifles.

Police said the protesters also used weapons, and one witness told Reuters that pistol shots came from the crowd.

At least 30 people, including 14 police officers, were wounded in the fracas, which lasted several hours.

Assyrian Christian Leader calls for more protection for his people - before they leave in even larger numbers

A cry for help from the embattled Christians of Iraq. From the Assist News Service, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

BAGHDAD, IRAQ (ANS) -- The bombing of five more churches in Baghdad, Iraq, on Sunday, October 16, has prompted an Assyrian Christian leader to ask for more protection for his people – before they leave in even larger numbers.

The Rev. Ken Joseph Jr., director of the Assyrian Christian Assistance Center in Baghdad, said, “We demand immediate action on this and call upon all freedom loving peoples worldwide to demand their governments immediately provide all assistance so these urgent needs can be implemented before it is too late and the indigenous people of Iraq the Assyrian Christians are forced to leave.

Five Christian Churches were bombed in the 4AM Sunday morning attack. They were: The Mar Yussef (St. Joseph), Mar Toma (St. Thomas) Mar Yacob (St. Jacob), Mar Gewargis (St. George) and Mar Roum (St. Roum) and each of the churches, which were attended by many Assyrian Christians, sustained damage.

According to a message sent to the ASSIST News Service (ANS) by Joseph, this second major attack this year, following a previous attack on seven Assyrian Churches in August, “is sending shockwaves throughout the Assyrian Christian Community worldwide.”

Assyrian Christian leaders have just completed a series of meetings with the State Department in Washington and Congressional leaders and two separate meetings with the Iraqi Government, World Bank and UN demanding the “Five R’s” for the Assyrian Christian Community in Iraq.

They include:
-Reconstruction of 292 destroyed Assyrian Christian Villages
-Resettlement of nearly 100,000 Assyrian Christians driven out of their land by Saddam Hussein
-Registration for voting purposes of the community
-A Regional Security system
-A Regional Administrative Region under article 53 of the Constitution

A spokesman said, “What has encouraged the community in the series of meetings has been support from all parties including the Iraqi Government, US Government and others for an Autonomous area as guaranteed in the Constitution for the Assyrian Christians.”

Bomb blast at a Turkish McDonald's

Maybe this was not a terrorist act, as Akyurek insists. But the sentiments of the mujahedin are not confined only to those who belong to organizations. From News.com.au, with thanks to the Constantinoplitian Irredentist:

SIX people were injured today when a bomb exploded at the entrance to a McDonald's fast food restaurant in the northeastern Turkish city of Trabzon, the Anatolia news agency reported, but police suggested it was not a terrorist act.

"We do not think that this action is linked to a (terrorist) organisation," said Ramazan Akyurek, chief of security in the city, the largest in the region, according to the agency.

"What is more, so far no person and no organisation has said it was responsible."

Bodies of about 50 Iraqi soldiers found in eastern Iraq; victims were unarmed

From AP, with thanks to Kemaste:

The bodies of about 50 unarmed Iraqi soldiers -- many killed execution style with gunshots to the back of the head -- were found on a remote road in eastern Iraq, victims of an ambush as they were heading home on leave after basic training, Iraqi authorities said Sunday.

The nature of the attack suggested an increased boldness and organization by insurgents, who, until now, have mainly used roadside bombs and suicide car bombs in their attacks on the Iraqi military and police.

Interior Ministry spokesman Adnan Abdul-Rahman said the victims were believed to have been killed about sundown Saturday on a road about 95 miles east of Baghdad near the Iranian border.

Police offered varying accounts of the incident, with one source saying all the victims were shot in the back of the head. Some of the victims had their hands crossed behind their heads, said Lt. Ali Jawad Kadhim from the nearby Mandali police station.

Photos from the site showed the outstretched bodies laid out in formation, some charred, others bloodied. Many had their arms at their sides.

Anti-Korean Group Linked to Bangladesh Islamic Party

The jihad is global: the mujahedin traveled to Afghanistan, and then to Bosnia, and now to Chechnya and Iraq. And, evidently, South Korea. From the Korea Times, with thanks to Twostellas:

The Dawatul Islamia of Korea, an anti-South Korean Islamic organization detected by the government in April, was confirmed to be a branch of an Islamic political party in Bangladesh.

Rep. Kim Jae-gyeong of the opposition Grand National Party (GNP), who revealed the presence of the group on Oct. 13, said yesterday the Dawatul Islamia of Korea was confirmed as the Korean branch of the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, a party espousing Islamic fundamentalism....

On Oct. 13, Rep. Kim said that the immigration office deported five undocumented migrant workers from Bangladesh who were deported in April for establishing the Islamic group in South Korea.

Kim said one of those deported was a member of the Jamaat-e-Ismai. He was found to have sent 60 million won to the party after raising the money from his followers in South Korea.

The man set up the Islamic group in Anyang, where a mosque is located, since he became the imam of the mosque in August 2000.

This is the first time authorities have detected an anti-South Korean group of foreign residents here.

How is it that he became the imam? Didn't all the Muslims there recognize that he was teaching an extremist version of Islam that twisted Islam's peaceful teachings?

(Yes, that above paragraph is sarcastic.)

French jihadist killed in Fallujah

In Europe, it is extremely bad form to suggest that anyone in the fast-growing Muslim immigrant communities there harbors any attachment to violent jihad. To do so will get you immediate charges of "racism," as Brigitte Bardot, Oriana Fallaci, and others can testify. However, how long can they continue to ignore news like this? From AFP, with thanks to Jeff Lastname:

PARIS, Oct 22 (AFP) - Intelligence agents have identified the first French national known to have been killed fighting with the insurgency against US forces in Iraq, officials said Friday.

The 19-year-old, named as Redouane El Hakim, is believed to have travelled to Iraq via Syria at the start of the year and been killed in a US bombardment on Fallujah in July.

Officials close to the case, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Hakim was one of several French citizens of Muslim background who have gone to Iraq to fight along insurgents there.

"It's difficult to estimate their number, but there mustn't be more than around 10 or so," one official said.

So far. After all, what is stopping them in France from recruiting and increasing their numbers?

How Tajik boy joined 'jihad'

A chilling story from Dawn:

PESHAWAR, Oct 22: If he is telling the truth, 15-year-old Khalid still doesn't know how he ended up in a godforsaken place like Waziristan. And if what he says in true, the military which has the young Tajik in custody has the stuff of the real story behind the 'jihad' in the troubled tribal region.

Caught on Oct 1, while he was fleeing after a fellow Turkmen was gunned down by Shamankhel tribesmen in Sarwekai when a landmine killed four local students and left two others wounded, the young man from Urjinzabad in Tajikistan continues to baffle his interrogators.

"He is consistent," said a military investigator. "He has made a cover story and he sticks to it," he said. "If Khalid is lying, he is a damn good liar for his age," said another officer...

"I want to go back to my mother. I want to go home. Give me a man to take me to her. I don't want to fight in the jihad. Serving your mother also earns one God's blessings (Sawab)," was his answer when asked if he was freed to resume the 'jihad'...

According to Khalid's account of his rather dramatic ordeal, he was kidnapped along with four other boys by four masked men when they were on their way to school in Koibish, about a month before his capture in Waziristan.

They were all blindfolded and thrown into a van and driven all the way to Peshawar. The men, he said, were Tajik. This is where his story does not make any sense. He says he does not remember how long it took them to reach Peshawar and who were his kidnappers.

All that he does say is that Mujahideen in Tajikistan routinely kidnap children and release them after extorting ransom, steal people's belongings, including their livestock and deal in narcotics....

He said he had been sodomised, a fact also established by an army medical report. Khalid said that he spent a few days with a one-eyed man he knew by the name of Mohammad Hassan in Shakai....

The 15-year-old denied having planted the mine and said that he had merely accompanied them not knowing what they were doing. He was hit by a bullet in the hip and was caught by tribesmen while the Turkmen were killed.

He denies having anything to do with foreign militants, but admits having seen Arabs in Waziristan. For him Osama bin Laden is a Mujahid and he knew Qari Tahir Yaldash whose posters, he said, he had seen in Shakai.

The boy said he also knew Jummabai (Jumma Namangani), leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, who was killed in a US bombing raid in northern Afghanistan during the beginning of the war.

He also knew Turanzadeh, another militant who, he said, used to come to his village in Tajikistan. For the 15-year-old, Tajik President Imam Ali Rakhmanov was a Kafir (infidel). He loved his new name Khalid, given to him by his abductors, because for him it was a Muslim name. "Maroof is a Kufr name," he insisted.

He said that he had learnt to offer his prayers in Shakai and saw 'true Islam being practised in the tribal region'. The only time that he probably betrayed his real self when a colleague photographer began taking his pictures. "Why are you taking so many pictures. I am not a commander?" he remarked. When a colleague journalist retorted by calling him "Commander Khalid". He smiled back and said "Insha Allah".

Head of Canadian Islamic Congress: All Adult Israelis Are Targets

The content of what he said is nothing new; many Muslim leaders around the world have said it. But that it would be said in Canada may serve to awaken some people to the real dimensions of what we are dealing with. From the Toronto Star, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

The president of the Canadian Islamic Congress is under fire for saying all Israelis above the age of 18 are legitimate targets of attack.

Mohamed Elmasry made the comments Tuesday on the Michael Coren Live TV show and was criticized yesterday by the Canadian Jewish Congress.

When asked whether "anyone over the age of 18 in Israel is a valid target," Elmasry replied: "Anybody above 18 is part of the (Israeli) army."

The show's moderator followed with another question: "Anyone in Israel, irrespective of gender, over the age of 18 is a valid target?"

"Yes, I would say," Elmasry responded.

Canadian Jewish Congress president Ed Morgan said his organization was outraged by Elmasry's comments.

"The very notion that anybody endorses the killing of civilians is beyond what we as Canadians are used to hearing," he said.

"Anybody who makes a statement like that, to me, is not making an error. And if it is an error, then he should correct the record."

Elmasry said on the show that since all adult Israelis are part of their country's army, they are not bystanders in the conflict.

"But they are not innocent if they are part of the total population which is part of the army. ... From 18 on, they are soldiers, even if they have civilian clothes," Elmasry said.

The reaction was predictable from his coreligionists:

Tarek Fatah, a founding member of the Muslim Canadian Congress, said Elmasry's comments were a thinly veiled attack on Jews and hurt the Palestinian cause.

"Palestinians have a moral and legal obligation to fight the Israeli occupation but to believe all Israelis are targets is ... the height of hypocrisy," he said.

This is common in the West: one Muslim spokesman says something outrageous to Western ears and in line with terrorist thinking. Then other Muslim spokesmen say he's crazy, that no one believes that in the Islamic community, that he is an eccentric with wild views, etc. However: I will be most interested to see if Elmasry loses his position. I doubt he will.

Al-Qa'ida Internet Magazine Sawt Al-Jihad Calls to Intensify Fighting During Ramadan- 'the Month of Jihad'

Will they teach that Ramadan is the "month of jihad" in Virginia public schools?

The following is from MEMRI, selections from the latest issue of Voice of Jihad, Al-Qaeda's online magazine. Note the abundant references to the Qur'an and the example of Muhammad:

Sa'ud Bin Hamoud Al-Utaybi, who is wanted by the Saudi authorities, wrote the following in the journal's opening editorial: "Muslims! Go out to [fight] Jihad for the sake of Allah! Paradise has already flung open its gates and the virgins of paradise are already decked out in anticipation of their grooms – this is Allah's promise. He [Allah] will not grant peace of mind to anyone who has a heart until he has gone out to fight against Allah's enemies, as he was commanded. He who does not act [i.e., fight the Jihad ] out of obedience to Allah's command, and out of zeal for the honor of the Muslim women which was defiled at Abu Ghreib and in the other prisons of the leaders of unbelief, and out of fervor, and out of mortification at [the thought of] shirking [battle] – what else could arouse him [to go to battle] other than all of these?…...

" Jihad fighters everywhere! This month of Jihad has come with all its blessings and with the double reward [granted to Jihad fighters] in its course. Come closer to Allah through the blood of infidels, do not relent in spilling [their blood], and through [this blood] wipe out humiliation and disgrace from among your Muslim nation! Make this month like the month of the Battle of Badr, [2] the conquest of Mecca, [3] [the conquest] of Shaqhab, [4] and other Islamic victories.

"We ask Allah to turn this Ramadan into a month of glory, victory, and might, to hoist high in [this month] the banner of religion, to strengthen Islam and the Muslims, to humiliate polytheism and polytheists, to wave the banner of monotheism, to firmly plant the banner of Jihad, and to smite the perverts and the obstinate…"...

Another editorial was penned by Sheikh Aamer Bin Abdallah Al-Aamer, titled "Men of Jihad, This Is Your Festive Season:" "Men of Jihad, this is your festive season since Jihad, in a state of fasting, has a particularly delectable taste for the believers, especially [when together] with the dignity of the month of Ramadan. ....The most courageous and finest forays took place in Ramadan, for in the battle of salvation – the Battle of Badr – the heads of the bravest infidels from the tribe of Quraysh were sent flying, and Allah gave His Messenger and Prophet victory [with the help of] an army of His Hosts....

"In [the month of] Ramadan a great conquest was made, [both] of lands and of hearts – [I mean] the conquest of Mecca – in whose wake people adopted the religion of Allah, whether by choice or by coercion, and the [Arab] tribes adopted Islam … and this is what the Glorious and Exalted One said: 'You will see the people adopting Allah's religion in droves.' [Koran 110:2]

"The Prophet Muhammad - in a prophetic tradition related on the authority of Abu Hurayra, [explaining] God's words, 'You are the best community ever raised for mankind' [ Koran 3:110] - said: 'That means you are the best people for mankind [because] you lead them, with chains on their necks, so that they accept Islam.' This tradition is related by Al-Bukhari. Ahmad [Ibn Hanbal] relates a tradition, with a proper line of transmitters, on the authority of Anas, that the Messenger of Allah said to someone: 'Embrace Islam!' The man answered: 'I find myself reluctant.' So [the Prophet] said: 'Even if you are reluctant.'

"Is there anything more enraging to the enemies of God than Jihad ? Look at their leader, the Devil, who during the Battle of Badr was encouraging the infidels, making them promises and raising their hopes. When he saw the angels [coming to the aid of the Muslim army] he fled and threw himself into the sea….

"The Devil, the enemy of Allah, tries hard to extinguish the light of Allah and his being viewed as One. To this purpose, he entices his allies, the infidels and the hypocrites, and urges them [to sin]. Nowadays, human devils do the same, as do the tyrants of the Arabian Peninsula, who encourage their slaves in the secret service, the police, and the people as well, and make them promises of money, gifts, and other material comforts. Allah said: 'He makes promises and stirs them, but all that the Devil promises them is a delusion.' [ Koran 4:120]...

"Oh, men of Jihad everywhere! There are two types of Jihad in Ramadan: The diurnal Jihad [expressed by] fasting and the nocturnal Jihad [expressed by] prayer. Perform the J ihad against your enemies with your [own two] hands, sacrifice your souls and your property in fighting your enemy, as an imitation of [the acts of] your Prophet [Muhammad] in the month of Ramadan [and in order to] enrage your enemies.

"Oh, men of Jihad, the victory of Allah's religion will be as [Allah] said: 'Fight them until there is no civil strife [ fitna ] in the country, and God's religion shall reign supreme.' [ Koran 8:39] For the country is full of civil strife and unbelief.

"Oh, men of Jihad, cleanse the country of unbelief and unbelievers by means of Jihad and war [and by means of] the sword and the spear. Do not be led astray by the power of the infidels because their strength, be it what it may, is under Allah's control and His agenda.

"Know that Allah grants you victory and supports you as He promised. Make use of this glorious month because it brings together great elements: fasting, nocturnal prayer, the reciting of the Quran and other good deeds. Therefore, trust in your Lord, fight your enemies, and cleanse the Arabian Peninsula of the unbelievers."

Osama's Islamism and Saddam's Baathism are more alike than you think

Many think that the Arab nationalism espoused by Saddam and the Baathists was and is essentially different from and opposed to Islamic radicalism. This is not in fact the case, as I have argued here several times, and as is illustrated by this important piece from Lee Smith at Slate (thanks to Ruth King):

Many analysts and journalists claim it was preposterous for the Bush administration to suggest that there could ever be any connection between an Arab nationalist and Islamic fundamentalist. After all, as one is secular and the other religious, they are natural enemies. A cobra would sooner consort with a mongoose than a stalwart jihadist like Bin Laden collaborate with a dyed-in-the-wool Baathist like Saddam.

This line of thinking, that Arab nationalism and Islamism are irreconcilable, is forcefully expressed in a recent Anatol Lieven article in The Nation. Among other things, the piece is a nasty attack on Paul Berman's Terror and Liberalism, which, writes Lieven, is "historically illiterate and strategically pernicious" for its "suggestion that secular radical Arab nationalism and Islamic fundamentalism are essentially similar phenomena." Let's see if they're not.

The earliest incarnations of both Arab nationalism and Islamism appeared in the mid-19th century, and both were reactions to the West's renewed presence in the Middle East. Western powers like France and England directly threatened the Ottoman Empire's control of the region, which concerned many Muslims who had no desire to be ruled by infidel outsiders. Still, they recognized how far Islam lagged behind its historical rival the West and called for a return to the faith's earliest principles, before the Ottomans had set Islam on its spiraling downward course. These were the salafis, Muslim reformers whose ideal Islam was that of the prophet and his companions and the righteous forefathers. These 19th- and 20th-century intellectuals inspired the Islamist movement.

At the same time, there were other activists and ideologues, Muslims and Christians, who wanted to secure their political independence from the Ottomans and used the Western powers to achieve it. These were the Arab nationalists. They reasoned that if shared language and history made England, France, and Germany nations, then the Arabs were also a nation. However, as Elie Kedourie wrote in Islam in the Modern World, "[T]o define the Arab nation in terms of its history is—sooner rather than later—to come upon the fact that Islam originated among the Arabs, was revealed in Arabic to an Arab prophet." Hence, "Arab nationalism," Kedourie explained, "affirms a fundamental unbreakable link between Islam and Arabism." (Here's an essay on the same subject, with a collection of quotes from Arab writers agreeing with Kedourie that Arabism and Islam are one and the same.)

So, why do people believe that Arab nationalism and Islam are opposed? Kedourie showed that it was the nationalists themselves who spread the idea. Among other things, they were "aware that their Western patrons and protectors looked with fear and aversion on Islam as a political force." The result is that the misunderstanding lives on, which is why analysts have been at great pains to itemize, mistakenly, the differences between, say, Baathism and Islamism.

In his article, Lieven writes that Baath Party founder Michael 'Aflaq's conception of Arab nationalism was "secular and modernizing. He believed religion, whether Islamic or Christian, had no place in Arab politics."

'Aflaq was a Christian (although he is rumored to have converted to Islam before his death), but as Joshua Landis, a professor of history at the University of Oklahoma specializing in Syria, explains in his Weblog, 'Aflaq believed that the Baath Party "would never appeal to the broad masses of the Sunni heartland without making it perfectly clear that Baathism was not secular or based on earthly truths. … He directed non-Muslim Arabs to 'attach themselves to Islam and to the most precious element of their Arabness, the Prophet Muhammad,' for he was the greatest Arab nationalist."

Indeed, Aflaq was an Orthodox Christian who converted to Islam and urged other Christians to do so, saying, "Islam is Arab Nationalism" (quoted in Sylvia Haim, Arab Nationalism, 1962, p. 64, with thanks to Bat Ye'or).

So, if Baathism is neither secular nor disdainful of Islam in particular, what about Islamism? Are the Islamists contemptuous of ideologies that value the nation rather than religion? Many people argue, along with Lieven, that the "central allegiance" of Islamist radicals is not to Arabs alone, but "to the idea of the undivided umma, or transnational community of all … Muslims."

Since the Quran itself reminds us at least six times that Allah has revealed to Muhammad an "Arabic Quran," with the result that many Muslims believe a translation of the holy text is no longer the true Quran, it's clear that the Arabic language is central to Muslim history and theology. And, because the prophet and his companions and their righteous followers were almost exclusively Arabs, Muslims are accustomed to holding the Arabs as a nation in high regard as well. In fact, the early 20th-century salafi Rashid Rida had a particular reason for putting the Arabs front and center. He believed that since the Ottoman caliphate had, among its other faults, overseen the decline of the Arabic language and exposed the umma to the depredations of the West, the Turks were responsible for Islam's current weakened state. The only way to rectify the situation was to restore the Arabs to the privileged place they held when Islam was at its strongest.

Read it all.

Saddam Hussein's philanthropy of terror

Here is an excellent summation by Deroy Murdock of how Saddam Hussein contributed to the global jihad. Thanks to Diana West for the link.

Schwartz on the "Islamic Reformation"

Stephen Schwartz has published a reflection on the need for a reformation of Islam in Tech Central Station (via FrontPage). Not long ago I took issue with one of his pieces claiming that Wahhabis were essentially revising the Qur'an to make it more anti-Jewish and anti-Christian; I pointed out that the Wahhabis were working from traditional interpretations within Islam, and that what they were "adding" to the Qur'an was already there in abundance. Unfortunately, he made no answer -- unfortunately because it would be illuminating to see what a self-professed moderate Muslim thinks of the points I raised. Nor did The Weekly Standard print it. The best way, after all, to silence a critic who raises uncomfortable questions is not to answer him, but to ignore him.

Now he has turned to the vexed and difficult topic of an Islamic reformation. Some of his points follow, with a few observations from me:

Questions about a need for an "Islamic Reformation" remain pertinent in the West. Recently, I was challenged by an American public official who took great umbrage at analogies I drew, in previous articles for TCS (here and here), between Martin Luther and Ibn Abd al-Wahhab, founder of Wahhabism, the ultraextremist state religion in Saudi Arabia.

The aggrieved person accused me of equating Luther with Nazis and Communists by this comparison; I assured him that I do not believe in crude historical telescoping, although I do affirm that Luther and Ibn Abd al-Wahhab both approved of aggression in the name of religious reform, and that the Wahhabis may be considered, in their totalitarian worldview, as unperceived predecessors of Nazism and Stalinism. In the same encounter, I was confronted by a Wahhabi fanatic who demanded a return to the "pure Islam" of Muhammad.

There was no need for the official to take umbrage. The comparison is apt, and that is no reflection on Luther (whatever his faults). The primary point of similarity that that both Luther and Wahhab led movements that purported to strip away later accretions and get back to the core elements of their religions. That al-Wahhab's reformation was violent and virulent is a reflection on the core texts of his religion, to which he dedicated himself and his followers with all-encompassing zeal.

Non-Muslim "Islam experts" now abound in the West, many of recent mintage and superficial knowledge, and it is usually they who are loudest, most aggressive, and least respectful in demanding that Islam undergo a "Reformation" they would hope to compare with the rise of Protestantism. Some among them demand a revision of the Muslim holy book, Qur'an, even though no Protestant ever sought to revise the Christian scripture.

In fact, Reformers did revise Christian Scripture: they rejected the Greek Old Testament because one of its books, II Maccabees, seemed to provide Scriptural justification for prayers for the dead; Luther himself relegated the Epistle of James to an appendix and decried it as an "Epistle of straw" because it contradicted his doctrine of salvation by faith alone. Protestants ratified the former rejection and rejected the second, and to this day Protestant Bibles differ from those used by Catholics and Orthodox.

But my intention here is not to clarify points about Christianity. It is to demonstrate that if we are to use the Protestant Reformation as a paradigm for an Islamic Reformation, which I myself am not sure is legitimate (because, as I pointed out above, Wahhab has already made the motion analogous to Luther's within Islam), the actual alteration of Scriptural texts is not out of bounds.

In other instances, Muslim thinkers appear to have thought out a "Reformation" that would, according to them, separate the essential truth of Islam as embodied in Qur'an from the hadith or oral sayings of the Prophet. This latter trend argues that Islam has been corrupted by the imposition of hadith upon the religion, and alleges that extremism is based exclusively on sources found therein and on the persistence of a "medieval" attitude. However, the interpretation of both Qur'an and the hadith, until the arrival of Wahhabism, was typically pluralistic, as was Islamic law, and I have therefore argued that Islam contains within itself the seeds of its own correction, through a restoration of pluralism and a renaissance, rather than a Reformation.

I would love to see this renaissance. However, Schwartz overstates the "pluralism" of Qur'anic interpretation and Islamic law before Wahhab, in a manner quite similar to his attributing to Wahhabis mainstream elements of Qur'anic interpretation in his previous piece. But the chief question here is whether Islam would or could develop interpretative traditions analogous to those in Judaism and Christianity that mitigated the force of bellicose passages of the Old Testament -- in other words, how this Islamic renaissance would manage to blunt the force of Qur'anic literalism (and literalism in Hadith interpretation also) so that they would not continue to be inspirations for violence and fanaticism.

I am not so much concerned with Schwartz's discussion of whether Protestantism or Catholicism is a better model for Islam's future; for me, and I believe for all non-Muslims concerned about future relations with the Islamic world, the question is how useful his recommendations would be to compel Muslims who commit violence in the name of their religion to stop doing so. Schwartz concludes:

Wahhabi bigots say they would reclaim "pure Islam;" I say that means wiping out hundreds of years of poetry, architecture, art, music, and creative effort, as well as fecund theological study and interpretation, of the hadith as well as the Qur'an.

Beauty remains to be recaptured, as it is among the scholars of the Jewish Kabbalah, as it was for the troubadours, and as it shall always be for the Sufis....Petrodollars cannot replace the beauty that quickens the heart's desire, and for a sufficient majority of Muslims, Islam resides in the heart. Grim piety and reforming zeal cannot heal the wounds inflicted on Islam by terrorists and tyrants. The Islam of beauty has no use for an Islam of anger.

I say therefore that Islam needs no Reformation, merely to return to its long-established tradition: pluralistic, spiritual, and committed to the protection and refinement of its civilizational heritage. Nothing need be abandoned; nothing will be lost in God's message. The outcome should be obvious: Islam will survive and be revived as a civilization of beauty, or there will be no Islam.

A few final questions: how will this revived civilization of pluralism and beauty induce Muslims to set aside the command to fight Jews and Christians until they convert or submit and pay the jizya (Qur'an 9:29)? Or the idea that it is permissible to kill those who leave Islam (Qur'an 4:89, 2:217)? Or lying to protect Islam (taqiyyah), as based on Qur'an 16:106? Or Muhammad's statement that "no Muslim should be killed for killing an infidel" (Sahih Bukhari, volume 4, book 52, number 283)? Or all the many Qur'anic declarations of hostility toward Jews and Christians (see Qur'an 2:62-65, 5:59-60, 7:166, 9:30, 98:6, etc.)?

There are many other elements I could raise that should be rejected: the punishments for adultery and theft, the whole legal superstructure of dhimmitude, etc. In short, Schwartz's statement that "nothing need be abandoned" raises critical questions -- chief among them being this: Shouldn't the needed Islamic renaissance (or reformation -- whichever you prefer) be an explicit abandonment of Qur'anic literalism? And if it isn't, how will it keep that literalism from reappearing?

Stephen, I hope you will answer this time.

Hamas leader Al-Ghoul killed

The aptly named Al-Ghoul, who helped Hamas murder scores of civilians, has been killed by Israeli forces. From Reuters, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

GAZA (Reuters) - Israel has killed a top leader of the Hamas militant group and another gunman in an airstrike on their car in Gaza, days before a key parliamentary vote on Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Gaza pullout plan.

Medics and witnesses said a missile from an Israeli drone slammed into the vehicle on Thursday and killed Adnan al-Ghoul, a senior Hamas leader and master bombmaker for the Islamic militant group who has been on Israel's most wanted list for over a decade....

Ghoul was Hamas's top engineer who manufactured explosive devices and weapons that were used in dozens of attacks against Israelis, Palestinian sources said.

The sources said he was known as "the father of the Qassam rocket", referring to the type of rocket Gaza militants have fired frequently into Israel during the past few months. Two Israeli toddlers were killed in such a rocket strike last month.

New Saudi citizenship law: no Palestinians need apply

Palestinian Arabs can't opt out of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and settle peacefully in another Arab land even if they want to. This is why the situation has remained inflamed for over fifty years: Arab states are preventing its peaceful resolution so as to have a stick with which to beat Israel. It is just another weapon in the jihad against Israel, and the global jihad in general. From Arab News, with thanks to Mike:

JEDDAH, 21 October 2004 — Expatriates of all nationalities are entitled to apply for Saudi citizenship and their travels abroad with re-entry visas will not disqualify them, press reports said yesterday quoting senior officials....

Shubaily ibn Majdoue Al-Qarni, chairman of the security committee which supervised amendments to the law, said Saudi citizenship would be open for all nationals working in the Kingdom. “The law does not aim at a particular nationality. On the other hand, it covers all expatriates in the country,” he told Al-Madinah.

But Al-Watan Arabic daily reported that the naturalization law would not be applicable to Palestinians living in the Kingdom as the Arab League has instructed that Palestinians living in Arab countries should not be given citizenship to avoid dissolution of their identity and protect their right to return to their homeland.

Diplomatic sources have estimated the number of Palestinians in the Kingdom at about 500,000. There are large concentrations of Palestinians in the country’s western, central, eastern and northern provinces.

Cairo Conference: Reform Islam. Al-Azhar: Not So Fast

In Islam Unveiled I discuss why Islamic reformers will always face an uphill battle: whenever they attempt to depart from Qur'anic literalism, they become vulnerable to charges from radicals of infidelity to Islam. This poses what is probably an insurmountable problem for those who would reform Islam. Why, then, have I called for such reform myself? Principally in order to raise awareness of the Islamic texts and teachings that give rise to fanaticism and violence; the very existence of these elements of Islam, and thus of any need for reform at all, is still denied by virtually every American Muslim spokesman. And also because, if there are Muslims working for a secularized Islam shorn of literalism, they deserve support and encouragement.

But Saad Eddin Ibrahim, with whom I have taken some issue here in the past, and the other reformers at this Cairo conference got no encouragement from Sheikh Tantawi at Al-Azhar, who is the closest thing the Islamic world has to a Pope. Tantawi made it clear that their reform efforts were out of Islamic bounds. Ibrahim, like Irshad Manji, wants to "reopen the gates of ijtihad" -- that is, reopen discussion of Islamic teachings, thus allowing for the possibility of reform. But Tantawi is having none of it. From MEMRI, with thanks to Rebecca:

A seminar on "Islam and Reform" was held on October 5-6 at the Pyramisa Hotel in Cairo, with the participation of more than twenty intellectuals and researchers from the Arab and Muslim world, Europe, and America. At the seminar's conclusion, the participants published a final statement in which they called for the implementation of both religious and political reforms. The seminar and its final statement raised the ire of high-ranking clerics in the Egyptian religious establishment....

In the opening speech Dr. Sa'ad Al-Din Ibrahim, Chairman of the Ibn Khaldun Center For Development Studies in Cairo, said that the plans for reform "aspire to emphasize that the gates of ijtihad [2] are wide open and that an [intellectual] Jihad must be waged to keep them open until Judgment Day, as the meaning of this [keeping the gates of ijtihad open] is the protection of freedom of thought and expression, not only in religious matters but in all matters…

Dr. Ibrahim further stated, "We are all [waging intellectual] Jihad to prevent the marginalization of the Muslim mujtahidun, whether marginalization by their own governments, by official religious institutions, which have become church-like institutions, or by extremists, radicals, and zealots who have hijacked Islam and turned it into a means of intimidation and terror all over the world." [3]...

The final statement contained ten key recommendations, published (in English) on the Internet site http://www.mengos.net/events/04newsevents/egypt/october/ibnkhaldun-English.htm:

"1- Reframing a new intellectual Islamic context, characterized by clarity and unity of perception, that seeks to take into account all the changes and transformations that took place in the social life of the various countries of the Muslim world during the last 11 centuries.

"2- Implementing a radical revision of the Islamic heritage that involves all Islamic scholarship relating to Islamic Jurisprudence and the Sunna, the Traditions of the Prophet – all of which were founded during the first three centuries of Islam. The participants called for reliance on the Koranic text as the sole authentic source to be utilized for reviewing the entire Islamic heritage.

"3-Confronting all institutions – whether composed of clerics or lay persons – that claim a monopoly over religion and the proper interpretation of its holy text. Instead, a new spirit should seek to establish the right of ijtihad for all, under the banner of an Islamic reformation relevant to in the current century.

"4- Confronting and refuting the visions and statements of radical religious movements so as to retard their penetration into the Arab society specifically among youngsters many of whom are living in a state of depression under the stress of economic hardship.

"5- Intensifying dialogue with moderate and enlightened elements in the Western world, particularly in the United States. In this the language of dialogue and partnership is the instrument for dealing with the other "non-Muslims" on the basis of the principles of co-operation, respect of national independence, and peaceful co-existence among civilizations and nations. In that context, Muslim communities abroad could function as channels of contact."...

The seminar and its recommendations raised the ire of high-ranking members of the religious establishment in Egypt. The Sheikh of Al-Azhar, Muhammad Sayyed Tantawi, harshly attacked the seminar and its participants, and claimed that their call "to confront all institutions that claim a monopoly over religion" was directed against Al-Azhar.

In an interview with the Kuwaiti daily Al-Rai Al-Aam, Tantawi claimed that voices in the seminar "called explicitly for the disavowal of the Prophet's sunna ; Al-Azhar and [Egyptian] society reject this." According to Tantawi, these research centers whose representatives participated in the seminar "have a destructive influence on Egyptian society and they must be stopped and brought to trial…This is an explicit call to discard a major source of Islamic religious law – the Prophet's sunna. This is a danger in which some of [our] external enemies are interested [in promoting]."

He further said, "The participation of Western [research] centers in a discussion of Islam and its legal sources is a mark of shame and a disaster which society and its leaders need to prevent… It is an obligation to forcefully intercede so as to prevent [these] affronts. This is a group of [religious] deviants, one of whom has already been indicted on charges of treason; thus it is forbidden to deal with them and it is an obligation to consider them insignificant in society." [4]

Sheikh Ibrahim Al-Fayoumi, Secretary-General of "The Academy for Islamic Research," the supreme body of Al-Azhar, said: "I called for the holding of an emergency session to respond to this impudence… What causes foreign [research] centers to express their opinion on Islam? Would they agree to us intervening in matters of their religion and faith…? [This is] a religious war led by Zionist organizations to harm Islam and its law… We will demand to put an end to the holding of these conferences which attack faith." [5]

Dr. Abd Al-Azim Al-Mut'ani, Al-Azhar University lecturer, said: "Conferences such as these aspire only to cater to the American overlord, and they have no intention of [pursuing] reforms in the Arab and Muslim worlds. These are agencies operated by the U.S. to justify its intervention in and pressures on Islamic governments."

Canadian Muslim leader espouses jihad

And why is a terror attack from Canada "inevitable"? Because Canada is host to people like this. From CP, with thanks to Louise:

VANCOUVER (CP) - The leader of a Vancouver mosque attended regularly by a local man reported killed in Chechnya has preached the virtues of jihad and called Jews "the brothers of monkeys and swine."

In a lecture posted on the mosque's website, Sheik Younus Kathrada tells an audience all real Muslims want to be martyred. "It is inconceivable that a true believer will not desire martyrdom," Kathrada says.

"When we hear of our fellow Muslims in Palestine and what they're going through to try and defend that great land for us, the Muslims, that individual should wish that he was there."

In a recording of another lecture obtained by The Canadian Press, Kathrada lashes out at Israelis for killing Hamas founder Sheik Ahmed Yassin late last March.

"We know what happened over the last week and how the brothers of the monkeys and the swine assassinated and murdered one of the heroes of Islam, the Salah al-Din of this day and age, Ahmed Yassin."

Kathrada tells his audience the Qur'an and its accompanying writings view Jews as treacherous people with whom Muslims will engage in an apocalyptic battle.

"The prophet . . . said the final hour will not be established until such time as the Muslims will battle and will fight against the Jews," Kathrada says.

"Then what will happen? Listen to the good news after that. The prophet . . . says that the stone and the tree will say 'oh Muslim, oh slave of Allah, that verily behind me is a Jew. Then come and kill him.' "

Kathrada, who works out of the Dar al-Madinah Islamic Society mosque in east Vancouver, said Thursday he could not remember when he gave these talks.

"If it's on there and my name is on it then I must have. I don't recall the date," he said.

Kathrada refused to explain the meaning behind the tirade against Jews.

"I guess if you heard the lecture then it should be clear to you," he said.

But he defended his characterization of Jews as treacherous monkeys and pigs.

"I guess no rougher than what is used against us," Kathrada said. "It's in our Qur'an."

At least he admits it. On a radio show a couple of years ago with the ADC's Hussein Ibish, I mentioned its presence in the Qur'an, and Ibish breezily replied: "That's not in the Qur'an." It was a clever gambit, really, since most listeners would not have been familiar with the Qur'an, and would not have suspected the brazenness of the deception. But I was ready with chapter and verse, whereupon Ibish started talking about Nazis.

Other members of the Muslim community say Kathrada, a Sunni Muslim, was active in the Vancouver area's interfaith movement.

"I'm told that he's quite open," said Aziz Khaki of the Committee for Racial Justice, who met him at the opening of a new mosque in suburban Port Coquitlam last year.

"He did speak there and he spoke in very good terms to say we should build bridges with the Abrahamic faiths of Judaism and Christianity and we should be open to dialogue and something like that."

Well, sure. He was no doubt tailoring his remarks to his audience. There's nothing Westerners want to hear more from a Muslim spokesmen than the twaddle about the unity of Abrahamic faiths. Unfortunately, as this story demonstrates, it has no real substance.

In his lecture on jihad, Kathrada says the term refers to physical fighting and includes the idea of offensive jihad.

"When the Muslims have a leader, when the Muslims have the strength and the ability to take on an enemy, then absolutely they call the other nations towards Islam," he says.

"Should they reject the message then they will declare war upon them. That is what we know as the offensive jihad.

"There is a good reason for that. It is in order to establish security on this Earth. It is so that the word of Allah will be the superior word."

Aziz said Kathrada is on the fringe when he espouses offensive jihad.

"He has not read the history," he said. "The whole concept of Islam spread by sword is absolutely a myth."

Common sleight of hand here. Even Kathrada didn't say that offensive jihad was in order to force people to accept Islam. Sayyid Qutb, Syed Abul Ala Maududi, and other prominent radical theorists hotly deny that offensive jihad is meant to force Islam on people: it is, they say, to establish the hegemony of Islamic law, and to make dhimmis of non-Muslims.

Kathrada's view of Jewish treachery is apparently rooted in a seventh-century doublecross of Mohammed by Jewish residents of Medina.

But Aziz said it has no relevance to historic relations between Muslims and Jews, who lived peacefully in Moorish-controlled Spain and in Ottoman Turkey.

Aziz has studied the taqiyya playbook carefully. The historical record shows that Jews did indeed live peacefully in Al-Andalus and Ottoman Turkey -- as second-class dhimmis. Most decidedly not as equal citizens with Muslims.

"God may forgive him (Kathrada)," he said.

"Where Muslims ruled for 700 years, Jews and Muslims worked together."

The Vancouver area's Muslim community numbers more than 60,000 and Aziz said such militant views don't go deep.

"I don't even waste time on such characters," he said....

And that's the problem. Because as I have shown in my books and here many times, Kathrada's arguments below can all easily be defended from the Qur'an and Islamic tradition. Aziz most likely is well aware of this. If he is not guilty of conscious deception, his unwillingness to deign to provide adequate Islamic refutations of Kathrada's arguments means that he is leaving the field open for Kathrada to convince more and more young Muslims to turn radical. Of course, one principal reason why he does not supply such refutations from Islamic theology and law is because they do not exist: Kathrada is faithfully representing Islamic teachings on these matters.

Excerpts from recorded lectures give by Sheik Younus Kathrada, leader of the Dar al-Madinah Islamic Society of Vancouver:

On Jews after Israel assassinated Hamas leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin last March

"We know what happened over the last week and how the brothers of the monkeys and the swine assassinated and murdered one of the heroes of Islam, the Salah al-Din of this day and age, Ahmed Yassin.

"Once again they've shown their treachery; once again they've shown that they are cowards and that they cannot be trusted."

-

On enmity between Jews and Muslims:

"Allah informs us in the Qur'an that you will never find people having such animosity towards the believers or such strong animosity towards the believers like the Jews and the mushrikeen (polytheists).

"All of these words we seem to have forgotten and the reason we like to remind ourselves of them is because today we hear from amongst those who claim to be Muslims, we hear them telling us that we must have love and we must live in peace with these Jews.

"And the reality is, like I said, there is never going to be peace with them."

-

On the battle between Muslims and Jews:

"The prophet . . . said the final hour will not be established until such time as the Muslims will battle and will fight against the Jews.

"Then what will happen? Listen to the good news after that. The prophet . . . says that the stone and the tree will say 'oh Muslim, oh slave of Allah, that verily behind me is a Jew. Then come and kill him.' . . . It is not meant to be understood metaphorically but rather literally.

"Unfortunately we hear too many people saying we must build bridges with them. No. They understand one language. It is the language of the sword and it is the only language they understand."

-

On offensive jihad:

"When the Muslims have a leader, when the Muslims have the strength and the ability to take on an enemy, then absolutely they call the other nations towards Islam. Should they reject the message then they will declare war upon them.

"That is what we know as the offensive jihad. There is a good reason for that. It is in order to establish security on this earth. It is so that the word of Allah will be the superior word."

-

On kuffar or unbelievers:

"I have no problem with calling the Christians and the Jews and those who are not Muslims kuffar. They are kuffar and if they die in that state they will abide in the hellfire forever. I don't care what anyone else says."

-

Comparing jihad to U.S. policies:

"When we hear the kuffar today and they start attacking the Muslims . . . you think immediately of their double standard.

"When the United States, for example, sees a land that poses a threat to them, what do they do? Don't they attack that land? And what is their justification? That they want to establish peace on Earth . . .

"I ask you by Allah, will peace and security ever be established if Islam is not the religion that is practised? It will never be established."

-

On martyrdom:

"I mentioned to you a while ago that it should be all of our intentions that one day we be martyred. If it is not I say revise yourself. Look deep into your heart because there is some hypocrisy in it.

"It is inconceivable that a true believer will not desire martyrdom."

-

Invocation ending the jihad lecture:

"That he (Allah) place us amongst those who will, God willing, be martyred."

Terror via Canada 'inevitable'

From the National Post, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

OTTAWA - Terrorists will inevitably use Canada as a base to launch an attack on the United States, the U.S. ambassador to Canada said yesterday, echoing a warning from the new Israeli ambassador that it is only a matter of time before terrorists exploit the openness and diversity of Canadian society.

It's not even so much the "openness and diversity" as such, except insofar as those are euphemisms for an unrestricted immigration policy that dares not question Muslim immigrants about their ties to terror groups and Sharia. As long as this suicidal unwillingness to accept reality continues, and nobody is willing to recognize that Islam is not simply just another religion that will fit easily into Canada's secular framework, but has political elements that many Muslims will be willing to extend into their new homeland by force, such attacks will indeed be inevitable.

Frederick Gets 8 Years in Iraq Abuse Case

The difference between the free world and the Islamic world is not that one side never does anything wrong. It is that in the West those who transgress ethical and legal bounds are punished; in the Islamic world they are celebrated as heroes. From AP:

BAGHDAD, Iraq - The highest ranking soldier charged in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal was sentenced to eight years in prison for abusing inmates at Abu Ghraib during a court martial Thursday in Baghdad.

Staff Sgt. Ivan "Chip" Frederick, 38, of Buckingham, Va., was also given a reduction in rank, forfeiture of pay and a dishonorable discharge. The sentencing came a day after he pleaded guilty Wednesday to eight counts of abusing and humiliating Iraqi detainees.

UK: Army infiltrated by Al-Qaeda

A startling revelation from the Times Online, with thanks to Lester:

THE Territorial Army has been infiltrated by Al-Qaeda suspects, giving the Islamic terrorist group potential access to military bases, explosives and fuel dumps.

Five Al-Qaeda suspects are believed to have trained as part-time soldiers with the TA. At least one is now in custody.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed that other terror suspects have attempted to join the TA, but says they were rejected after undergoing security checks.

The connection with Britain’s Al-Qaeda network was uncovered in a series of wide-ranging investigations by MI5 and Scotland Yard’s Special Branch.

It is believed the terrorist suspects may have been taking advantage of military training as well as gaining access to bases and weapons.

Patrick Mercer, the Tory homeland security spokesman and a former army officer, said Al-Qaeda terrorists could use TA passes to penetrate security at key MoD establishments such as the permanent joint headquarters at Northwood in Greater London.

“This could have very serious security implications. Clearly in the war against terror you need to know who your friends are. The last thing we want is the enemy masquerading as our own people,” Mercer said.

The TA has about 41,000 members and comprises a substantial portion of the 102,000-strong British Army and has 329 centres throughout the country.

Democracy as hostage: Sunni clerics urge boycott of Iraq elections in wake of Fallujah siege

From Knight-Ridder, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

BAGHDAD, Iraq - (KRT) - Iraq's largest group of Sunni Muslim clerics ordered their followers Wednesday to boycott January's parliamentary elections if American forces don't break off their military campaign in the flash-point city of Fallujah, which is now ringed by U.S. Marines and besieged by daily aerial bombardment.

Gathering from across northern and western Iraq at the Umm al Qura mosque outside Baghdad, the clerics in the Muslim Scholars Association, whose followers make up 35 percent of Iraq's population, called on Arab leaders throughout the Middle East to condemn U.S. actions in Fallujah and "end their silence, which brings frustration and anger." They ruled that Iraqis have a religious duty to fight American-led forces, according to a statement issued from the mosque.

"The esteemed clerics bless the Fallujah sons for their jihad and patience," the statement read, invoking the Arabic word often translated as "holy war."

Dallas: Government Moves to Strip Citizenship from Former Holy Land Foundation Board Member

From CBS-11 News, with thanks to RSH:

The Dallas-based office of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has filed a highly unusual civil court motion to strip a wealthy North Texas businessman of his American citizenship and eventually deport him to his native Middle East.

CBS-11 News has learned that federal authorities have invoked a rarely-used federal statute – mainly used in past decades to deport former Nazis - to de-naturalize native Palestinian Rasmi Khader Almallah. The government's “Complaint to Revoke Naturalization” claims Almallah paid a woman for a “sham marriage” in 1981 that helped him gain permanent residency and then American citizenship in 1988.

But sources tell CBS-11 the motive behind the government effort is Almallah’s long association with the Richardson-based Holy Land Foundation, which the Bush administration shuttered in 2001 and accused of clandestinely providing funds to help the designated terrorist group Hamas deploy suicide bombers against Israeli civilians.

Almallah, since remarried, the father of seven U.S.-born children, and the founding owner of the booming 50-store Carpet Mills of America chain, served as a board member of the Holy Land Foundation, according to a 2000 foundation tax return.

He has maintained close ties to top foundation officers who the government in July criminally indicted on charges that their fundraising work supported suicide bombings against Israeli citizens. Almallah also has served as an officer of the Islamic Association of Palestine, which has come under federal investigation for alleged – and vigorously disputed – terrorist ties.

But Almallah was not among the seven men indicted in Dallas this summer for their Holy Land Foundation fundraising work, and he has not been charged with any crime.

Muslim Brotherhood leader calls for stepping up attacks against US, Israel

This is the man with whom some U.S. officials would like to reach an understanding. From the Jerusalem Post, with thanks to Twostellas:

In his most public support of Muslim combatants, the leader of Egypt's outlawed Muslim Brotherhood called on Iraqis and Palestinians to step up their resistance to both the United States and Israel.

In a speech Wednesday night to hundreds of the movement's members and supporters, Mohammed Mahdi Akef urged the Muslim world to "provide all the necessary material and moral support" to the Iraqi insurgents.

"We are with the Iraqi resistance as a righteous duty imposed by Sharia (Islamic law) and sanctioned by international laws," Akef said during a banquet his group hosts annually for supporters and the news media during the holy month of Ramadan.

"The Iraqi resistance is the protective wall which defends us all," he said.

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood was founded in 1928, and has spawned branches throughout the Muslim world. It was banned in 1954 for advocating violence to turn Egypt into an Islamic state.

Today, still banned, the group says it supports peaceful means toward change and is generally tolerated by the state, with occasional crackdowns. Brotherhood members hold seats in Parliament, though they run as independents, not under the group's name.

The comments Wednesday night were Akef's sharpest criticism of the United States since taking over the group's leadership in March. He accused the United States of "trying to bring us to our knees ... corrupt our civilization and obliterate our identity."

Shutting Down Cyber-Terror

Rachel Ehrenfeld in FrontPage on how to win the Internet jihad -- despite interference from those "moderates" at CAIR:

In the War on Terrorism, the terrorists may have an unusual ally: American internet service providers (ISPs). U.S.-based ISPs provide web-hosting for terrorists ranging from Hamas and Hizbullah to Palestinian Jihad. This cyber-fifth column is illegal, can be prosecuted, and must be shut down if we hope to stop Islamic fundamentalists from winning the hearts and minds of a generation of their young.

The swift action taken last month by the Colorado-based ISP Level3 and the Virginia-based ISP Network Solution prove that this can be done. After being alerted, both ISP’s tracked and shut down Hamas and Hizbollah websites.

Governments can take action, too. Last week, the British government, responding to the U.S. request under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty between the two countries, ordered the closure of 20 media websites in 17 countries that advocated terrorism.

U.S. government efforts to punish those who provide terrorists with “expert advice or assistance” for operating websites was denounced by Arsalan Iftikhar, the legal director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), as “open[ing] the floodgates to really marginalizing a lot of the free speech that has been a hallmark of the American legal and political system.” Yet, our war against the plague of Islamist fundamentalism is unlikely to succeed as long as its most virulent organs of communication are allowed to operate freely on the internet and on TV, inciting violence for jihad. Currently, anyone can purchase web-hosting services without providing any real personal information aside from a valid credit card number.

On September 9, 2004, the Treasury Department designated as terrorists the U.S. branch of the Saudi-based Al Haramain Islamic Foundation (AHF). However, on September 10th, a day after Al Haramain was designated as terrorist, its website (www.alharamain.org), which is registered and run by U.S. Director Suliman Al-Buthe – also designated as terrorist - disingenuously stated that America’s financial war on terror is doomed to failure because it is “smearing anyone who attempted to understand the root causes of anti-American terrorism.” Further, in American attempts to part the terrorists from their money, “the collateral damage are the poor, the orphans and the children.”

Al Haramain is also listed as a member on the website of the Friends of Charities Association (www.foca.net), which is registered by the same Suliman Al-Buthe, and hosted by W3Gateway.com, Inc., of Houston, Texas. FOCA was established in January 2004 in Washington, D.C. According to its website, it “represents some of the leading charities who have devoted their existence to translating donor intent into action to relieve suffering illiteracy and poverty around the world.” Among its listed members are two major Saudi organizations with documented ties to Islamists terrorism: the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY) and the International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO). The Al Haramain office is still open in Jeddah, despite official announcements of its closure.

Read it all.

Spencer on Peaceful Islam, Surrender in Iraq, and Islamist 'Democracy'

Jihad Watch director Robert Spencer's column this week in Human Events takes President Bush to task for granting the possibility of an Islamic state in Iraq. Will Kerry do better on this score? Doubtful. One thing that is certain is that in 2005 the President will need to define the nature of the conflict more clearly, or the U.S. will be vulnerable in many areas unnecessarily.

What if, when they vote in January, Iraqis choose to institute an Islamic state? "I will be disappointed" if Iraq votes for an Islamic "fundamentalist" government, said President Bush this week, "but democracy is democracy."

This marks a substantial retreat from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's April 2003 assertion that an "Iranian-style" state in Iraq "is not going to happen." The source of Rumsfeld's intransigence was revealed in a question he posted in October 2003: "Are we capturing, killing or deterring and dissuading more terrorists every day than the madrassas and the clerics are recruiting, training and deploying?" He called then for a battle of ideas to combat the teaching of terrorism in Islamic schools and mosques worldwide -- a battle to be headed up by a new government information agency.

But after a rough year in Iraq, all that's left of that idea is "democracy is democracy." And of course, democracy is democracy, except when it isn't. If Iraq becomes an Islamic state, there won't be quite enough democracy to go around for women and non-Muslims. The nation itself, if the Shi'ites gain the upper hand, will democratically choose to be a client state of the Iranian mullahs. And the mosques and madrassas will continue to exercise their democratic privilege to act as poisonous wells of jihadism, anti-Americanism, and anti-Semitism.

If President Bush was serious, his breezy "democracy is democracy" dismissal of an Islamic state in Iraq amounts to a capitulation of elephantine proportions. But it is not an abrupt about-face. The idea that Iraqis voting for an Islamic state would be an innocuous exercise of the right to vote is the perhaps inevitable consequence of the "Islam is peace" mantra that the Administration has retailed incessantly since 9/11. The State Department has steadfastly refused to consider the Islamic sources and motivations of international terrorism, not just since 9/11, but since the Ayatollah Khomeini first began to be a player in Iranian politics in the 1960s -- and before that. Given the prevailing wisdom at State and elsewhere in Washington, it is no surprise that Rumsfeld's "battle of ideas" never got off the ground. Since Bush can't acknowledge that any elements of Islam actually have anything to do with the global terrorist network, on what basis can he legitimately oppose an Islamic state in Iraq?

A true "war on terror" would never accept a Sharia state in Iraq, because it would recognize that Islamic "fundamentalism" is precisely what leads to "terror." Jihadists around the world make that abundantly clear every day. Just this week, Magdi Ahmad Hussein of Egypt's radical Muslim Labor Party declared on Al-Jazeera TV that "both the Qur'an and the Prophet's biography permit the killing of prisoners. This exists in our Islamic law and in the laws of all nations." He added: "Those who bomb Fallujah cannot prevent me from bombing Los Angeles." While Islamic clerics all over denounce the beheadings, they are doing little or nothing even to attempt to persuade people like Magdi Ahmed Hussein that their view of Islam is incorrect -- and in fact, the Magdi Ahmad Husseins of the world are operating according to broad and venerable Islamic traditions and teachings that go all the way back to the time of Muhammad, and which Muslim moderates find next to impossible to refute.

But all this is not even part of the public debate in this election season. Political correctness has taken it off the table. John Kerry promises to fight terrorism more effectively than has the President, but says nothing about the need to redefine the conflict -- and his overtures to Iranian mullahs and to European leaders who have kowtowed to dictators and Islamic radicals in the Arab League for thirty years indicate that a Kerry Administration would be a fate worse than Bush. At least the incumbent recognizes that there is a war that must be fought.

Whatever the outcome on November 2, terrorists around the world will continue to plot to murder innocent people in the United States and elsewhere. The sooner the occupant of the White House on January 20, 2005, recognizes that they are recruiting in mosques and Islamic schools and fighting to impose Islamic law upon an unwilling world, the sooner he will be able to act to cut off this threat at its source. But unless and until he does so, an Islamic state in Iraq will not be a triumph of democracy, but yet another nail in the coffin of free people in that unfortunate nation and elsewhere.

French Al Qaeda man tells all to interrogators

Some illuminating revelations from the Daily Times, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

WASHINGTON: The Advertiser, an Austrialian newspaper, has come out with some startling revelations about an Al Qaeda man, a French national, captured in Australia and now being interrogated by the French.

According to a report published by the newspaper on 18 October, Willie Brigitte, the captured man, has told French investigators of his extraordinary journey from failed butcher to linchpin in an Al Qaeda plan to launch a terror attack on Australia. He has detailed the high-altitude paramilitary training he undertook in a vast camp overlooking the Himalayas in which he and thousands of jihad warriors were schooled in terrorism. He has told of how Osama Bin Laden’s allies have penetrated the Pakistani Army to thwart US efforts to crack terrorist training operations in the remote Pakistani mountain regions that border Afghanistan. A year after the French national was captured in a western Sydney apartment with documents indicating he was planning to launch an attack on Australian targets, his interrogation transcripts are said to have come into the possession of the Australian newspaper.

The transcripts are said to give a rare insight into how the networks of people prepared to join the Islamist jihad against the West function. Brigitte told investigators the camp where he was trained in the use of explosives, small arms and terrorism tactics was a sophisticated three-tiered mountain complex close to the Indo-Pakistani border. He was grouped with foreign recruits, including American and British citizens of Pakistani origin. “There were between 2,000 and 3,000 mujahideens,” Brigitte told French anti-terror judge Jean-Louis Bruguiere. “I remember it was very impressive because we gathered every morning and shouted Allah Akbar. What was more, the site was imposing since one could see the outline of the Himalayas.” The camp was run by Lashkar e Taiba (LET). Brigitte said LET was filled with soldiers from the Pakistan Army who worked to sabotage efforts by the West to fight bin Laden and his allies.

“There was complete complicity between Lashkar e Taiba and the Pakistani Army,” Brigitte said in a secret interrogation in the Paris judicial chambers of Judge Bruguiere on 3 December 2003. “Furthermore, the weapons were provided by the army. The munitions were brought in by night between the first and second levels (of the camp). “There was everything -munitions, arms and food. We had the feeling that these weapons came from the Pakistani Army...."

Malaysia: Kota Baru to be declared ‘Islamic City’

It will be interesting to see how non-Muslims fare there. From The Star Online, with thanks to Twostellas:

KOTA BARU: The PAS-led state government is set to declare Kota Baru as an “Islamic City” next year and turn the state capital into a model of Islamic management.

Several large banners proclaiming “Kota Baru Bandaraya Islam 2005” (Kota Baru Islamic City 2005) have been hung up here.

Takiyuddin Hassan, the chairman of the State Public Administration, Local Government and Housing Committee, said Islamic management would be introduced by the Kota Baru Municipal Council (MPKB) by March.

FBI Probing Punctures in US Airway Jets

More punctures on more US Airways aircraft. From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

CHARLOTTE, N.C (AP) -- Puncture holes were found in the bellies of two US Airways jets at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, which the FBI said was not likely caused by normal wear and tear.

Officials said the punctures discovered Monday morning during routine visual inspections are similar to damage recently found on another US Airways jet in Florida.

No passengers were in the planes, which were temporarily grounded for repairs.

"There was some damage found on two planes here in Charlotte," FBI spokesman David Martinez said Wednesday. "They were brought through the channels for maintenance and it was brought to our attention. We are now doing interviews.

"We've opened a case, investigating. We're trying to figure if there is a criminal nexis or a terrorism nexis. We've opened the case, and see where it takes us."

More than third of U.S. Muslims see war on Islam

They could do a great detail to keep this from being a war on Islam, by being more cooperative with anti-terror efforts, and by working to eradicate terrorism from the Islamic community. The fact that they see it as a war on Islam indicates that they are taking at least some cues from radical preachers, which does not bode well. From the Washington Times, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

More than one-third of American Muslims believe that the U.S. war on terrorism is really a war on Islam, according to survey information released yesterday by researchers at Georgetown University.

Thirty-eight percent of American Muslims polled said they believe the U.S.-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, and the tensions with Iran and Syria, reflect a foreign policy that is targeting Islamic countries and Muslims themselves.

U.S. general says bin Laden apparently alive but no longer controls al-Qaeda

Just in case anyone still thinks this is a movement based around a charismatic leader, and not an ideology that is larger than any one person. From AP, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

WASHINGTON – The top American commander in Afghanistan said Tuesday he has no evidence Osama bin Laden is in day-to-day control of al-Qaeda but suggested the long-absent terrorist leader is alive.

Lt. Gen. David Barno, speaking to reporters during a visit to the Pentagon, talked mostly of a lack of evidence about bin Laden's whereabouts, health and current role in the al-Qaeda network. He remains, however, a critical target, Barno said.

Still, "I don't see any indications that he is in day-to-day command and control, as it were, of the al-Qaeda organization or the other terrorist groups that work with him, certainly in the Afghanistan-Pakistan area," Barno said.

Barno suggested that bin Laden's death would be difficult to conceal from intelligence services, even if he died in a secret place, because his associates would talk about it. Recent communications from al-Qaeda's top echelon have come from bin Laden's chief deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, as videotaped messages.

Akyol/Spencer at FrontPage

The latest exchange between Turkish Muslim Mustafa Akyol and me is at FrontPage today -- it is just as it was published here plus a brief final word from Akyol.

Akyol is, of course, a "moderate Muslim." I had earlier concluded that his intention was to give non-Muslims false reassurance rather than to bring about actual reform in the Islamic world; now I am not so sure. There are many Muslims around the world today who are hoping to bring about large-scale changes in the religion; they are, as I have pointed out many times, up against virtually insuperable obstacles, but that doesn't mean that I am not hoping they succeed. When I argue with self-proclaimed moderates in the United States, it is not because (as Akyol tentatively implies in his response here) that I do not favor their enterprise; it is because I know in the first place that Islam sanctions religious deception (taqiyya; see Qur'an 3:28 and 16:106), and because I know that any sincerely reformist presentation must answer radical arguments, which moderates hardly ever do. So I try to determine if these self-proclaimed moderates are genuine, and if their arguments will truly hold up from the perspective of the radicals.

If this is not done, non-Muslims will continue to be deceived by false moderates, and radical Muslims will continue to win the theological arguments within Islam -- thus enabling them to recruit more terrorists.

But do I really think Islam can be reformed? Over the last few days I have been involved in an irritating email exchange with someone who has taken me to task for saying just that. He has accused me of toeing the politically correct line and of ignorance about Islam's teachings, to both of which charges I plead not guilty; but then the question remains: how can I say that Islam must reform if to do so, moderate Muslims must reject core teachings of the Qur'an and the Prophet Muhammad?

I have no illusions about the possibility of reform. In Islam Unveiled I wrote about the difficulties moderates face, because of the radicals' ability to paint them as disloyal Muslims as soon as they begin to speak out for the change that is necessary.

That obstacle may indeed be insurmountable in the long run, but there is no denying that there are Muslims today who seem to be sincerely rising to the challenge. In any case, even if it does prove insurmountable, and I think a good case can be made for that from Islamic history, nonetheless I call for reform in order to raise public awareness of the fact that Islam does indeed need reforming -- since most American Muslim advocates and the media establishment do not acknowledge this. I also call for it in order to draw attention to the true source of the problem: not poverty or ignorance or other fashionable causes, but Islamic teachings.

Also, in the history of religions there are instances of large-scale reform, including revisions of teachings that had appeared non-negotiable. Again, I don't have any illusions about how difficult this will be: there are other analysts of Islam who say that "moderate Islam" is the solution without telling you that moderate Islam doesn't exactly exist yet; I am not of that camp. Those who think the obstacles are so great as to render the call to reform useless should remember that the alternatives to this call -- "ban Islam" or push for widespread conversion -- are even less tenable for a variety of reasons.

But in case there is any misunderstanding (since the emailer I referred to above seemed to think this, which in itself shows he must not have read much that I have written), I am not of the position that Islam has been "hijacked" by terrorists. I have always maintained, in all my books and other writings, that the terrorists are operating within a broad tradition within Islam. Until Muslims and non-Muslims acknowledge that fact and take action accordingly, terrorism will continue to proliferate within Islam.

U.S. Would Accept Sharia State in Iraq

Here is the inevitable consequence of the Administration's unwillingness to look at the source of Islamic radicalism. A true "war on terror" would never accept this outcome, because it would recognize that Islamic "fundamentalism" is precisely what leads to "terror." From Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, with thanks to Nicolei:

19 October 2004 -- U.S. President George W. Bush says he would be disappointed but would accept it if Iraqis voted to create an Islamic fundamentalist government in democratic elections.

Bush was asked during an interview with the The Associated Press how he would react if Iraqis someday freely voted into power an Islamic fundamentalist government. Bush replied, "I will be disappointed, but democracy is democracy."

Pentagon: 7 ex-Gitmo prisoners return to terror

And why not? The Pentagon dares not do anything to challenge the ideology of the prisoners there — signing a statement is nothing, especially to men whose religion sanctions religious deception (taqiyya, cf. Qur'an 16:106). From AP, with thanks to Joyce:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- At least seven former prisoners of the United States at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have been involved in terrorist acts, despite gaining their freedom by signing pledges to renounce violence, according to the Pentagon.

At least two are believed to have died in fighting in Afghanistan, and a third was recaptured during a raid of a suspected training camp in Afghanistan, Lt. Cmdr. Flex Plexico, a Pentagon spokesman, said last week. Others are at large.

The seven were among 203 detainees released from the prison at the U.S. naval base on Cuba's southeastern tip since it opened in early 2002.

Of those, 146 were let go only after U.S. officials determined they no longer posed threats and had no remaining intelligence value.

Sacramento: FBI steps up local terror inquiries

From the Sacramento Bee, with thanks to Kemaste:

Sparked by what they call credible threats, Sacramento-area FBI and immigration officials have stepped up interviews, surveillance and investigations leading up to the Nov. 2 election. Though federal officials say they're responding broadly to potential terror attacks here and nationwide, local Middle Eastern and Muslim residents argue that they are being targeted based on their race and national origin. The National Lawyers Guild office in the Bay Area, which maintains a hotline for people who have been approached by the FBI, has received three calls from Sacramento-area residents who said they were recently contacted.

"We believe efforts are being concentrated in the Sacramento area right now," said Mel Campagna, the National Lawyers Guild representative who responds to hotline calls. "The FBI came to them at home and at work. They were asking questions about people at the mosques they attend."

Last week, Keith Slotter, the special agent in charge of Sacramento's FBI office, met with area Muslim leaders to explain the effort, answer their questions and "allay any fears," he said.

It's a shame that the Muslim leaders don't feel compelled to meet initiate meetings with law enforcement officials in order to allay any fears on their side.

Slotter said the effort isn't based on people's ethnic origin or religion.

But area residents from the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia call this another in a string of government initiatives that discriminate against them.

Still smarting from the recent program that required men from predominately Arab countries to report to immigration officials, local Muslim leaders say the government is selectively enforcing laws against them.

"The agenda is not going after terrorists," said Kais Menoufy, CEO and president Delegata, a Sacramento technology consulting firm. "The agenda is to intimidate Muslims and create fear among Americans."

Menoufy, a U.S. citizen originally from Egypt, attended Slotter's meeting and believes the crackdown is politically driven.

McGregor Scott, the U.S. attorney in Sacramento, also attended the meeting and said federal officials are merely basing their investigations on past patterns.

"Al-Qaida is the number-one terrorist threat the nation faces. Al-Qaida is a Muslim-oriented group," he explained. "We're not targeting anybody. We're looking at the threat."...

Mustafa, a 40-year-old business owner who asked not to be identified by his full name, is one local resident who says he has been interviewed by the FBI.

Now a U.S. citizen, Mustafa came to the United States from Syria and attends mosque regularly.

In June, the south Sacramento resident said, two FBI agents came to his home and asked if they could question him.

Mustafa said they spent 10 to 15 minutes asking him what mosque he attends, what country other members of the mosque come from and whether he had any suspicious activities to report.

"I didn't have anything to hide, so I had no problem with them," he said.

But Mustafa said he received another call from the FBI agents in late August requesting another interview. This time, he called the local Council on American-Islamic Relations chapter and was referred to an attorney.

The attorney told the FBI that Mustafa didn't want to participate in the interview because he had nothing new to add.

Mustafa hasn't been contacted since but said the experience has unsettled him.

"In Syria, they targeted you for whatever reason," he said. "Here, you should be free from being targeted because of your religion or background."

Maybe you should be. But how would Mustafa advise law enforcement officials to deal with a threat that comes only from people of a particular religion?

Afghanistan: Weapons cache stuns Canucks

When your friends are not your friends. From Peter Worthington in the Toronto Sun, with thanks to EPG:

Canadian soldiers attached to the Afghan National Army (ANA) have stirred up a hornet's nest in Kabul by being too efficient.

They've "discovered" a huge Soviet ammunition dump a few kilometres from Camp Julien with the potential of obliterating the camp, as well as most of Kabul....

In the dusty foothills, 10 minutes drive from Camp Julien (population 2,000), 82 buried bunkers, each 20-metres long, housed thousands of Soviet FROG missiles (one step down from Scud missiles), and every variety of rocket and mortar shells.

Some of the FROG missiles were still in their original cases. Some heaped in the open. Some stacked to the roof in the unlocked, open bunkers. Much of the ordnance had warheads removed to collect the explosive for homemade bombs -- or for blasting at a nearby quarry.

"Unbelievable!" was Maj. Brian Hynes' reaction when he saw them. "We (troops of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)) have been here some two years, and no one knew this was at our back door. Unbelievable."

In truth, the Soviet bunkers were well-known in an area supposedly under control of the Afghan Militia Force (AMF) -- not to be confused with the ANA. The AMF is paid by various warlords and so their loyalty is to them....

Many of the rockets, missiles and shells had been pried open for the explosives, which are used peacefully to blast mountain rock into gravel, and by those who want to make bombs that disrupt Kabul....

I've never seen anything like it. The feeling is that AMF soldiers were selling access to the dump or permitting friends to enter it.

Littered with burned out Soviet military vehicles, the whole area is a junk pile strewn with every sort of live ammunition, fuses, unexploded shells, rockets, etc., all supposedly under the authority of Belgian troops (at the moment), who ignored it.

In the midst of examining the bunkers and taking photos, a Swedish UN guy, a French major and a German colonel arrived to make a fuss and order the Canadians to leave. The French major insisted his government had a deal with the Afghan government for the area, and ISAF had no business being there....

"I feel foolish that for eight days we've been watching our front, when at our back all this was going on and nobody cared," said Sgt. Mazerolle.

Al-Azm: No clash of civilizations

Sadik J. Al-Azm, the "apostate of Damascus," takes issue with Samuel J. Huntington's clash of civilizations thesis in a Boston Review piece (thanks to Paul Ogden and Bell):

The two supposedly clashing sides are so unequal in power, military might, productive capacity, efficiency, effective institutions, wealth, social organization, science, and technology that the clash can only be of the inconsequential sort. As one literary metaphor says, If a stone falls on an egg the egg breaks, and if an egg falls on a stone the egg breaks too. From the Arab Muslim side of the divide, the West seems so powerful, so efficient, so successful, so unstoppable, that the very idea of an ultimate “clash” is fanciful.

Al-Azm doesn't consider, however, the possibility that the side with the overwhelming technological advantages may also lack the will and the insight necessary to resist, and even properly to identify, the enemy. That for all its advantages it suffers from an internal rot that goes a long way to level the playing field.

Putin: Iraq terrorism aimed at defeating Bush

...and, he said, a Bush defeat would enable terror to spread more easily around the world. From CNN, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

"Any unbiased observer understands that attacks of international terrorist organizations in Iraq, especially nowadays, are targeted not only and not so much against the international coalition as against President Bush," Putin said.

"International terrorists have set as their goal inflicting the maximum damage to Bush, to prevent his election to a second term.

"If they succeed in doing that, they will celebrate a victory over America and over the entire anti-terror coalition," Putin said.

"In that case, this would give an additional impulse to international terrorists and to their activities, and could lead to the spread of terrorism to other parts of the world."

Policeman, businessman killed by jihadists in Thailand

The jihad in Thailand continues. From Xinhuanet, with thanks to Twostellas:

BANGKOK, Oct. 18 (Xinhuanet) -- A policeman was shot dead on Monday morning in Thailand's Muslim-dominated deep south, becomingthe latest victim of constant violence that has claimed more than 360 lives.

The 29-year-old policeman was shot by two unidentified insurgents riding on a motorcycle around 8:00 a.m. in Maikaen District of the province of Pattani, which lies some 1,000 kilometers south of Bangkok.

Also on Monday morning, one gunman opened fire at a businessmanin the capital of Pattani. The man was seriously injured.

The two latest violence was among a spate of almost daily-occurred attacks committed by motorcycle riders.

The region, home to most of Thailand's small Muslim population,has fallen into spiraling violence since the beginning of this year.

Churches attacked in Zanzibar as tensions rise

Jihad in Zanzibar and dhimmitude from the authorities. From AP, with thanks to Twostellas:

Masked men torched a Roman Catholic church in Zanzibar over the weekend, the third such attack in a week in the predominantly Muslim Indian Ocean archipelago, a church leader said on Monday.

Suspicions fell on Islamic extremists, highlighting rising Islamic militancy and growing political tensions as Zanzibar prepares for what is expected to be its most hotly contested presidential and legislative elections since the violent overthrow of the Omani Sultan in 1964.

Reverend Vincent Shiyo, a Roman Catholic priest, said four masked men torched his church on Saturday night in Mchangani, 15km from the centre of Unguja, the main island in the semi-autonomous archipelago off the coast of Tanzania.

No one was injured in the attack that destroyed the outreach parish church, Shiyo said.

The attack occurred three days after unknown assailants set fire to a Lutheran church and demolished the wall of another Roman Catholic church.

Police are investigating the attacks, but no one has been arrested, regional police chief Hamad Issa said.

"What is sad is that there is no official condemnation of the attacks," Shiyo said. "Both the police and government officials appear reluctant to condemn attacks on Christians."

In April, three Roman Catholic churches and a school van were attacked with explosive devices in Zanzibar.

In the same month, suspected Islamic militants set off explosive devices targeting a local pub, homes of government officials and Christian and pro-government Muslim leaders.

"The Muslim fundamentalists are angry at the social services that the church extends to all without discrimination," Shiyo said.

Social services extended to all without discrimination! Horrors!

Spain still not dhimmi enough?

Headline and link courtesy of Ali Dashti. Seven jihadists arrested in Spain, foiling their planned attack on Spain's High Court. From Reuters:

The seven suspects, including four Algerians and one Moroccan, were arrested in the southern region of Andalusia, the Mediterranean city of Valencia and Madrid.

Further arrests could be made in the coming hours as part of the operation against a radical and violent Muslim network, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Crusading Judge Baltasar Garzon ordered the arrests as part of his inquiry into Islamic militant cells in Spain.

The suspects had been in contact with other individuals in Europe, the United States and Australia, the statement said.

Secretary-General of the Egyptian Labor Party: 'Those Who Bomb Fallujah Cannot Prevent Me from Bombing Los Angeles'

Says MEMRI: "Magdi Ahmad Hussein, the Secretary-General of the Egyptian Labor (Islamist) Party, recently appeared on Al-Jazeera TV, declaring that attacks against U.S. troops and civilians in Iraq are legitimate, and that hostage taking is permitted by Islam." A few excerpts of his statetments:

"The violence is currently directed at the occupation. This is legitimate violence. This is Jihad against occupiers. 99% of the violent operations target the foreign occupation of the Arab and Islamic nation. Therefore, they are not included in the conflict with the [Arab] rulers.

"From the strategic perspective, the vast majority of operations are proper. As for Taba, as I've said, the entire Egyptian nation demands that tourists be banned from entering Egypt. It is inconceivable that Egypt has become a resort for the Israeli army.

"The Israeli army kills in Palestine in the morning and then comes to relax and gamble in Taba. Abominations that are forbidden in Israel, such as gambling, are allowed in Egypt. But the main issue is that Egypt has become a resort for the Zionist army."

'The Prisoners in Iraq - 99% of the Cases are Proper, According to Islamic Law'

"As for the hostages you spoke of, they are not hostages, sir, but prisoners. According to Islamic law, hostages can be redeemed, set free, or killed. When you are weak - you kill. The prisoners in Iraq, sir - 99% of the cases are proper, according to Islamic law. All those who were killed were agents and partners of the occupation. 75% of the hostages were released in exchange for political gains.

"So how come some voices in the Islamic movement and official clerics tell us that killing prisoners is un-Islamic? No, both the Koran and the Prophet's biography permit the killing of prisoners. This exists in our Islamic law and in the laws of all nations...."

If you read Jihad Watch regularly, you would have seen citations to that effect here.

"We are the weak ones. They make demands on us that don't exist in international law. There must be reciprocity. If your city is being bombed… Those who bomb Fallujah cannot prevent me from bombing Los Angeles. Why Fallujah? Why do we always feel inferior to them? What is the meaning of this inferiority complex? If we had missiles we should have bombed Los Angeles or any other city until they stopped bombing Fallujah, Samarra, and Ramadi.

"Sir, why do the government clerics ignore the killing of the prisoners during the time of the Prophet? 600-700 prisoners were killed in the raid on the Qurayza tribe.

"Why do they conceal this? Why do they hide the fact that the Prophet gave the order to assassinate some poets - to assassinate! Not in military operations, but rather by individual assassination.

"Why did he order the assassination of K'ab Ibn Ashraf, the Jew, leader of Khaybar? And then he ordered the assassination of the leader who successive him. As a result, the Jews became fearful and terrified."

Mexico al-Qa'ida 'back door' to US

Those 25 Chechen terrorists who just entered the US from Mexico were not the only such instance. From The Australian, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

INTELLIGENCE reports that 25 Chechen terrorism suspects have illegally entered the US from Mexico have refocused attention on a porous border from which many believe the next major attack on Americans could come.

Despite the $US9 billion ($12.326 billion) budget, and assurances from President George W. Bush that border security is tighter than it has ever been, public figures of all political stripes in the border states say the danger of al-Qa'ida infiltrating the US from Mexico has never been higher.

The Washington Times newspaper reported that a source told US intelligence officers the Chechens, seen carrying backpacks, were shepherded from northern Mexico in July through a remote mountainous region of Arizona that is notoriously difficult to patrol.

It is not known if this intelligence was behind the warning issued by the US Education Department for American schools to be vigilant after Chechen militants took over a school in Beslan, North Ossetia, last month, a tragedy that cost at least 344 lives, half of them children.

The Chechen report has angered those who have been warning for months that US borders are insecure.

"In the name of national security we must do something about our wide-open southern border," said Arizona Republican congressional candidate Stan Barnes. "We are now in a war mentality. The first duty of a country in a war situation is to protect its borders."

Experts say it is not difficult for terrorists to blend into a vast sea of an estimated 13million illegal aliens, most of them impoverished Mexicans seeking work.

To make matters worse, the Department of Homeland Security is so hopelessly overstretched that it has taken to releasing what it calls OTMs (Other Than Mexicans) because it cannot house them until it arranges for deportation hearings.

"If they're deemed not dangerous, they're given a notice to appear in court, and the border patrol agents even have to drive them to a bus station and watch these people get on buses for New Jersey or California," said Cathy Travis, a senior aide to veteran Texas congressman Henry Ortiz.

Fewer than 30 per cent of the OTMs released into the US actually show up for their hearings, meaning an estimated 400,000 illegal aliens are currently in the US after being caught and released.

Mahathir Mohamad's Open Letter to American Muslims: Vote Kerry

Mahathir, the former Prime Minister of Malaysia, thinks Jews secretly run the world, and that the United States should not interfere in the affairs of other countries. But that doesn't stop him from trying to interfere in the affairs of the United States. From IslamiCity, with thanks to L:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In the past four years, during the Presidency of George W. Bush, the Muslims and their countries have suffered oppression and humiliation as never before in the history of Islam. There is an obvious connection between the sufferings of the Muslims and the policies and thinking of Bush.

We cannot expect much change to the policies of the United States of America towards Islam and the Muslims under Democrats as under Republicans. But we have a duty to ensure that Bush will not be able to determine our fate for four more years....

Dear Brothers and Sisters. Vote Bush out of office. It is truly an ibadah that you perform.

DR MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD
Former Prime Minister of Malaysia,
Malaysia

It's a shame that he resorts to this sort of thing instead of confronting the violence and radicalism within the Islamic community--as if all that Bush has done is unprovoked.

Islam: A Totalitarian Ideology?

There is a fascinating exchange at FrontPage today (thanks to EPG for the link) on this question between the great (and often unjustly maligned) ex-Muslim scholar Ibn Warraq, author of Why I Am Not A Muslim, and Thomas Haidon, a convert to Islam and President of the New Zealand Chapter of the Free Muslim Coalition Against Terrorism.

A segment of Ibn Warraq's piece:

Islam is a totalitarian ideology that aims to control the religious, social and political life of mankind in all its aspects -- the life of its followers without qualification, and the life of those who follow the so-called tolerated religions to a degree that prevents their activities from getting in the way of Islam in any manner. And I mean Islam. I do not accept some spurious distinction between Islam and “Islamic fundamentalism” or “Islamic terrorism.” The terrorists who planted bombs in Madrid on March 11, 2004, and those responsible for the death of approximately 3000 people on September 11, 2001 in New York, and the Ayatollahs of Iran, were and are all acting canonically. Their actions reflect the teachings of Islam, whether found in the Koran, in the acts and teachings of the Prophet Mohammed, or in Islamic Law that is based upon them.

In reply to this, I think Haidon, for whom I have great respect, somewhat misunderstands Ibn Warraq's first point. Says Haidon in his piece, which he has given the anti-Warraqian title "Why I Am A Muslim":

While Ibn Waraq's frustrations with the Muslim tradition and contemporary Islam may be understandable, I strongly disagree with Ibn Waraq on his implicitly overbroad generalisation of all Muslims. I take ultimate issue with the statement: "I do not accept some spurious distinction between Islam and "Islamic fundamentalism" or "Islamic terrorism". By implication, no distinction need be made between the terrorists of Al-Queda, Fateh, Hamas and Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's Tawhid Group and great number of Muslims who love their religion and believe in peace and modernity. Such a conclusion is overbroad and destructive. Nonetheless, at a rudimentary level it is a perspective that needs to be understood and appreciated by moderate and peaceful Muslims (who don't exist according to Mr. Warraq's implicit rationale).

But Ibn Warraq didn't say that peaceful Muslims didn't exist. He said that the 9/11 terrorists and other Islamic terrorists acted canonically -- that is, according to core teachings of Islam. That is not to say that all Muslims are terrorists, or even that all Muslims approve of terrorism. Ibn Warraq is only saying that the terrorists are not hijacking Islam, but acting within the bounds of its traditional teachings. This is a point that Muslim reformers like Haidon must ultimately face, if there is to be genuine reform in Islam.

Haidon's reply is refreshing in one respect: he doesn't pretend that the moderate Islam he envisions already exists. He even goes so far as to say:

In brief, the most significant barrier between Islam and reform is the perceived duality of the Qu'ran and Sunnah. Most of the issues raised by Ibn Waraq in his article are compounded by aspects of the Sunnah (particularly Jihad) or are a result of direct contradiction between the Qu'ran and Sunnah (apostacy).

This is a significant admission, because most Muslims would not admit even of the possibility that the Sunnah could contradict the Qur'an. It is not all that must be done, but it is a beginning.

Haidon continues:

If Muslims derived their inspiration exclusively from the Qu'ran, and formulated a new authoritative moderate and liberal tafsir, terrorism and extremists would be minimalised. As Daniel Pipes aptly pointed out in a recent article, Muslims have the opportunity to create a new slate and turn what Islam has become into a religion consistent with humanity, liberalism and modernity (as I believe was intended) or continue the status quo of totalitarianism.

Yes. They have the opportunity, but they have not yet grasped this opportunity. The American government and law enforcement establishment, abetted by the media, tries to ascribe to "bigotry" the idea that this moderate Islam does not yet exist -- but here is a Muslim acknowledging as much.

Read the whole exchange.

Putin launches Russia's first base in Tajikistan

In order to fight Islamic radicalism. From AFP, with thanks to Anthony:

DUSHANBE (AFP) -- President Vladimir Putin opened Russia's first military base in Tajikistan on Sunday in a bid to boost Moscow's defense in former Soviet territories that have become overrun by Islamic insurgency and a growing drug trade.

Made up of 5,000 troops, it will represent the largest military base outside Russia's border, Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said at the flag-raising ceremony, underscoring Moscow's safety concerns about the region. At the ceremony, held just north of the Afghan border, Putin pledged that "the base will boost peace and stability in Central Asia and throughout the former Soviet republics."

Its most important goal is to "neutralize terrorist and extremist attacks, and also help in the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime," he said.

Zarqawi's Tawhid and Jihad declares allegiance to al-Qaida

Memo to the BBC: why are these guys declaring allegiance to a non-existent group? From AP:

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) The most feared militant group in Iraq, the movement of terror mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, declared its allegiance to Osama bin Laden on Sunday, saying it had resolved a dispute with al-Qaida over strategy and vowing unity against ''the enemies of Islam.''

The question of al-Zarqawi's relationship to bin Laden and the al-Qaida leadership has been the subject of considerable speculation. Some experts believed al-Zarqawi who has claimed to be leading a bloody campaign of bombings against U.S. and Iraqi forces and beheadings of American hostages considered himself a rival to bin Laden.

The authenticity of the statement, found Sunday on an Islamic Web site, could not be independently confirmed.

The statement, which began with a Quranic verse encouraging Muslim unity, said the Jordanian al-Zarqawi, leader of the Tawhid and Jihad group, had been in contact with bin Laden eight months ago and ''viewpoints were exchanged'' before the dialogue was interrupted.

''God has soon blessed us with a resumption in communication, and the dignified brothers in al-Qaida understood the strategy of Tawhid and Jihad,'' the statement said.

It announced the ''allegiance of Tawhid and Jihad's leadership and soldiers to the chief of all fighters, Osama bin Laden,'' declaring that it would follow his orders without question.

''You are the best leader for Islam's armies against all infidels and apostates,'' said the statement by the group, whose name means ''Monotheism and Holy War'' in Arabic.

The statement said the announcement was being made at the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, ''at a time where Muslims need more than ever to stick together in the face of the religion's enemies.''

''It's good tidings for our nation ... to tease the infidels and scare the enemies of Islam.''

NC: Suspicious holes found on US Airways jet

A strange story from News14Charlotte.com, with thanks to Kemaste:

The holes were discovered Monday night after the Airbus plane landed at Orlando International Airport. Flight 309, from San Francisco, had stopped in Charlotte before heading to Florida.

FBI agents in Charlotte said the plane was flown back to the Queen City, where maintenance crews got a chance to look at the holes.

The damage was first thought to be bullet holes, but it was later presumed to be maintenance-related. Special Agent Sara Oates, who is based in Florida, said the FBI is still investigating, though.

A spokesperson for Orlando International Airport said a baggage handler discovered the holes while unloading luggage.

Wynn Mabry, Mecklenburg County’s director of homeland security, credits the person who spoke up.

"It's a higher index of suspicion,” he said Friday. “There's all sorts of explanations about how holes can occur in a plane, from picking up debris on takeoff to encountering some problems in the air. But the reality is they ought to ask the question, because we are concerned about a ground threat."

Defense limited for Muslim doctor accused of sending money to Iraq

The lineaments of this case have become all too familiar: a charity that is not what it seems, charges of discrimination and profiling from the defense, etc. From AP, with thanks to Twostellas:

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) -- Two pretrial rulings will limit the defense for a prominent Muslim doctor accused of setting up an illegal charity and violating U.S. sanctions by sending money to Iraq. U.S. District Judge Norman Mordue ruled that attorneys for Dr. Rafil Dhafir cannot argue that he was selectively prosecuted because of his religion.

Government prosecutors also won a ruling that prevents Dhafir's attorneys from delving into the government's motive for originally investigating Dhafir.

Deveraux Cannick, Dhafir's lead attorney, acknowledged the rulings were a setback but said he remained confident Dhafir would be vindicated....

Cannick has argued the government singled out Dhafir for a three-year investigation because he was an Iraq-born Muslim and when it failed to link him to any terrorists or terrorist groups, it charged him with fraud to save face. Furthermore, Cannick said other individuals and corporations that sent money to Iraq have faced only civil penalties, not criminal charges.

Dhafir's trial is scheduled to start Monday. Five other defendants, including his wife, have pleaded guilty.

Dhafir, 56, of Manlius, is accused of conspiring to violate the U.S. embargo against Iraq. He also is charged with defrauding Medicare out of $274,000 through his former Rome oncology practice and evading $400,000 in federal income tax payments by writing off the illegal charity donations.

Cab Driver Sentenced For Smuggling Illegal Immigrants Into United States

According to KIROTV.com (thanks to Twostellas), a Pakistani cab driver named Muhammad Qasum Lala has been given 17 months in prison for sneaking illegal immigrants into the U.S. across the border with British Columbia.

Hmmm. I wonder where the people were from that Muhammad Qasum Lala brought into the United States. And I wonder also where they are now, and what they're doing.

Egyptian Government Editor: 'Hatred is a Western Export that has been Marked Return-to-Sender'

Ibrahim Nafi, editor of the Egyptian government daily Al-Ahram, sounds like Noam Chomsky: everything that happened is the West's fault. But his arguments ring hollow when he suggests it's all about Israel; Israel didn't even exist when the first modern Islamic terrorist organization, the Muslim Brotherhood, was founded in the 1920s. And of course, all his rage about the blackening of the reputation of Islam is not directed toward Osama, Omar Bakri, Abu Bakar Bashir, and the like, but against non-Muslims who report about the words and deeds of such men. (In that he reminds me of Mustafa Akyol, who warned that non-Muslims must not talk about Islam's violent elements, or else Muslims would turn violent!) Note also his vehement opposition to the idea that Islamic textbooks and curricula should be reformed to mitigate the violence they inspire. Here are some of Nafi's statements in his new book, from MEMRI:

"Barely a day goes by without news of the anti-Muslim hate campaign in the West. Opinion pundits have gone so far as to exhort the extermination of Muslims and the dropping of nuclear bombs on Mecca. Newspapers, radios, televisions, textbooks, and even some houses of worship are awash with proclamations equating Islam with terrorism and insinuations that Islam sanctions invasion, murder, and the perpetuation of untold other evils and that it is, therefore, a religion that cannot be tolerated…

"This latter-day crusade, a violent and coercive drive to compel Islamic nations to bow to values and systems that are inimical to their needs and history, constitutes the true terrorism of today. It is terrorism practiced by states and, as such, is qualitatively different to the terrorism practiced by individuals beneath the guise of Islam. The West, and specifically those that are at the helm of their empire of evil, are the real terrorists. It is they who have unleashed Jihad, or holy war, in its most horrific and lethal manifestations…...

"… Meanwhile, many intellectuals in Islamic nations, including non-Islamists, maintain that the West is currently engaged in a war of annihilation against Muslims or, at the very least, in a drive to 'forcefully remove the Arabs from history.' This drive is perceived as the culmination of previous such attempts, beginning with the Crusades and Mongol invasions… However, these intellectuals predict that the campaign that is currently in progress to expel Muslims from history and, hence, from geography, will fail as dismally as its predecessors…

"One of Western colonialism's strategies for extending and consolidating its control over the Islamic world is the deliberate distortion of the image of Islam. It is a two-pronged strategy aimed, on the one hand, at blackening the reputation of Muslims and Islamic countries in the eyes of the Western public in order to garner support for aggressive policies against Islamic peoples and nations and, on the other, seeks to undermine the faith and creed of Muslims, instilling in them a sense of inferiority. The desired effect is to render Muslim populations more docile and acquiescent to the changes forced upon them by the ostensibly more civilized and enlightened West…"

U.S.-Backed Reform is Not Welcome

"... Against this background, increasingly strained relations between Muslims and the West were inevitable, made all the more so when the West overstepped the red line with appeals to change religious education curricula in Saudi Arabia and Egypt on the grounds that religious academies in these countries bred terrorists. Perhaps the most glaring example of this transgression is the so-called Powell initiative.

"… Powell pointed out that the perpetrators of the 11 September 2001 attacks on the U.S., which claimed thousands of American lives, had been nurtured on extremism in the Arab world. This situation, he argued, demanded that the U.S. approach the Arab world with recommendations for reforms to prevent the emergence of extremists…

"The initiative comprised many points covering issues from improving the life of women and children in the Arab world to economic and financial reform… Although I do not take issue with its general principles, the initiative nevertheless includes elements that caused many to question its true intent and the reasons why it was launched at this specific time… ...

'Muslim Peoples have Come to the Conclusion that an Empire of Evil [the West] Threatens Them'

"… Nevertheless, in a deft slight of hand to draw attention away from the real sources of terrorism, the West has worked to obfuscate the boundary between terrorism and national resistance movements. Most notably, it has branded the Palestinian and Lebanese resistance movements struggling to liberate their territory from Israeli occupation as terrorist. Nor is it willing to allow any attempts to suggest the contrary, as is evident in the refusal to hold an international conference to discuss the distinction between terrorism and the internationally sanctioned right to resist occupation and in Western leaders' refusal to discuss the subject in international conferences…

"Diverse internal and external factors have interwoven to give rise to terrorist groups in Islamic countries. Foremost among these is the failure of political, economic, and cultural systems to meet the growing needs and aspirations of their citizens, a crisis that has been aggravated by the economic vice the new global economic order has clamped on these nations' economies. In addition, the models for socio-political organization taken from the West have proved inimical to the customs and spiritual needs of the peoples of these countries, whether based on capitalist or socialist principles. Simultaneously, the full spectrum of Arab nationalist ideologies has also failed to produce an alternative. As for the external factors, perhaps the most incendiary has been Israel's aggressive territorial expansionism and its genocide of the Palestinian people. The emergence of terrorism is also a response to the more general Western drive to re-subjugate independent Islamic nations, whether through the encroachment of rampant capitalism or by more straightforward acts of violence. In the face of the tyranny being unleashed by the West, and by the U.S. in particular, against the Islamic world, it is little wonder that Muslim peoples have come to the conclusion that an empire of evil threatens them and their countries with annihilation, marginalization and, ultimately, expulsion from history.

"… There is no doubt that the U.S. is deeply disturbed by the Islamist challenge to America's perception of the new world order and its hegemony over predominantly Muslim regions…"

'Hatred is a Western Export that has been Marked Return-to-Sender'

"The events of 11 September stirred up latent phobias in the West with regard to Muslims and Islam. The upsurge in anti-Muslim hate campaigns and the violence that has been unleashed against Islamic nations was bound to generate a commensurate counter reaction…

"… Muslims do not hate the U.S. and the West without reason. They hate the West because of its attempts to marginalize, oppress, and exploit them and to give Israel power over them. Hatred is manufactured in the West. It sprouted during the Crusades, matured during the colonialist invasion, and flourished with the drive to Americanize the world. Hatred is the engine driving domination and hegemony and it is the tool used to denigrate Muslims in order to facilitate this quest.

Iraq: Bigley escape plotters executed

Mercy is not a tool in their box. From The Sunday Times:

UP TO 20 people suspected of taking part in an operation to free the British hostage Ken Bigley have been murdered in a purge of the terrorist group headed by Iraq’s most wanted man, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, it was claimed yesterday.

A senior Iraqi resistance source in al-Zarqawi’s stronghold of Falluja said two Syrian guards had helped the 62-year-old Liverpool-born engineer to escape after he was held at a mosque on the edge of the city.

Their car was halted for routine checks by insurgents with links to al-Zarqawi’s Tawhid and Jihad group before they could reach the safety of an area under American control.

According to the resistance source the Iraqis recognised Bigley, who was disguised in Arab dress.

Al-Zarqawi is said to have been incensed that his group had been compromised and ordered the insurgents to behead Bigley.

Instructions were given that the murder should be filmed and presented to resemble as closely as possible the beheadings of Bigley’s American companions, Eugene Armstrong and Jack Hensley, who had been abducted with him in Baghdad three weeks earlier.

The Syrian guards were handed over to senior Tawhid and Jihad members for further interrogation and were killed later, along with as many as 18 suspected collaborators.

Suicide bombing on the rise in Pakistan

"Pakistan's chickens have come home to roost." From Asia Times, with thanks to EPG:

BANGALORE - Last week's tit-for-tat suicide attacks by sectarian extremist groups in Pakistan mark not only a dangerous new high in sectarian violence in the country, but a changing battlefield, one where suicide bombers are more frequently being utilized. With there being no dearth of volunteers for suicide missions - in some attacks more than one suicide bomber has been used - the possibility of a surge in such attacks in the coming months cannot be ruled out....

What is particularly worrying about the recent spate of violence is that Shi'ite and Sunni extremist outfits are now deploying more suicide bombers to settle scores. In the past, they used guns and bombs against their rivals. This changed in July last year, when for the first time Sunni extremists carried out a suicide attack inside a Shi'ite mosque in Quetta, killing at least 50 and injuring more than 60 others. Apparently the attackers first opened fire on the worshippers, simultaneously hurling hand grenades at them. When police opened fire on the assailants, two of them who had explosives strapped to their bodies blew themselves up.

Subsequently, militant groups in Pakistan used suicide bombers to target Musharraf as well as Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz. On December 25 last year, two militants tried to ram their vehicles, each loaded with 20-30 kilograms of explosives, into Musharraf's car as his motorcade drove through Rawalpindi. They missed their target, but the explosion left 15 civilians dead and 45 injured.

Prior to the July suicide attack in Quetta, suicide attacks were used by Pakistani militant groups either in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir - local Kashmiris are said to have carried out only 2% of the suicide attacks, the rest being the work of Pakistanis or Afghans - or against Western targets and Christians in Pakistan, such as the May 2002 suicide blast that killed 11 French engineers in Karachi and the June 2002 suicide blast outside the US consulate in Karachi.

Islam frowns on suicide. Yet Islamic extremists have gotten around this problem by describing suicide attacks as acts of martyrdom. They have been justified as attacks on "infidels" and therefore a part of jihad. A suicide mission in which the bomber is able to take the lives of Westerners and Indians is thus not un-Islamic. Members of a rival sect, too, are regarded as infidels and therefore their killing through a suicide attack is not un-Islamic.

Mosques, processions and rallies have become vulnerable targets of suicide attacks by rival sectarian outfits. Since the aim is to create terror and maximum damage to the rival sectarian group, suicide bombers target mosques on Fridays, when thousands of worshippers attend prayers. And unlike suicide bombers elsewhere who simply detonate their explosive-strapped bodies, Pakistan's sectarian suicide bombers first hurl grenades and shoot into the crowd to inflict maximum damage, then top off their operation by detonating themselves. They are also known to position themselves near pillars so that the explosion will bring down the roof causing more casualties.

Pakistan's police have their hands full trying to protect the many thousands of mosques and processions from suicide attacks. They have raided several terrorist hideouts for potential bombers. But the terrorist network is far too complex and widespread to fight. They are now seeking the help of the public to eliminate suicide bombers. Early this month, police in Pakistan's Sindh province issued guidelines on how to spot a suicide bomber. The guidelines point to anyone wearing thick clothes (to conceal the explosives), mumbling to himself (praying) or being freshly shaved and perfumed (in preparation for burial). Most suicide bombers are young - between 17 and 30 years of age.

So far all suicide bombers have been male, but the possibility of women joining their ranks seems only a matter of time. In an article titled "Jihad and Roses" in the Pakistani newsmagazine Newsline, the author cites a report submitted to the Interior Ministry that speaks of an Uzbek woman named Aziza who is said to be training female suicide bombers in northern Pakistan. Aziza is the widow of Obaidullah, an activist belonging to the Islamic movement of Uzbekistan who was apparently killed in the army operations in South Waziristan this year. Ansari also draws attention to two Pakistani sisters, Arifa, 20, and Saba, 18, who left home in July after telling their family members that they were embarking on a suicide mission and have been missing since. The two girls are nieces of Gul Hassan, the brain behind the suicide attacks in Karachi in May. Hassan, an activist of the Sunni Lashkar-i-Jhangvi who is now in custody, apparently revealed that he had "prepared" at least two girls for suicide missions and that they were waiting for orders regarding who their targets would be.

What complicates tracing female suicide bombers such as Arifa and Saba, who come from deeply religious and conservative backgrounds, is that there are no photographs of them. Orthodox Muslims are against human images. Consequently, police have no photographs to help them track potential female suicide bombers. Besides, many women in Pakistan wear burqas, which conceal their faces.

It was an organization - the Jaish-e-Mohammed - that was launched by the Pakistani government in early 2000 that introduced suicide missions to Pakistani cadres. Set up to target India, the Jaish-e-Mohammed is among the best-funded terrorist groups active in Jammu and Kashmir today. Its first successful suicide operation was against India and took place on December 25, 2000, when 24-year-old Bilal, a Muslim from Birmingham who joined the jihad in the mid-1990s, rammed his explosives-laden car into the Indian army's headquarters in Srinagar, killing nine people.

The Jaish-e-Mohammed's expertise in suicide terrorism has spread to other terrorist groups active in Pakistan. The human bombs originally designed and nurtured to rip India apart are now exploding inside Pakistan. Pakistan's chickens have come home to roost.

Ossetians Vow Revenge for Beslan

This is just what the Beslan jihadists wanted: to trigger war in the Caucasus. From The Moscow News, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

Last week, Tanik Kuizev buried a niece who was among hundreds of those who died after a North Ossetian school was seized by raiders, among whom were members of a rival Ingush ethnic group. After Wednesday, he vows, he will bury an Ingush to be killed in retribution, The Associated Press reports.

Fears are high that Ossetians will seek bloody revenge for the more than 330 people - more than half of them children - who died in the maelstrom of gunfire and explosions at the school on Sept. 3.

Russians traditionally observe 40 days of mourning after a death. Wednesday is the 40th day, and Ossetians say the end of the mourning period could herald an outbreak of inter-ethnic violence in days to come.

"There will be violence. It won't be noisy. It will be quiet - one person at a time," Kuizev said as he wandered through the burned-out husk of the school, stepping over flowers and stuffed animals left in memory of the victims.

Although Kuizev's 12-year-daughter was among the hostages, she survived. But that hasn't softened his anger.

"They say, 'forgive, forgive.' How do you forgive something like this? How do you explain this? Forgive? No way," Kuizev said.

"It's not a secret that we are waiting" for the end of the 40-day period, said 67-year-old Sergei Tandaleyev of the village of Sunja.

"We will demand that (the Ingush) leave. All of them," he said. If they don't, "there will be war."

Abdurrahman Alamoudi gets 23 years in jail

Alamoudi, friend of presidents; Alamoudi, America's leading moderate Muslim; Alamoudi, primary exponent of the American Muslim community, confidant of those who cherished his friendship for its power to bring Muslim votes their way. From AP, with thanks to Teri:

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - A prominent Muslim activist who admitted participating in a Libyan plot to assassinate Saudi Arabia’s crown prince was sentenced Friday to the maximum 23 years in prison for illegal business dealings with Libya.

Abdurahman Alamoudi, 52, pleaded guilty in July to accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars from high-ranking Libyan officials while serving as a go-between for them and Saudi dissidents.

While Alamoudi was not charged in connection with the alleged scheme to kill Crown Prince Abdullah, prosecutors cited the plot as reason for him to receive the maximum sentence.

“This conduct is so base, so reprehensible that this defendant deserves every day of prison that this court will impose upon him,” government attorney Steven Ward said.

Defense lawyer Stanley Cohen asked for leniency and Alamoudi said he was sorry.

“Your honor, I regret my involvement in everything,” Alamoudi said before U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton imposed the sentence.

That's funny: so do I. I regret that he ever had the ear of Clinton or Bush. I regret that he was ever a player in Washington.

Abu Hamza not coming to US

Instead, he faces prosecution in Britain for his jihadist activists. Of course, I don't know what he has done in secret, but search for him here at Jihad Watch and you will see that what he has done in public is hair-raising enough. From The Telegraph, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

Abu Hamza, the Muslim cleric wanted by the Americans for alleged terrorist offences, is to face a prosecution in the British courts that will sideline the United States extradition.

It is understood that the case against Hamza will be brought substantially under criminal, rather than terrorist legislation.

The most serious allegation is believed to involve alleged incitement to racial hatred. There may, however, also be a charge under one of the "lesser" provisions of the Terrorism Act 2000, which has a range of charges according to sources.

Five churches bombed in Baghdad

As Ramadan begins, some Muslims in Iraq see causing more mayhem to be a religious act -- and so life continues to be perilous for the Christians of Iraq. From AFP, with thanks to Kevin:

IRAQ'S tiny Christian community was targeted in a string of blasts at churches around Baghdad today, while a medic was killed when a mortar round exploded outside a hospital.

As chaos returned to the streets, US and Iraqi troops held firm to positions around the rebel hub of Fallujah, west of the capital, in the hunt for Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi - the country's most wanted man who is blamed for some of the deadliest attacks here since last year's invasion.

In an apparently coordinated attack on the second day of the holy month of Ramadan, the church of Saint Joseph was hit at about 4am local time (11am AEST) followed by similar explosions over the next two hours outside four others.

One of the buildings, the Roman Catholic St George's church in the central Baghdad district of Karrada, was engulfed in flames, leaving the wood-built sanctuary completely charred.

"My family and I fled from the fire," said the church's priest Nabil Jamil Sulaiman, wandering around the mangled debris.

"Thanks God, there were no wounded or dead."

On the wall inside the charred remains of the church could be made out some words from the Bible talking of the broken body of Jesus Christ.

Monsignor Emmanuel Delly, the patriarch of the Chaldean Church, expressed the fears of his beleaguered community, who were the victims of a similar attack at the start of August that left 10 people dead and 50 injured.

"If the government is powerless, what can we do?" Monsignor Delly said.

"We call on them (attackers) not to touch the holy sites."...

Iraq's Christian community - which makes up just three per cent of the majority Muslim population - has been heavily targeted in the unrest that has swept Iraq following last year's US-led invasion and many have fled....

US troops arrested yesterday a Sunni Muslim cleric accused of preaching holy war (jihad), the military said.

FBI raids Connecticut mosque leader's home in terror probe

From AP, with thanks to Kemaste:

WOLCOTT, Conn. -- FBI agents raided the home of a Waterbury Islamic leader as part of an investigation into a Sudanese charity that federal officials recently accused of supporting Osama bin Laden and other terrorists.

Majeed Sharif, president of United Muslim Mosque, would not discuss what investigators took from his Wolcott home on Wednesday. But he told The Associated Press that he did volunteer work for the Islamic African Relief Agency, a charity the Bush administration said Wednesday was financing terrorism.

Sharif, 57 referred all other questions to his attorney, who said Sharif has done nothing wrong.

"He is an absolutely amazing humanitarian and person," attorney Rosa C. Rebimbas said Thursday. She would not discuss the search.

The FBI confirmed it executed a search warrant in Wolcott but would not identify the address. Federal agents also searched the Islamic African Relief Agency's office in Missouri on Wednesday.

Bryan Sierra, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice, said the Connecticut and Missouri searches were part of an ongoing investigation.

"There is no danger or immediate threat to the local community," Sierra said.

The Treasury Department said the charity, headquartered in Khartoum, Sudan, and five of its officials "provided direct financial support" for bin Laden. It also alleged that the group "engaged in a joint program with an institute controlled by (bin Laden) that was involved in providing assistance to Taliban fighters."

Sharif, who is active in local charities and in the Connecticut Islamic community, is not named by the Treasury Department. No charges have been filed and documents related to the search are sealed.

Spencer guest hosting the Laurie Roth Show tonight

You can listen at the Laurie Roth Show website, as well as on many stations around the country. I'll be hosting the show from 7PM to 9PM Pacific Time; that is, 10PM to Midnight EST.

I hope to hear from you. The call in number is 1-800-837-9680.

Akyol/Spencer, Round 4

Here is Mustafa Akyol's latest reply to my piece here, and my reply to his reply:

A Reply To Robert Spencer – And A Search For Creative Tension

After my article on Frontpage, titled Still Standing For Islam – And Against Terrorism, Robert Spencer, the editor of the Jihad Watch website posted a rebuttal. He argued that Islam is indeed the legitimate source of terrorists such as al-Qaeda, and my arguments can't persuade those militants to stop their violence.
I wonder how the arguments of Mr. Spencer can help the same cause, but that is trivial for now. Let me explain what I really say and what I really want to do.

In a nutshell, what I am trying to do is to show that the current terrorism under the name of Islam is not legitimate from an Islamic point of view. By doing so, I want to refute two diametrically opposing camps: Islamist terrorists and some of the harsh critics of Islam. Interestingly, both camps agree that Islam is a cult of violence, whereas for me, and for hundreds of millions of Muslims around the globe, Islam is a path to God. We just wish to cleanse that path from the distortions of the politically oriented radicals and intolerant bigots.

When I say terrorism (or authoritarianism) is not legitimate from an Islamic point of view, I mean the Islamic ideal that I believe in, and which is based on the Koran, besides everything else. Of course, there are Muslims who think that evils such as attacks against American or Israeli civilians, kidnappings, bombings, repressive regimes or anti-Semitism are legitimate. They are obviously out there, as we all know. I am trying to de-legitimize their doctrine. I am not trying to 'cover up' militant Islamists, as I have been accused for on the Jihad Watch.

Mr. Spencer also quoted the "Muslim Q&A" website, which promotes compulsion in religion. Well, I am horrified by such views, which I believe to be totally contradictory to the spirit of the Koran and I am ready to stand against them.

Yet Mr. Spencer insists that such efforts won't persuade the militants to have a farewell to arms or the fanatics to accept freedom of worship. He is right. I don't expect al-Qaeda militants to weep and repent when they read what I, or what many other moderate Muslims — most of them much more qualified then myself — write. But we can, Lord willing, persuade the Muslim masses that are confused about what to believe; confused whether al-Qaeda and its ilk are brave heroes of Islam or a bunch of bigoted zealots.

Moreover, while we moderates can't probably convert militants into peaceniks, it is very probable that portraying Islam as a cult of violence will help converting non-violent Muslims into militants. The majority of the world's Muslims, who believe that their religion demands peace, will be horrified to see what they will perceive as anti-Islamic propaganda and will be prone anti-Western sentiments. Please let's be careful about this.

Mr. Spencer also criticizes me for defining an Islamic case of just war. He writes,

Likewise, Akyol's contention that "the war verses describe only an abnormal state of affairs — in which the Muslim community faced an enemy that sought its annihilation — and verses that promote peace and tolerance describe the Islamic ideal" will do nothing to pacify radical Muslims, since they have argued again and again that today the Muslim community faces an enemy that seeks its annihilation.
Well, defining a concept of just war cannot prevent fanatics to distort the current reality and raise a false justification. When the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, for example, the justification was that they undertook military intervention in response to an official request for help by the Afghanistan government, and also fulfilling treaty obligations under the terms of the Soviet-Afghan Friendship Treaty. On paper, that could sound legitimate. In reality, it was an obvious distortion of facts. The problem was not the theory on paper, rather the Orwellian method of misinterpreting real events.

What al-Qaeda and its ilk do is to distort both the Islamic doctrine of war (on paper), and the current events. In a forthcoming article of mine, I explain why it is a big distortion to present the U.S. as the enemy of Islam while it saved Muslims from slaughter or starvation in many recent conflicts, such as Bosnia, Kosovo, Somalia and Afghanistan (during the Soviet Invasion.)

In other words, it is not my fault if militants distort the doctrine of just war, but I am determined to stand against that, too.
Mr. Spencer also questions my opposition to the doctrine of abrogation (naskh), which holds that some Koranic verses are abrogated by the later ones. He says that doctrine is rooted in the Koran. That is a common view, but I and other critics of abrogation don't think so. As also explained in the article that I linked to in my recent Frontpage piece, that abrogation in question should be better understood as the abrogation of previous revelations by the Koran.

Mr. Spencer also criticized me for quoting hadiths and sira, while I "rejected" them at the same time. But I did not say I reject these secondary sources of Islam; I said I "question" them. This means I believe that we can refer to these sources to learn about the works of Prophet Muhammad, but since they are very late collections, they might well include untrue stories and we can be critical and selective on them. And this is not a completely unorthodox view. As I pointed out in my recent Frontpage article, even the very conservative Al-Azhar is reconsidering to purify the sources of hadith from “the strange, the false and from forgery.”

Mr. Spencer also argued that I "dismissed the Armenian genocide... in order to avoid ten years in prison as mandated by law in [my] native Turkey." I don't know how Mr. Spencer can figure out my motives. In fact, I don't care about any penal law while building my arguments. If I had believed that the tragedy in 1915 was "Armenian Genocide", I would have said that. (Well, some people say that in Turkey, such as my university professor Halil Berktay, and they are obviously not in jail.) Mr. Spencer even used the horrific term "Holocaust denial" to describe my position on the Armenian issue. I am confident that in this "Holocaust denial," my references are not notorious pro-Nazis like Ernst Zündel or Arthur Butz, but esteemed historians such Bernard Lewis and Daniel Pipes.

However, despite all these, I should say that I appreciate Mr. Spencer's commentary on my writing. He has pointed out some points that I should have stressed more or clarified. Thus, I believe that all these rebuttals and counter-rebuttals I have with Mr. Spencer (and Mr. Bostom) and all the comments about me at Frontpage and Jihad Watch stirs a "creative tension", which is indeed fruitful, as long as it does not turn into to a blind exchange of accusations and counter-accusations.

I believe that Mr. Spencer's Jihad Watch will never decline to such a one-sided, bigoted point of view. After all, if you watch something, you have to look through a fair lens in order to see it right.
As far as it goes that way, I am glad to be "watched" — since my "jihad" (struggle) is focused on saving Islam from militancy and bigotry.

* Mustafa Akyol is a political scientist, columnist and writer from Turkey. He is also a director at the Intercultural Dialogue Platform, based in Istanbul. He can be reached at akyolmst@superonline.com

And my response:

Jihadists 4, Akyol 0

By Robert Spencer

Mustafa Akyol, in his fourth essay and latest reply to me, says that I “argued that Islam is indeed the legitimate source of terrorists such as al-Qaeda, and [his] arguments can’t persuade those militants to stop their violence.” Akyol adds: “I wonder how the arguments of Mr. Spencer can help the same cause, but that is trivial for now.”

Actually, it is not trivial at all. It is the core of Akyol’s objections to my arguments, and central to our differing perspectives. Akyol says: “In a nutshell, what I am trying to do is to show that the current terrorism under the name of Islam is not legitimate from an Islamic point of view.” I applaud any such efforts whenever they are genuine and effective; my objections to Mr. Akyol have nothing to do with the fact that he is trying to delegitimize the radicals. But for such attempts, whether by Mr. Akyol or anyone else, to be worthwhile, they have actually to refute the arguments from the Qur’an and Islamic tradition used by Islamic radicals. If they don’t do this, then they don’t show that terrorism is illegitimate from an Islamic perspective, and fail at Mr. Akyol’s stated purpose.

How, then, can my arguments help Akyol’s cause? By compelling him to make them stronger. If I can see holes in them from the standpoint of Islamic theology and tradition, Islamic radicals can see them too, and many more. If Islamic moderates wish to succeed, they simply must not leave these holes open.

Akyol adds: “I want to refute two diametrically opposing camps: Islamist terrorists and some of the harsh critics of Islam. Interestingly, both camps agree that Islam is a cult of violence, whereas for me, and for hundreds of millions of Muslims around the globe, Islam is a path to God. We just wish to cleanse that path from the distortions of the politically oriented radicals and intolerant bigots.” And later in his piece he says, “The majority of the world’s Muslims, who believe that their religion demands peace, will be horrified to see what they will perceive as anti-Islamic propaganda and will be prone [to] anti-Western sentiments. Please let’s be careful about this.”

So evidently Western non-Muslims must not point out the elements of Islam that give rise to violence, lest non-committed Muslims will perceive us as anti-Muslim and become violent themselves. This is, of course, self-contradictory (for if they are against the violence in Islam, they should not oppose someone who opposes it with them) and palpably absurd (for if they are really non-violent, how can nothing more than a perceived insult make them violent?).

Akyol acknowledges that his efforts “won’t persuade the militants to have a farewell to arms or the fanatics to accept freedom of worship,” but he says he is going after the silent majority of Muslims who are confused. Once again, I applaud his efforts — but he surely knows that Osama and other radicals use carefully constructed arguments from the Qur’an and Islamic tradition to buttress their views. The “Muslim masses” can read those as well as I can; if Akyol’s counter-arguments can be easily refuted by the radicals, how will they convince the masses?

Later, Akyol notes that I criticized him for quoting hadiths and sira right after rejecting them. He says: “I did not say I reject these secondary sources of Islam; I said I ‘question’ them. This means I believe that we can refer to these sources to learn about the works of Prophet Muhammad, but since they are very late collections, they might well include untrue stories and we can be critical and selective on them. And this is not a completely unorthodox view. As I pointed out in my recent Frontpage article, even the very conservative Al-Azhar is reconsidering to purify the sources of hadith from ‘the strange, the false and from forgery.’” That’s fine, but what Al-Azhar is doing is nothing new. The sifting of true ahadith from false ones has gone on ever since there have been ahadith. There are many ahadith among the Sahih Sittah, the collections generally accepted as most reliable by Muslims, that contain exhortations to jihad warfare against Jews, Christians, and others. Does Mr. Akyol think that these are all weak ahadith? If so, how will he convince Muslims to reject material from the revered collections of Bukhari, Muslim, and other respected sources? This is not a rhetorical question; I hope he has an answer, and am looking forward to seeing it.

As for the Armenian genocide, I believe that Bernard Lewis was justly prosecuted in France for his denial (although I abhor such speech laws), and I do not think he is an unimpeachable source, given his marked and uncritical affection for Ataturkism. I refer objective readers to The History of the Armenian Genocide by Vahakn N. Dadrian.

In sum, I appreciate Mr. Akyol’s efforts to oppose radical Muslims. But if he really hopes to delegitimize violence in Islam, he has to construct an Islamic argument strong enough to refute radicals — something he says he has no hope of doing. If he cannot do this, how can he expect Muslim moderates to follow him? I devoutly hope for fundamental and global reform in Islam, but it can only come from a definitive repudiation of everything Islamic that gives rise to terrorism. Mr. Akyol is not there yet; I do hope he arrives someday.

Citizens Group Asks Islamic Society of Boston To Take Necessary Actions to Moderate Mosque Teachings

A press release from Citizens for Peace and Tolerance, the courageous group fighting the Islamic radicalism that seems to be tied up with the new mosque in Boston:

The recent announcement by the Islamic Society of Boston (ISB), which acknowledges and confirms some of the significant issues raised by the Citizens for Peace and Tolerance(CPT), is a welcomed first step by the new ISB board. We are encouraged that the ISB board has responded in a more positive manner this time to the issues we raised.

However, it falls significantly short of what is needed to allay our serious concerns. We believe that the ISB must take decisive actions to honestly demonstrate that it has renounced the radical ideology of its founders and leaders. These should include the following:

1. Condemn Fitaihi's anti-Semitic writings and dismiss him from the ISB board
2. Provide full disclosure of sources of funding for Mosque and related conditions associated with funding. Given the tangled web of financing and multiple layers in which many radical organizations and their associates and founders operate; it is very difficult to determine who really controls certain Muslim institutions.
3. Develop the Mosque Library to be a model for teaching and preaching moderate, tolerant Islam. Radical, hateful literature does not belong in a house of worship.
4. Reject teaching of wife beating.
5. Disavow the Muslim Brotherhood and Wahhabism ideology.
6. Condemn the teaching and ideology of Alamoudi, Qaradawi
7. Condemn all suicide bombing as being un-Islamic. Suicide bombing ,any where, against anyone, for any reason is un-Islamic
8. Make this mosque a model of moderate and tolerant Islam for the nation and the world.
9. Invite moderate Islamic scholars, as well as Christian and Jews to preach and teach about tolerance. The mosque should be a model of transparency and openness by making its texts, sermons, teaching in both English and Arabic available to the public

By taking the above noted actions, CTP believes that this could be an opportunity for moderate Muslims in the Boston community to assert their voice and influence the ISB. Dr. Mansour, an Islamic scholar, noted “ I hope and pray that the ISB new leadership is sincere in their pronouncements. We know that many radical Islamist practice “Taqieah” which sanctions saying what you have to say, but which you don’t believe, to protect yourself and what you really believe. The ISB has an opportunity to demonstrate its sincerity by properly responding to our concerns in their public statements both locally and globally in both English and Arabic.”

For More Information Contact:
Dennis Hale, Steve Cohen
Phone: 617-686-9913
Citizens for Peace and Tolerance
www.HateFreeAmerica.com

New York: Terrorism cops bust man at Battery Tunnel

From the New York Daily News, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

Anti-terror officials were called in last night after cops stopped a man carrying a fake passport and $40,000 in cash and money orders at the Manhattan-bound entrance to the Battery Tunnel, sources said.

The 25-year-old man, who lives in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, was pulled over in his 1988 Ford truck for not wearing a seat belt around 8 p.m., the sources said.

The man, who said he was originally from Michigan, refused to answer questions. "I ain't telling you nothing," he said, according to the sources.

Hamas designates the US "an enemy"

From ICT.org, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm, who asks, "Perhaps now USA can stop giving funds to the UN's UNRWA?"

Hamas published a statement condeming the US and designating it as an enemy country after the US vetoed a resolution in the UN security council that would have unilaterally condemned Israeli military action against the group in the Gaza Strip.

The raids followed a series of rocket attacks on the southern town of Sderot, during which two Israeli toddlers were killed.

The United States vetoed a resolution condemning the Israeli military action against Hamas cells in the Gaza strip. U.S. Ambassador John Danforth cast the U.S. veto after British and German efforts to find compromise language failed....

In a press release in Arabic on its official web, Hamas leaders said:
"Hamas is condemning the U.S vote and stating that Hamas considers the U.S as an enemy and as an accomplice to the Israeli enemy aggression against the Palestinians. Hamas regards the U.S position as a criminal act that puts her in a confrontation with "weak" nations. The U.S will face responsibility for its position as an accomplice with Israel to the animosity.)

Source:
http://www.palestine-info.info/arabic/hamas/statements/2004/6_10_04_1.htm" href="http://www.palestine-info.info/arabic/hamas/statements/2004/6_10_04_1.htm"

'Dangers for Canada are real'

"Absurd" not to fear attacks, says the PM's security advisor. From the National Post, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

OTTAWA - The Prime Minister's national security advisor told a major security and intelligence conference yesterday it would be "absurd" to believe terrorists will not attack Canada.

"Osama bin Laden has publicly identified Canada as a country he believes his followers should attack," Robert Wright said. "He ranked Canada as fifth out of seven countries and every other country on that list has already been attacked.

"The Bali and Madrid bombings are examples," he said.

"So this is not someone else's problem. And experience shows that it's absurd to think that these attacks could not happen here. The Air-India and Ressam cases demonstrate that the dangers within Canada are real."

Ahmed Ressam was the al-Qaeda-trained Montreal resident who built a massive bomb in Vancouver and tried to smuggle it into the United States to blow up Los Angeles International Airport. He was caught by a U.S. Customs officer.

Spencer: Getting Real about Islam and Domestic Violence

Jihad Watch director Robert Spencer takes issue with yet another piece by the New York Times' Nicholas Kristof this morning at FrontPage:

“My father said, ‘O.K., beat her.’ I’d never been beaten like that in all my life. My uncle and cousins were all beating me. ... They broke my head, and I was bleeding.”

These are the words of Ellaha, a 19-year-old Afghan girl whom the intrepid New York Times pundit Nicholas Kristof encountered in a detention center for women in Kabul. Her crime was trying to flee Afghanistan rather than accept an arranged marriage to her cousin.

In Kristof’s narrow and inextricably partisan little world, this, like everything else, is George W. Bush’s fault: “The entire jail” where Ellaha is incarcerated, he notes, “is a kaleidoscope of woe. It’s been two years since President Bush declared that in Afghanistan, ‘Today, women are free.’ But that’s news to the inmates.”

Women do have a decidedly better situation in the new Afghanistan than they did under the radical Muslim Taliban regime: many have resumed their educations, and even some employment opportunities have opened up for them. But evidently Kristof and the Times expected Bush to wave his wand and remake Kabul into Manhattan, with burqas magically transformed into mini skirts and tongue piercings.

But it’s likely that this latest round of Bush-bashing from Kristof, as ludicrous as it is, stems as much from an inability to look at the real source of Ellaha’s woes than from blind hatred for the incumbent. In his entire meditation on the beating and mistreatment of women in Afghanistan, the egregious Kristof of course never once mentions the Qur’an, with which Ellaha’s father, uncle, and cousins are doubtless deeply familiar. It stipulates: “Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath made the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them” (Sura 4:34). If, therefore, Ellaha’s male kin had reason to “fear rebellion” from her, they considered themselves completely within their rights to “scourge” her.

This verse is not are not a thing of the past. In 2000 a retired Turkish Muslim cleric, Kemal Guran, sparked a controversy in that secularized Muslim nation with a passage in his booklet, The Muslim’s Handbook. According to the BBC, “the booklet, published by the Pious Foundation, which is part of the government’s Religious Affairs Directorate, says men can beat their wives as long as they do not strike the face and only beat them moderately.” Even a relatively moderate Muslim, Dr. Jamal Badawi, acknowledges that husbands have the right to beat their wives. Quoting Sura 4:34, Dr. Badawi doesn’t deny the prerogative, but he’s clearly embarrassed by it, and tries to explain it away: “Such a measure is more accurately described as a gentle tap on the body, but NEVER ON THE FACE, making it more of a symbolic measure then a punitive one.” (Emphasis in the original.)

The problem with this “moderate” view, of course, is that the dividing line between “symbolic” and “punitive” can be exceedingly fine, and hard to find in the heat of the moment. Thus although you’d never learn it from Kristof, the divine sanction that the Qur’an and Islamic tradition give to violence against women is the core reason why domestic violence is epidemic in some parts of the Islamic world. The Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences has determined that over nine out of ten Pakistani wives have been struck, beaten, or abused sexually — for offenses on the order of cooking an unsatisfactory meal. Others were punished for failing to give birth to a male child.

Why didn’t Kristof say anything about this? Because it’s a lot easier to snipe at George Bush than to address deep societal dysfunction — but until these problems are faced and the Qur’anic sanctioning of woman-beating definitively rejected by significant elements of the Islamic community, Kristof will have material abundant enough to enable him to tweak Bush over jailed Afghan women for years to come. The plight of women like Ellaha won’t improve in a Kerry administration — even as, at least according to John Edwards, the blind will see, the deaf hear, and the lame walk. The superficiality of the liberal intelligentsia’s analysis, as represented by Kristof’s column, illustrates once again the bankruptcy of the entire multiculturalist enterprise — and underscores the West’s imperative to marshal its own spiritual resources, for the sake of women like Ellaha.

Boston: Islamic group repudiates trustee's anti-Semitic quotes

A promising development, but there are many other questions about this mosque. From the Boston Globe, with thanks to Twostellas:

The Islamic Society of Boston, under pressure from groups including the Anti-Defamation League, publicly distanced itself yesterday from a trustee and treasurer accused of writing "virulently anti-Semitic" newspaper articles.

In a letter to Mayor Thomas M. Menino, the group said it has appointed a board of directors to propose a new governance structure and apologized for failing to condemn the offensive remarks sooner.

The trustee, Dr. Walid Fitaihi, was the author of an article in an Arabic-language newspaper that called Jews "murderers of prophets." He also wrote that Jews would be punished for their "oppression, murder, and rape of the worshipers of Allah," according to English translations. Fitaihi remains on the board of trustees, which oversees the group's real estate assets.

The society is building a $22 million mosque and cultural center in Roxbury, on land sold by the Boston Redevelopment Authority for $175,000.

"We unequivocally condemn all hateful, insensitive, and divisive statements," the Islamic Society said in its letter. "Furthermore, we have expressed these sentiments to Dr. Fitaihi in writing."

Of course, another problem is that much of what Fitaihi said comes from the Qur'an: see Suras 2:62-65, 5:59-60, 7:166, 9:30, 98:6, etc. Will the Islamic Society repudiate that anti-Semitism?

Leaked Iraqi intelligence documents connect Saddam to Zarqawi and bin Laden

Walid Phares has the goods. From World Magazine, with thanks to JWW:

Walid Phares thumbed a sheaf of documents, all in Arabic and nearly all bearing the spherical slogan of Iraq's intelligence service, or Mukhabarat. The Middle East scholar, a Lebanese-American Christian who speaks four languages and is a recognized expert on Islamic militants and terrorism, has interrupted a sick day (prior engagement with a root canal) in order to evaluate 42 just-leaked intelligence documents confiscated by U.S. forces in Iraq.

Moistening his finger and translating out loud, Mr. Phares read from the pages in his third-floor office in downtown Washington, where he is taking a year off from teaching at Florida Atlantic University to serve as senior fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. He didn't notice as his narrating voice rose with incredulity. Finishing, he rapped the papers with his fingers and concluded: "This is a watershed. This is big."

Mr. Phares is one of at least four eminent Middle East experts to agree that the documents—published for the first time last week—demonstrate that Saddam Hussein collaborated with and supported Islamic terrorist groups, including the current terror nemesis in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

The papers, obtained by Cybercast News Service (CNS) and released Oct. 4, "establish irreversible evidence that there were strategic relations between the Baathist regime and Islamist groups that became al-Qaeda," Mr. Phares said after reviewing them at WORLD's request on Oct. 6. In addition, the documents link al-Zarqawi-associated groups throughout the Middle East, including al-Qaeda, on Saddam's payroll and acting under his direct authority.

Evidence and the word of experts, however, is having little effect on the John Kerry campaign, which has staked its bid for the White House on what it calls a flawed rationale for war in Iraq. Only hours after the CNS website absorbed so many hits over the revelations that its server crashed, vice-presidential candidate John Edwards blasted the president's war strategy in a televised debate with Vice President Dick Cheney. "There is no connection between Saddam Hussein and the attacks of September 11th—period," Mr. Edwards said. "In fact, any connection with al-Qaeda is tenuous at best."

Sen. John Kerry, too, insists on the stump that the president's "two main rationales—weapons of mass destruction and the al-Qaeda/Sept. 11 connection—have been proved false."

But the documents suggest otherwise. They include an 11-page memo, dated Jan. 25, 1993, listing "parties related to our system . . . expert in executing the required missions." The memo cites Palestinian, Sudanese, and Asian terror groups, and shows a developing relationship with groups affiliated with al-Qaeda, including Mr. al-Zarqawi, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar—figures who are now on the U.S. most-wanted list for ongoing assaults in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Jan. 25, 1993, memo also describes an intelligence service meeting with a splinter group led by Mohammed Omar Abdel-Rahman. Mr. Abdel-Rahman is a son of the blind Egyptian, Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, accused of inspiring the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center and arrested in 1994 for targeting New York landmarks. Pakistani officials caught the younger Abdel-Rahman last year, and say he helped lead authorities to Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, one of the 9/11 attack planners.

A separate memo, dated March 18, 1993, asks intelligence officers to provide "details of Arab martyrs who got trained" in conjunction with post–Gulf War "committees of martyrs act." In reply another office supplied 92 names with nationalities, all "trained inside the ‘martyr act camp' that belonged to our directorate." In all, 40 are linked to Palestinian groups, 21 are Sudanese, and others range from Eritrea, Tunisia, Morocco, Lebanon, and Egypt. Most of the trainees completed a government-sponsored course on Nov. 24, 1990, and were sent on missions throughout the Arabian Peninsula.

Accompanying the memos are separate notations signed by Saddam Hussein's secretary, suggesting the president himself had reviewed and endorsed each action.

"Saddam was personally overseeing the details" of training terrorists and assigning their missions, Mr. Phares said. "From 1993 on, Saddam Hussein connected with Sunni fundamentalists in the Arab world. He was in touch with the founding members of al-Qaeda."

Congressional report: Pakistan may leak nukes to terrorists

From IANS, with thanks to Fanabba:

WASHINGTON: Pakistan and Russia are two nations that could be potential sources of leaking nuclear weapons technology or fissile materials to terrorists, according to a new report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) on nuclear terrorism.

"The fear regarding Pakistan is that some members of the armed forces might covertly give a weapon to terrorists or that, if President Musharraf were overthrown, an Islamic fundamentalist government or a state of chaos in Pakistan might enable terrorists to obtain a weapon," the report said.

"Terrorists or rogue states might acquire a nuclear weapon in several ways. The nations of greatest concern as potential sources of weapons or fissile materials are widely thought to be Russia and Pakistan," it added.

Pakistan, a close ally of the US in the war against terrorism, has often been described by South Asia experts as a "potential source" of radicalism, proliferation, terrorism and even nuclear war.

FBI raids Missouri-based charity; treasury officials allege direct link to terrorists

From the Kansas City Star, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

The U.S. Treasury Department today froze the assets of a Columbia-based Muslim charity, alleging that it and others had directly supported terrorists, including Osama bin Laden.

About the same time, about two dozen agents and officers of the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force raided the offices of the Islamic American Relief Agency-USA in Columbia and began hauling away evidence.

The Muslim charity has been the focus of federal interest since at least 1999 and currently is the subject of a Senate Finance Committee probe, which is seeking possible links between charities and terrorist financing networks....

“The international offices of IARA were providing direct financial support to Osama bin Laden, al Qaida, Hamas and other terrorist groups,” said Treasury Secretary John W. Snow in a written statement. “Today's action shuts down financial channels that were being used to propagate terrorist activity.”

Nashville terrorism case has conflicting picture

Ahmed Hassan Al-Uqaily says he was working a "reverse sting." I guess that would be an attempt to snare police officers in unethical dealings. But if he said and did what he is reported to have said and done, they were just doing their duty to arrest him. From the Nashville City Paper:

A conflicting picture emerged Wednesday in the case of Ahmed Hassan Al-Uqaily, a 33-year-old Iraqi native living in Nashville who is said to be heavily involved with the peace movement but who willingly withdrew $1,000 last week to purchase weapons illegally.

Al-Uqaily allegedly spoke of “going jihad” to a friend Aug. 4 and that he was going to “blow something up.” On Oct. 7, at the conclusion of a two-month FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force sting operation, he purchased two disassembled M-16 machine guns, four disassembled hand grenades, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition from an undercover FBI agent.

He waived his Miranda rights immediately after being arrested and told agents he was working on a “reverse sting.”

In his wallet were business cards from law enforcement agents who had previously interviewed him following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, though FBI Special Agent Greg Franklin testified Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge E. Clifton Knowles that Al-Uqaily had never contacted those agents about his “reverse sting.”

Well, of course not -- if I understand a "reverse sting" correctly, they were his quarry, not his collaborators.

Report: Chechen jihadists entered U.S. via Mexico

This may (or may not) be behind the recent warning to schools. From UPI, with thanks to Anthony:

Washington, United States, Oct. 13 (UPI) -- A report that 25 Chechen rebels linked to Islamic terrorists entered the United States illegally via Mexico is under investigation, the Washington Times said. Security officials told the newspaper an intelligence report had been forwarded to the government saying the group, said to be wearing backpacks, secretly traveled to northern Mexico and crossed into a mountainous part of Arizona that is difficult for U.S. border security agents to monitor.

The report was made in late August or early September and was based on information from an intelligence source that has been proved reliable in other instances, one official said.

However, a second official said it could not be determined whether the group of Chechens actually entered the country.

Ex-Guantanamo prisoner leading militant group

From the Indianapolis Star, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

Islamabad, Pakistan -- A former Guantanamo prisoner thought to have forged ties with al-Qaida since his release is leading a militant band whose members have strapped explosives on two Chinese engineers they kidnapped in a lawless region near the Afghanistan border....

The five kidnappers threatened to kill the hostages unless the militants are allowed safe passage to a nearby area where their one-legged leader, Abdullah Mehsud, is believed hiding, officials said.

Mehsud, 28, came back to Pakistan in March after about two years' detention at the U.S. Navy base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It was not clear why U.S. authorities released Mehsud.

Municipal Web sites may help terrorists plot attacks

The sites tell too much. But of course, most were designed when terrorism was just a "nuisance." From the Washington Times, with thanks to Ali Dashti.

Too many details on municipal Web sites can tip off terrorists to security weaknesses and vulnerable targets, a military researcher told a conference of U.S. mayors in the District yesterday.

"The sites tell too much," said Gerald G. Brown, distinguished professor of operations research at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif.

Mr. Brown was a featured speaker yesterday at the Mayors' Technology Summit on "Homeland Security, Safety and Economic Development."

About 60 mayors and city officials from across the country attended the symposium, which was sponsored by Temple University's Fox School of Business and Management and the D.C. government.

Before his presentation at Stephen Decatur House, Mr. Brown said municipal leaders must not confuse "sunshine" laws, which require public access to some government data, and the allure of "really cool Web sites."

Many officials rushed to embrace the new Internet culture and hired people to design elaborate Web sites to show off their cities without considering potential consequences, such as aiding enemies in the terror war, he said.

About 95 percent of U.S. towns and cities with more than 10,000 residents have Web sites, said Curt J. Anderson, president of Municipal Web Services, a Birmingham, Mich.-based firm that designs Web sites for local governments.

New Jersey: Senior Al-Qaida Op Posed As Student

From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

TRENTON, N.J. -- A senior al-Qaida operative lived in New Jersey and posed as a student while conducting surveillance of financial institutions as possible targets for a terror attack, according to a published report.

The operative, identified by U.S. officials in Washington as Dhiren Barot, 32, entered the United States on a student visa, The Record of Bergen County reported in Thursday's editions.

Joseph Billy Jr., the FBI's top agent in New Jersey, told the newspaper that the operative attended several institutions of higher learning in New Jersey while carrying out the reconnaissance operation. Billy did not identify the schools. Barot is known to have used several aliases.

Authorities believe Barot was dispatched by Osama bin Laden himself to conduct the scouting mission in New Jersey, the newspaper reported. Barot was arrested by British authorities in August and remains in custody there.

The British say Barot had reconnaissance reports for the Prudential building in Newark, the New York Stock Exchange and the Citigroup building in Manhattan and the International Monetary Fund headquarters in Washington.

Jihadists behead Iraqis

The jihad against the new government continues. From the New York Post, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

October 14, 2004 -- BAGHDAD — A videotape that was posted yesterday on an Islamic Web site showed militants affiliated with wanted Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi beheading two Iraqis purported to be intelligence officers.

In other abductions, two Lebanese were freed after more than three weeks in captivity in Iraq, and a French politician said the government has restored indirect contact with kidnappers holding two French journalists hostage in Iraq since late August.

The 10-minute videotape showed two captives, Fadhel Ibrahim and Firas Imeil, identifying themselves as Iraqi National Intelligence officers and saying they were captured in Baghdad's Haifa Street on Sept. 28.

The tape showed four masked gunmen standing behind Ibrahim and then Imeil, with one militant describing the blindfolded captives as "criminals."

There was no way to immediately verify the authenticity of the tape, which was released in the name of the Brigades of Abu Bakr Al-Sidiq, a terror group affiliated to al-Zarqawi's Tawhid and Jihad organization.

Juvenile bloodbath averted in Norway

Ali Dashti forwards some disturbing material from the Norwegian papers:

http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article889813.ece

A bus of youths from Kristiansand was stopped by police en route to Venneslahallen, a short drive north. This chance action by police prevented a clash with 130 Vennesla teens who were waiting for the bus, armed with axes, knives and bats, newspaper Fædrelandsvennen reports.

"I see no reason to censor the facts. This could have ended in catastrophe," police lieutenant Hans Martin Skovly at Vennesla sheriff's office told the newspaper. Groups of kids from Vennesla have been close to open conflict with a notorious youth gang from Kristiansand, and this episode occurred in mid-September. The band of 20 on the bus were also armed with bat, axes and knives, out to get the 'farmers' from Vennesla, Skovly said. The gang were unaware that they were on their way to meet a much larger mob with the same intentions.

Ali Dashti comments: "What this article doesn't say explicitly is that this is at least in part an ethnic conflict between some groups of immigrants and native Norwegians. This local newspaper for the city of Kristiansand tells so in several articles, here some brief summaries":

http://www.fedrelandsvennen.no/nyheter/kristiansand/article233506.ece

A group of about 30 immigrant youth wanted to beat up an 18-year-old Norwegian. His father is worried, and is tempted to call for the formation of a vigilance committee in Kristiansand to combat the increasing frictions. He fears a "racial war" in the city.
According to newspaper sources, much of the trouble in the city comes from groups of immigrants teaming up to "get" other juveniles, especially native Norwegians.

http://www.fedrelandsvennen.no/nyheter/kristiansand/article233505.ece

According to these Norwegians from Kristiansand interviewed, some immigrants get aggressive even if you just look at them. They never do anything when alone, but if there are groups of them, they are frequently looking to make trouble. "I don't like these youths to come here and try impose their will on us. I understand that many of them come from countries with war, but they don't have to make war here" says one of the Norwegians.

UK freezes terror group's assets

Overdue. From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

LONDON, England (AP) -- The Bank of England is ordering a freeze on any assets belonging to a terrorist group that claimed responsibility for kidnapping and beheading two Americans and one Briton in Iraq, Treasury chief Gordon Brown said.

Brown told lawmakers in the House of Commons Thursday that he had instructed the bank to direct all financial institutions in Britain to freeze any assets of the Jama'at Al-Tawhid Wa'al-Jihad group -- known as Tawhid and Jihad.

Led by Jordanian terror mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the group said it abducted American engineers Eugene Armstrong and Jack Hensley and British engineer Kenneth Bigley last month. All three were beheaded.

"We must do all in our power to ensure there is no hiding place for terrorists and no hiding place for those who finance terrorism," said Brown, whose official title is Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Egyptian national convicted in Virginia of lying about business dealings with Hamas leader

"He suddenly drew a blank when it came to Mousa Abu Marzook, a designated terrorist." Reminds me of how so many Muslim spokesmen stateside will talk Islamic theology all day, but they suddenly draw a blank when it comes to the doctrines of violent, offensive jihad. From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- An Egyptian national who ran a now-defunct bank in New Jersey was found guilty Tuesday of lying to federal agents about business dealings with a leader of the militant group Hamas.

A jury convicted Soliman Biheiri, 53, who ran the BMI Inc. bank, of making false statements to federal investigators by denying a business relationship with Mousa Abu Marzook, the political leader of Hamas.

Biheiri, who has already been sentenced to one year in prison for immigration fraud, now faces up to five years in federal prison. Sentencing was set for Oct. 29.

Prosecutors said Biheiri deliberately deceived agents from the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement during a June 2003 interview after arriving on a flight from Cairo.

The agents testified Biheiri told them he had no business or personal relationship with Marzook. Financial records and court testimony showed Marzook helped bring $1 million in investments to Biheiri's company.

Prosecutors said Biheiri and Marzook engaged in financial transactions as late as 1996--one year after the U.S. government formally designated Marzook a terrorist.

During closing statements Tuesday, prosecutor David Laufman said Biheiri willingly shared details of his business deals with others, "but he suddenly drew a blank when it came to Mousa Abu Marzook, a designated terrorist."

Traveling Today

I must leave Secure Undisclosed Locationville shortly to journey to the heart of the Great Satan for a critically important meeting. Updates to the site when possible.

Jihad Watch's Spencer to guest host the Laurie Roth Show

I have appeared on the great Laurie Roth's show many times, but this Friday night it will be completely different: I'll be guest hosting for the first two hours. I'll be talking about the dangers on US soil between now and the election, and related matters.

I hope some of you folks will call in and talk it over. The number is 1-800-837-9680. Check the Roth Show site to see if the show is carried in your area.

UK: 10-year-old Muslim boy threatens to behead seven year-old schoolmate

From icBirmingham, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

A 10-year-old Asian pupil threatened to behead a seven year-old schoolboy with a Stanley knife after watching gruesome TV images from Iraq.

Paul Williams told how the young thug threatened his grandson Nathan outside the gates of Highgate Primary School in Woodside, Dudley where both were pupils.

The 10 year-old was subsequently arrested by police and it is understood that he has now been expelled.

His victim was uninjured but is now receiving counselling after suffering sleepless nights over the chilling incident.

Grandad Mr Williams said: “The 10 year-old was pretending to be an Iraqi assassin who was going to cut Nathan’s head off like the American hostages.

“A few of the other kids have said that he had been going around making these claims for a few weeks.

“He was waving the knife around in front of Nathan’s face as he made his way out of the school gates.

“Nathan has been in bits since. He’s really shaken up and hasn’t been able to sleep properly. He has been having counselling because it upset him so much.”

Thieves steal Bigley condolence book

Does someone in the Birmingham mosque disapprove of the condolences? From This Is London, with thanks to Ali Dashti and jonascot:

Thieves have stolen a book of condolence opened in tribute to the murdered Iraq hostage Kenneth Bigley, it emerged today.

A framed photograph of the 62-year-old, candles and some sympathy cards were also taken from Birmingham Central Mosque, while another picture was turned upside down.

Muslim leaders from across the city had signed the book as a gesture of support to Mr Bigley's family.

Dr Mohammed Naseem, chairman of Birmingham Central Mosque, said: "They are sick people. We don't know who's done it and I can't put a motive on it.

"It's very distressing for us and undoubtedly for Mr Bigley's family."

The book was opened on Saturday morning and on display inside the mosque following the death of Mr Bigley at the hands of his captors last week.

It was to have been sent to the civil engineer's family in Liverpool to demonstrate the mainstream Muslim community's condemnation of his death.

Yusuf Islam/Cat Stevens admits that some of his money may have gone to terrorists

As I wrote here, if he really didn't mean for it to fall into terrorist hands, it's even worse: it shows that moderate Muslims have a hard time keeping from supporting terror even when they want to.

From the Herald Sun, with thanks to Susan:

Yusuf Islam, the British singer formerly known as Cat Stevens, has accepted that some of his charitable donations may have fallen into terrorist hands.

The singer was recently refused entry to the US on security grounds and amid claims he helped finance terrorism.

Yesterday he said he would never knowingly support terrorism, but admitted donated money could unwittingly go to terror groups.

"What happens sometimes (is that) even the Red Cross, UNICEF, the World Bank, must have been party to something illicit, but never knew about it," he said. "It's impossible for certain things, I suppose, not to happen, but . . . when you're in the business of giving charity you can't let that be a hindrance to making sure . . . that the people who do need it get it."

Yusuf was barred from entering the US last month, after his flight from London to Washington was diverted to Maine. He was questioned by FBI officers and held overnight before being deported.

U.S. and Iraqi Forces Raid Ramadi Mosques

There are cries that this is a violation of holy places -- yet the mosques in Iraq have been used to launch attacks. From AP:

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraqi forces backed by U.S. soldiers and Marines raided mosques Tuesday in the insurgent stronghold of Ramadi and detained a prominent cleric following fierce clashes that hospital officials said killed at least four people.

U.S. aircraft also rocketed a mosque northwest of Ramadi on Monday after insurgents opened fire from there on U.S. Marines, the command said.

The seven mosques targeted in Ramadi are suspected of supporting insurgents through a range of activities, including harboring terrorists, storing illegal weapons caches, promoting violence and encouraging insurgent recruitment, the U.S. command said.

Sheikh Abdul-Aleim Saadi, the provincial leader of the influential Association of Muslim Scholars, was detained at Mohammed Aref Mosque, his relatives and followers said.

Angry residents accused Americans of disrespecting the sanctity of city mosques.

"This cowboy behavior cannot be accepted," said cleric Abdullah Abu Omar of the Ramadi Mosque. "The Americans seem to have lost their senses and have gone out of control."

The 1st Marine Division said the raids followed a pattern of insurgent activity in and around Ramadi mosques in recent weeks.

"The 1st Marine Division respects the religious and cultural significance represented by mosques," it said in a statement. "However, when insurgents violate the sanctity of the mosque by using the structure for military purposes, the site loses its protective status."

Mossad makes Al-Qaeda its top target

Fallout from the Taba attacks. From the Times Online, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

THE ISRAELI government has ordered Mossad, the foreign intelligence service, to make the hunt for Al-Qaeda terrorists its main priority after last week’s Red Sea attacks that killed at least 33 people, most of them Israeli tourists.

Egyptian officials said yesterday they had detained dozens of bedouin tribesmen on suspicion of supplying the explosives for the blasts at the Taba Hilton and at a bungalow beach camp 35 miles down the coast.

As rescuers pulled more bodies from the wreckage of the hotel, Dan Arditi, Israel’s counterterrorism chief, urged tourists still in Egypt to come home, warning that the attacks on Thursday “don’t lessen, even in the slightest, the risk that this will happen again”.

The order to Mossad to turn its attention from Palestinian groups to Al-Qaeda was given by Ariel Sharon, the prime minister, after Israeli intelligence sources said the size of the blasts suggested they were the work of Osama Bin Laden’s network rather than Palestinian suicide bombers.

"O Sheikh of the Slaughterers, Abu Mus'ab Al-Zarqawi, Go Forth in the Straight Path, Guided by Allah"

If the "sheikh of the slaughterers" is "guided by Allah," is it really non-Muslims like me who are connecting Islam with terrorism? And as for those (and they are legion) who think the problem is "fundamentalism," and that Christian and Muslim fundamentalisms are essentially equivalent, has any Christian group called Pat Robertson or Jerry Falwell "apostle of the assassins" or "deacon of the destroyers" lately? From MEMRI:

The latest edition (#23) of the Al-Qa'ida-related journal Sawt Al-Jihad includes an article by Abd Al-Rahman Ibn Salem Al-Shamari praising the beheading of an Egyptian citizen in Iraq. The author emphasized that a Muslim is obligated to be loyal to his religion only, and not to his national identity or to his country, and therefore all non-believers are the same, regardless of whether they are Arabs. The following are excerpts from the article:(1)

'Among Those Who Fell to that Happy Dagger were a Mighty Infidel Tyranny and an Idol Worshipped Instead of Allah'

"'May your hand be strengthened!' - so said all those who saw the video that showed the slaying of the Egyptian spy in service of the American army in Iraq - I mean all those of the true faith.

"You are wrong if you think that it was only the Egyptian spy who was slain. No, for among those who fell to that happy dagger were a mighty infidel tyranny and an idol who is worshipped instead of Allah; did you not see this as he was slain?!

"A spy has been slain, one spy among others, and the Jihad fighter [who slew him] has come closer to Allah by way of his [the spy's] blood. Yet what is the novelty in this lowly spy whose slaying we have seen these very days? The novelty, and we ask of Allah that there be more [like him], is that a spy has been slain, and this spy looked like an Arab, had an Arab name, and spoke Arabic! The novelty lies in the triumph of the faith in the one God and in the raising of the banner of 'There is no God but Allah' over and above all other allegiances, be they of ethnicity, language, identity, or nationality."

'Whosoever is the Enemy of Allah, We are His Enemy ... Arab or Non-Arab, Near or Far - They are All the Same'

"'You shall find no believers in Allah and in the Last Day on friendly terms with those who oppose Allah and His messenger, even though they be their fathers, their sons, their brothers, or their nearest kindred. Allah has inscribed the Faith in their very hearts, and strengthened them with a spirit of His own. He will admit them to gardens watered by running streams, where they shall dwell forever. Allah is well pleased with them, and they are well pleased with Him. They are the party of Allah, and Allah's party will surely triumph.'(2)

"There is only one criterion regarding the obligation of allegiance to Allah or the absence thereof, and this sole criterion is connected to Islam. Even if family relations, i.e. cousins, brothers, or sons [are involved] ... allegiance is only to Islam and enmity is only for its enemies; this is the path of the true party of Allah [ Hizbullah], which Allah has taken care to distance from the Shi'ite Hizbullat,(3) which colludes [with the enemy].

"In Iraq itself, the apostate tyrant Saddam Hussein stood at the head of the government of the Ba'th Party, whose famous slogan was: 'I believe in the Ba'th as the sole Lord who has no partner and in Arabism as the unrivaled faith.' Allah is exalted above the Ba'thists' vanities. This verse was written by a Ba'th poet and it is the most accurate description of the Ba'thists and their true faith and religion; for them Arabism is a religion and is the only criterion for allegiance or the absence of allegiance.

"In that same Iraq we learned a lesson in religion, a short lesson, [the amount of time] from the drawing of the dagger and the slitting of an apostate's throat until the raising of the dagger [after the act].

"But [the dagger] swooped and felled all of the ignorance [jahiliyya], as it [in the form of the slain] lay strewn at the feet of that Jihad fighter. The [dagger] was raised, and raised Allah's word, so that Allah's word would come out on top.

"And these are the lessons we learned: The collapse of the national identities. When these are opposed to the Shari'a [Islamic religious law] or attempt to rival it, and when they cause division among people and [provide a basis for] allegiances, then these national identities should fall, and Arab nationalism first and foremost.

"Monotheism and its obligations are prior to all other obligations, relations, or languages. Monotheism is the allegiance [to Allah], and Allah is He 'who made you into nations and tribes, so that you might get to know one another. The noblest of you in Allah's sight is he who fears Him most.'(4) But the infidel is an infidel whether he is an Arab or a non-Arab. He must be seen as an enemy. Furthermore, this is one of the fundamental principles of monotheism and one of the foundations of Islam.

"No wonder that we are learning this lesson in Iraq. For the Jihad fighters in Iraq had already taught us to oppose patriotism, national identity, and regional particularism, and they have set their sights on the collaborating government brought by the occupation, and they have shown us that which has brought pleasure to the believers [i.e. terrorist attacks]."

So the fight in Iraq is a fight for Islamic monotheism (tauhid) -- but of course, it has nothing to do with religion.

Seattle: feds believe terrorists are probing ferry system

From the Seattle Times, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

Groups of men, including one tied to a federal terrorism investigation, have videotaped Washington ferry operations, prompting federal authorities to conclude the system has been under surveillance as a possible target for an attack.

U.S. Attorney John McKay, officials in the U.S. Coast Guard and other members of Seattle's Joint Terrorism Task Force all share in that conclusion.

"We may well be the target of preoperational terrorist planning," McKay said.

A confidential FBI assessment of the threat to the state ferries is partly behind an increase in security for large-capacity ferries nationwide, McKay and others say.

The state ferry system is the nation's largest, carrying 26 million passengers last year. It began implementing new security requirements — including tripling the number of cars screened for explosives — this weekend.

For its assessment, the FBI gathered 157 incidents on or near ferries that law-enforcement officers, ferry workers and passengers have reported as suspicious since Sept. 11, 2001. The Seattle Times obtained a document detailing those incidents.

The agency ranked the incidents according to the perceived threat, with most deemed a low or moderate risk. Many involved reports of passengers who appeared to be Middle Eastern and were simply using a camera or cellphone. Other reports gave such little detail that they were difficult to investigate.

But the FBI determined 19 incidents were highly likely or extremely likely to involve terrorist surveillance of the ferries, with individuals asking probing questions about ferry operations or taking photos of stairwells, car decks and workers going about their jobs.

Three incidents involve one man who is a known subject in an FBI terrorism investigation.

Law-enforcement officials have heard about the ferry system's security shortcomings from other sources as well.

Osama in the poorhouse

Osama bin Laden, of course, is a very rich man, but that didn't give Prince Talal any pause. Give the Prince a job in the State Department. He sounds like one of their guys. From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) -- Poverty and unemployment among Arabs are fundamental reasons for the spread of terrorism, a Saudi prince said Sunday at the opening of a conference on small loans for the poor.

The comments by Prince Talal bin Abdul-Aziz, brother of Saudi Arabia's King Fahd, come as Arab leaders try to curb the spread of Islamic extremism throughout a region consumed by the American-led war in Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"Unemployment creates one of the cornerstones of terrorism, and the poor who cannot get food on his table resorts to other means, which are involuntary human reactions," the prince said while opening the four-day Middle East-Africa Microcredit Summit in Amman, Jordan's capital.

For some actual facts on this question, see here.

Al-Sadr's men selling heroin

And why not? Osama does it too. From the Washington Times, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

Coalition troops have seized $30 million worth of heroin intended for sale on Iraqi streets by rebel cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's militia, the former commander of the 9,000-strong Polish force in south-central Iraq says.

Lt. Gen. Mieczyslav Bieniek said the militia was using the drug profits "to pay for action" against coalition forces and that some members of the Mahdi's Army were "under the influence [while] fighting us."

The Polish commander was in Washington last week and said that the heroin trade was so pervasive that militia members were known as the "pink army" — named after the red plastic bags they use to peddle the drugs.

Military reports from southern Iraq, as well as State Department and Iraqi sources, have said militants also were using and selling amphetamines in Najaf and Baghdad.

Their customers are mainly Iraqi civilians, but officials do not rule out that some of the drugs have reached coalition troops. Marijuana and hashish also are readily available across Iraq.

Farce Watch: Saudis invite Iranian President to anti-terrorism conference

From the Saudi Press Agency, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

Tehran, Oct 10, SPA-- Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Premier and Commander of the National Guard, sent a message to Iranian President Sayed Mohammad Khatemi.

The message was delivered by Saudi Ambassador to Iran Dr. Nasir bin Ahmad Alboraik during an audience here today.

The message contained an invitation by the crown prince to the Iranian president to attend the international anti-terrorism conference to be organized by the kingdom on the fifth of February.

Spencer on Terror's Islamic Roots

My latest reply to Mustafa Akyol, who argues that Islamic terrorists are hijacking the religion of peace, posted here Friday, appears today in slightly altered form in FrontPage magazine. Why would I care to argue that terrorists are not hijacking the religion of peace? Because as long as Muslims and non-Muslims continue to refuse to face the roots and sources of this violence, it will continue.

I hope to be bringing you more exchanges with Mr. Akyol in the near future.

Comments: problem solved (?)

I have heard that some of you have never been able to post comments since we put in the registration system, and others have had trouble lately. Please try again if you so desire; we've found and eliminated a few small and subtle bugs in the system, and I hope that will finally take care of these problems. I know, I've said that before -- so please email me at director@jihadwatch.org if you still can't post. And thank you for your patience.

UPDATE: Many of you have problems with your connection timing out, so that you have to sign in again. Unfortunately, that time limit is set by TypeKey and there's no way to alter it.

Zarqawi group claims car bomb that killed 10 Iraqi police recruits

All the glorying in murder in the name of God has become so commonplace that we hardly take notice of it anymore. Remember that "Tawhid" is not just "unity," as it is translated here, but the Islamic concept of the absolute unity of Allah. That in itself should be enough to convince people that these are something more than just "militants" or the vanguard of a "resistance." As I have illustrated here again and again, they want to impose a state based on Islamic law, and anyone who values human rights, and abhors the idea that the Creator desires blood and murder, should oppose them. But the general refusal to look squarely at the religious roots of this conflict makes it particularly easy for the American Left, in its opposition to the Iraq war, to see these people as plucky, if somewhat unattractive, freedom fighters. If the nature of the enemy had been acknowledged forthrightly from the beginning, it would be much harder for the Left to sustain that position.

From AFP:

DUBAI, Oct 9 (AFP) - The group headed by suspected Al-Qaeda operative Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi has claimed responsibility for a car bombing in western Iraq on Wednesday that authorities said killed 10 police recruits and that the group said left 40 dead.

A statement on an Islamist website late Saturday said "one of the lion's cubs of the 'Brigade of Candidates for Martyrdom," belonging to the group Tawhid wal Jihad (Unity and Holy War) managed to infiltrate members of the infidels' would-be civil defense ... killing 40 of them."

"I have come here to pray. I don't care what the mullah says about politics"

A refreshing, but rare attitude. It comes from this AP report on the Afghan vote, with thanks to Uncle Jeff. And unfortunately, since Islam has had a political dimension virtually since its inception, this will continue to be a rare attitude unless there is widespread reform.

Afghanistan's historic presidential election opened Saturday, with people across this ethnically diverse land casting the first ballots in an improbable experiment with democracy, and under a Taliban threat of ruinous violence.

After 25 years of near-constant war, voters descended on bombed-out schools, blue-domed mosques and bullet-pocked hospitals to choose their leader for the first time as more than 100,000 soldiers, police, U.S. troops and other security forces were deployed to thwart attacks.

Interim leader Hamid Karzai is widely expected to win against 15 rivals, among them warlords, royalists and even an Islamic poet. But the size of the field could deny Karzai the outright majority needed to avert a run-off....

Election officials arrested three Pakistanis and said they planned to detonate the truck in the center of the city on polling day.

"This would have caused hundreds of deaths ... and the electoral process would have been derailed in the area," said Col. Ishaq Paiman, the Defense Ministry deputy spokesman.

A flurry of rockets landed in several cities around the country on Thursday and Friday, including one that hit a parking lot near the U.S. Embassy and another that injured a young girl and an old man in the eastern city of Jalalabad. Still, none threatened to derail the vote and most Afghans brushed them off.

"In 25 years, a lot of rockets have landed. If another one lands because of the election, it's no problem," said Noor Uddin, a 49-year-old Kabul businessman, on Friday.

In Kandahar, police struggled to keep back a crowd of hundreds of men trying to vote at a polling site on the grounds of the governor's residence. Election workers reprimanded several Karzai campaign officials for coming to lobby voters at site, a violation of electoral law.

Voters who came out early across the country said they hoped the election would put an end to this hard-luck nation's long suffering.

"We are very happy," said Abdur Rahim, a 75-year-old voting in the northern city of Sheberghan, a stronghold of Uzbek warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum, one of Karzai's challengers. "We want the election to end our wars."

Aziz Ullah, a 19-year-old Kabul shopkeeper, said the election offered a stark contrast in a nation that has endured many forms of imposed rule in the past 30 years _ among them monarchy, Soviet occupation, warlord fiefdoms and the repressive Taliban theocracy ousted by the U.S.-led invasion following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

"I came here to vote so we can have democracy and stability and peace in Afghanistan," he said. "There used to only be a transfer of power by force or killing. Today, the Afghan people are choosing their future leaders themselves."

Women voted at separate booths from the men, in keeping with this nation's conservative Islamic leaning.

"I walked from my house with my husband to vote for Karzai, who is a very good person," said Mahtab, a 45-year-old Kabul housewife. Like many Afghans she uses only one name.

A day ahead of the vote, Islamic clerics urged worshippers to embrace democracy. At the Blue Mosque, the capital's largest house of prayer, Mullah Obeid-ul Rahman told some 400 faithful that Islam and democracy should go hand and hand.

Rahman did not say which presidential hopeful he would pick, but made clear that the only female candidate, former U.N. worker Massooda Jalal, was not his choice.

"In Islam, it is forbidden for a woman to become president," he told the crowd.

At least one listener disagreed.

"I am voting for Massooda Jalal," said Fazel Rahman, 35. "I have come here to pray. I don't care what the mullah says about politics."

Nashville: Iraqi Arrested On Weapons Charge

He wanted to "go jihad." From AP, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

It was after a sting operation yesterday that was set up when Ahmed Al-Uqaily told an acquaintance he wanted to "go Jihad" over the war in Iraq.

FBI terrorism agents arrested the Al-Uquaily, 33, after he took possession of two disassembled machine guns, four disassembled hand grenades and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

Court documents show Al-Uqaily also was interested in getting missiles used to disable tanks.

Authorities said he expressed animosity toward the Jewish community, but did not give specific plans.

Abu Hamza wants "women of mass destruction"

More on the notorious Abu Hamza from WND, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

In a tape seized by authorities, radical Islamic cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri is heard urging Muslim women to breed children for the purpose of creating suicide bombers....

The recording, one of dozens handed over to authorities, was reported by British investigative journalist Neil Doyle in his new book "Terror Tracker," which chronicles his efforts to penetrate the internal workings of the al-Qaida terrorist network.

Hamza has been indicted by the U.S. on 11 terrorism charges. Authorities are studying the tape to build a case for the cleric's extradiction to the U.S, Doyle said....

In the lecture reported by Doyle, Hamza refers to a suicide bombing in Israel and says: "Last week we seen a mother ... she put happiness in the hearts of every Muslim on earth and for years to come.

"She took her son, she took him herself, and she filmed a video with him for him to go and do a martyrdom operation against the Zionists.

"She's encouraging him. She's left a message for the Ummah [Islamic nation] – "this is my son, I'm giving him for you, for the Ummah of Mohammad to wake up, for the mothers to follow!

"And he wrote a will and said how much his mother she was encouraging him. And she was waiting all night and after that he went for his mission. Waiting all night, not for the news that her son had passed his A-level [British school exam] or he has got his degree, or he has married the most beautiful woman in the club, but he was shaheed [martyred] and he inflict a lot of suffering and terror in the hearts of Zionists!

"... this happened right now in the front of us, in the television [sic], we have seen the tape, you've seen the video – if you haven't seen it, go and ask for it!

"Everywhere, these are the women of mass destruction to the kuffar [unbelievers], and these are the action [sic] that put terror in their hearts.

"This kind of women, when they miss their killed children, they don't go and look for their graves ... they look for their position in paradise, so they become more happy, more anxious to go and see them, they want to sacrifice more and more."

"They study at top British and American schools yet abhor western values, advocate a pan-Islamic state and favour the removal of Pakistan’s pro-US government"

From Reuters, with thanks to Nicolei, who observes: "The US government, which has been financing the building of Islamic schools outside the US, should take note." Indeed.

Reuters Karachi Oct 8: They are considered a new breed of Islamic fundamentalists. They study at top British and American schools yet abhor western values, advocate a pan-Islamic state and favour the removal of Pakistan’s pro-US government.

Militancy and violence is not part of their agenda; they want to achieve their “lofty goals” through peaceful and non-violent struggle.

But analysts say such men, fired by the passion of an Islamic renaissance, stand on a thin line dividing political and violent struggle.

Hizb ut-Tahrir (Liberation Party), an international Islamic group with roots from England to Central Asia, is a recent addition to myriad radical organisations striving to enforce “true Islam” in Pakistan, a poor South Asian nation.

The group was outlawed in Pakistan in November 2003, just three years after it started operations, but its members continue undeterred, distributing party literature and holding small meetings in efforts to expand their base.

Pakistan, an ally of the United States in the war on terror, banned several militant Islamic groups, but most re-emerged under new names. Hizb-ut-Tahrir has refused to change its identity despite the closure of offices and the arrest of several members.

British and US nationals of Pakistani origin comprise the backbone of this secretive group formed in Jerusalem in 1953.

It wants to establish a supra-Islamic state on the model of the caliphate as it existed in the early days of Islam.

The group came to Pakistan through second-generation Pakistanis living in the West, particularly Britain and the US. They claim they had supporters in Pakistan for a long time but formal operations took longer to establish.

Many members abandoned what they call the luxuries of the West to come to Pakistan to live among fellow Muslims and work for the country’s transformation into a puritanical Islamic society of their dreams.

“In terms of living standards, England is better. You don’t confront problems such as water shortages, power failures there,” a Hizb member, who works as an executive at a bank, told Reuters, requesting anonymity.

“But you cannot safeguard the Islamic way of life in a western society. You become alienated,” said the 32-year-old, who migrated from his birthplace, London, to Pakistan — the country of his parents — two years ago.

“We believe the change will come in the Muslim world from places like Pakistan, where an overwhelming number of people are Islamic-minded,” he said in a clipped British accent.

Iranian intel: Tehran harboring bin Laden

Richard Miniter doesn't have the faintest idea what the global jihad is really all about -- he even recommends apologist Karen Armstrong to readers curious about Islam in his new book Shadow War -- but that book also contains a most interesting revelation about Osama: he seems to have been and could still be in Iran. From WND, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

The sources say bin Laden is constantly on the move, "shuttling from Iranian safe houses controlled by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard to areas of Afghanistan controlled by the Iranian-backed warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar."

"Choopan," one of the sources, gives three reasons why Tehran would give safe haven to bin Laden, risking the wrath of the West.

"First, the Iranians believe they can keep bin Laden's presence a secret and plausibly deny it if publicly accused," Miniter writes. "Second, the mullahs are feeling increasingly threatened by the War on Terror.

"The mullahs, Choopan says, fear a counter-revolution and see bin Laden's fighters as tools they can use to ensure the failure of these young democracies in Iraq and Afghanistan and the survival of mullah-dominated Iran. Finally, they share enemies, including many Arab leaders, the United States and the rest of the Western world."

No WMD Stockpiles in Iraq? Not Exactly ...

Now that everybody in the world knows that Saddam had no WMD, maybe this can stop being a political issue and we can actually look at the WMD that Saddam really had. From NewsMax, with thanks to Joyce:

Is it really true that Saddam Hussein had no "stockpiles" of weapons of mass destruction before the U.S. invaded in March 2003?

Not exactly - at least not if one counts the 500 tons of uranium that the Iraqi dictator kept stored at his al Tuwaitha nuclear weapons development plant.

The press hasn't made much of Saddam's 500-ton uranium stockpile, downplaying the story to such an extent that most Americans aren't even aware of it.

But it's been reported - albeit in a by-the-way fashion - by the New York Times and a handful of other media outlets. And one of Saddam's nuclear scientists, Jaffar Dhia Jaffar, admitted to the BBC earlier this year, "We had 500 tons of yellow cake [uranium] in Baghdad."

Surely 500 tons of anything qualifies as a "stockpile." And press reports going back more than a decade give no indication that weapons inspectors had any idea the Iraqi dictator had amassed such a staggering amount of nuke fuel until the U.S. invaded.

That's when the International Atomic Energy Agency was finally able to take a full inventory, and suddenly the 500-ton figure emerged.

Still, experts say Saddam's massive uranium stockpile was largely benign.

Largely? Well, except for the 1.8 tons of uranium that Saddam had begun to enrich. The U.S. Energy Department considered that stockpile so dangerous that it mounted an unprecedented airlift operation four months ago to remove the enriched uranium stash from al Tuwaitha.

But didn't most of that enrichment take place before the first Gulf War - with no indication whatsoever that Saddam was capable of proceeding any further toward his dream of acquiring the bomb?

That seems to be the consensus. But there's also disturbing evidence to the contrary.

David Kay, the former chief U.S. weapons inspector who was hailed by the press last year for pronouncing Iraq WMD-free, shared some interesting observations with Congress this past January about goings-on at al Tuwaitha in 2000 and 2001.

"[The Iraqis] started building new buildings, renovating it, hiring some new staff and bringing them together," Kay said. "And they ran a few physics experiments, re-ran experiments they'd actually run in the '80s."

"Fortunately, from my point of view," he added, "Operation Iraqi Freedom intervened and we don't know how or how fast that would have gone ahead. ... Given their history, it was certainly an emerging program that I would not have looked forward to their continuing to pursue."

What is this site for?

I received a message earlier tonight that said:

Please remove me from your subscribtion list. This is a sight to vent our anger, but we need to change policy.

So I thought I would take the opportunity to remind you that this is not actually a site intended to allow you to vent your anger. I know that many do so here, and I understand the reasons for that anger, but I have spoken up many times to say that posts labeling all Muslims as evil or calling for genocide are not welcome.

So I ask you to consider: what is the best way to defeat the global jihad? Not by venting. Think strategically when you post, and try not to write something that plays into the hands of those who would destroy us.

The other side of that oft-repeated coin is that actually I didn't create this site so that people could vent at all, but to raise awareness precisely so that policy would be affected. The anti-jihad struggle, as I have also often repeated, is a struggle for the equality of dignity and rights of all people. Comments that are boorish, threatening, aggressive, etc., or tangled into knots answering some obvious provocateur, will only discourage thoughtful people who are actually in a position to influence policy from using this site as a resource.

Ultimately, what is this site for? To raise awareness of the nature of the foe that faces the Western world and all free people. This is necessary because most policymakers and analysts in the West so far continue to ignore or deny outright the true nature of that foe. Until that changes, the jihadists have the advantage, even if it is not one of military might; there are other ways to win wars. From time to time in the past and increasingly, I hope, in the future, as I begin work on my new book, Jihad Watch will offer recommendations for future steps. After almost a year of posting, this site's archives are full of useful material for legislators, students, human rights activists, etc. I hope they will use it as such, and consult it daily for updates -- not just for a chance to vent.

Call for global jihad puts jittery Afghanistan on high alert

The Guardian today reports that the jihadists, predictably enough, are doing all they can to disrupt the Afghan elections:

Radical Islamist propaganda calling on Afghans to join a global jihad against "oil-thieving Christian crusaders" has begun appearing in Afghanistan, signalling an attempt by foreign militants to stoke an Iraqi-style insurgency.

A glossy colour poster juxtaposes photos of charred American corpses swinging from a bridge in Falluja with that of a US soldier apparently frisking a burka-wearing Afghan woman.

A DVD links gory footage of Taliban operations in Afghanistan, violence in Indonesia and the beheading of American businessman Nicholas Berg in Baghdad.

The propaganda has been discreetly distributed in the run-up to today's presidential election, which pits the US-supported interim president Hamid Karzai against 15 challengers.

"This is a significant migration of tactics. I've never seen quality material with an international outlook like this before," said Nick Downie, a British security adviser to international aid agencies. "It's a call to global jihad."

US, coalition and Afghan troops were on high alert yesterday for possible attacks by Taliban insurgents, who have vowed to derail the historic vote.

Video Said to Show British Hostage Bigley Killed

Just in from AP:

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - A videotape shows British hostage Kenneth Bigley being beheaded by his captors in Iraq, a witness who saw the tape said Friday.

The witness, who asked not to be identified by name, said the tape shows six hooded, armed men standing behind the kneeling Bigley, whom the witness recognized from two previous tapes released by the kidnappers.

One of the six then spoke in Arabic for about a minute. Afterward, the speaker took a knife from his belt and severed Bigley's head as three others held him down, the witness said. The tape ends with the killer holding up the severed head.

British officials in Baghdad said they had no confirmation that Bigley was dead, and American military authorities said no body had been found.

Bigley, 62, was abducted along with two Americans from their home in the upscale Mansour neighborhood by members of Tawhid and Jihad, Iraq's most feared terrorist group led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who demanded the release of all female prisoners held by the coalition in Iraq.

The two Americans — Eugene Armstrong, 52, and Jack Hensley, 48 — were decapitated a few days later.

Israeli Official Blames al-Qaida in Blasts

In Egypt. From AP:

TABA, Egypt - Israel's intelligence chief on Friday blamed al-Qaida for the bombings at resorts in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula that officials said killed at least 28 people, including many Israelis celebrating a Jewish holiday, and wounded more than 100.

The Israeli intelligence chief, Maj. Gen. Aharon Zeevi-Farkash, blamed the bombings on Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terrorist network at an emergency Cabinet meeting. Egyptian government spokesman Magdy Rady said it was too early to speculate.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office said he and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak agreed by telephone that they must fight terrorism together.

That will be interesting. I wonder if Mubarak will rein in the boys at Al-Azhar. Somehow I doubt it.

Iran: "We must have two bombs ready to go in January or you are not Muslims"

Great. The bomb will be ready just in time for President Kerry's inauguration, so he won't have to worry about sending them that nuclear fuel. From WND, with thanks to Joseph D'Hippolito:

Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has urged his country's weapons developers to step up work on making a nuclear bomb, a U.S. official said, according to Geostrategy-Direct, the global intelligence news service.

According to the official, an authoritative source in the Iranian exile community has stated that Khamenei met recently with senior government and military leaders on the nuclear weapons program.

Khamenei told the gathering, "We must have two bombs ready to go in January or you are not Muslims," the official said.

Jafari-Jalali, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the Majles, stated in an Iranian press interview last week that the recent International Atomic Energy Agency resolution calling on Iran to halt uranium enrichment could lead to Tehran withdrawing from the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Iran's military announced earlier this month that it would test-fire a "strategic" missile during the Ashura 5 military exercises of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.

Brig. Gen. Hossein Salami announced the missile test on Sept. 18. "The climax of this stage of the exercises is the actual missile operations and the testing of a series of missiles with different ranges," he said.

Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani said earlier this month that "given that an effective deterrent policy does not halt at a certain point, the Islamic Republic of Iran continues upgrading its defensive capability."

Akyol Still Standing for Islam - and Against Terrorism

At FrontPage today, Mustafa Akyol, whose earlier National Review articles attempting to show that Osama bin Laden and Company have hijacked the religion of peace I discussed here and here at some length, turns in a third entry that is as mind-numbingly disingenuous as it is windy and off-point. It is directly a reply to Andrew Bostom's piece, not to me, and I am sure Andy will weigh in soon, but here are a few preliminary thoughts.

Akyol says:

At the outset, I should clarify the meaning of the term jihad. It does not necessarily mean a military struggle....

I tell you, folks, if I had a nickel for every time someone said that to me...But anyway, Akyol should know that it is completely beside the point, because although it may not "necessarily" be a military struggle, it is for the global jihadists. Does Akyol think they will lay down their arms because jihad can also be a spiritual struggle? As a matter of fact, Hassan Al-Banna (founder of the Muslim Brotherhood) and Abdullah Azzam (a founder of Al-Qaeda) among others, taught that the idea of jihad as a spiritual struggle was based on a weak hadith, and thus had to be rejected by loyal Muslims. But of course Akyol does not deal with that.

Akyol:

Mr. Bostom also asks what will happen to atheists if they are not convinced. Of course, nothing. Let them deny the obvious. "There is no compulsion in religion" (2:256) and Muslims are ordered to say "The truth is from your Lord, so let him who please believe, and let him who please disbelieve." (18:29)

Interestingly enough, just yesterday someone sent me this from a Muslim Q&A website, quoting Qur'an 8:39 and 9:5 to say that yes, there is compulsion in religion:

“And fight them until there is no more Fitnah (disbelief and polytheism, i.e. worshipping others besides Allaah), and the religion (worship) will all be for Allaah Alone [in the whole of the world]” [al-Anfaal 8:39]

“Then when the Sacred Months (the 1st, 7th, 11th, and 12th months of the Islamic calendar) have passed, then kill the Mushrikoon (see V.2:105) wherever you find them, and capture them and besiege them, and lie in wait for them in each and every ambush. But if they repent [by rejecting Shirk (polytheism) and accept Islamic Monotheism] and perform As‑Salaah (Iqaamat-as-Salaah), and give Zakaah, then leave their way free. Verily, Allaah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful” [al-Tawbah 9:5]

This verse is known as Ayat al-Sayf (the verse of the sword).

These and similar verses abrogate the verses which say that there is no compulsion to become Muslim.

But Akyol is ready for that. He attacks the Islamic doctrine of abrogation on which this argument is based:

The doctrine of abrogation is actually a late invention, introduced by some classical jurists during the fourth century (late 10th century) of Islam. These scholars came up with hundreds of cases of abrogated verses to the extent that they formulated a whole science of the subject filling lengthy books and references.

Yet they were in error and many Muslim thinkers are pointing this out since the 19th century. Dr. Khaleel Mohammed, a professor of Religion at San Diego State University, has a very good article that summarizes the refutations against the doctrine of abrogation. "The allegation that 120 verses on the invitation to Islam were abrogated by the verse of the sword (9:5)" says Dr. Mohammed, "is in fact one of crassest stupidity."...

Actually the Koran itself declares that it includes no contradictions (4:82), thus its verses should be seen not as conflicting and calling for abrogative passages, but rather as complimentary parts of a single mosaic.

If we try to build that mosaic, we will see that the war verses describe only an abnormal state of affairs — in which the Muslim community faced an enemy that sought its annihilation — and verses that promote peace and tolerance describe the Islamic ideal.

Gee, that's swell, but unfortunately, Dr. Khaleel Muhammad has not yet taken up his throne as the Muslim Pope. And here, as in so many other instances, he resorts to shallow and base name-calling instead of actually addressing the arguments of his opponents. Jihadists, quite obviously, still employ the practice of abrogation. Does he think that pointing out that it is a tenth-century innovation and accusing those who use it of the "crassest stupidity" will really stop them? "Fellow mujahedin! Dr. Khaleel Muhammad has called us stupid! Let us lay down our arms!"

In fact, abrogation (naskh) is not a tenth-century innovation. It is based on the Qur'an itself: "Nothing of our revelation (even a single verse) do we abrogate or cause be forgotten, but we bring (in place) one better or the like thereof. Knowest thou not that Allah is Able to do all things?" (Sura 2:106).

Likewise, Akyol's contention that "the war verses describe only an abnormal state of affairs — in which the Muslim community faced an enemy that sought its annihilation — and verses that promote peace and tolerance describe the Islamic ideal" will do nothing to pacify radical Muslims, since they have argued again and again that today the Muslim community faces an enemy that seeks its annihilation. Thus even by Akyol's own standards, Muslims are justified to invoke the Qur'an's war verses and wage jihad today.

Then Akyol performs a neat pirouette to avoid the avalanche of quotations that Bostom, others, and I myself invoked from the hadith and sira -- traditions of the Prophet Muhammad and his biography -- to justify the killing of captives in Islam. He simply denies the authority of the sources:

Well, I don't question the Koran, which I believe to be the infallible Word of God, yet I, like many other contemporary Muslims, feel free to question traditional Islamic sources such as the hadith and sira. These were written at least one and a half centuries after the Prophet and we already know that there were many fake sayings attributed to and fables made up about Prophet Muhammad. The collection we have today was compiled by men most of whom had the best intentions, but good intentions are not enough to create an infallible source.

That's great for Mustafa Akyol, except for two small problems:
1. He immediately contradicts his own statement in the paragraph that follows by invoking two statements of Muhammad that are not in the Qur'an, but are taken from the Islamic traditions he just rejected.
2. Most Muslims accept the hadith and sira as authoritative. I am glad that he and other Muslim reformers reject them, but they face a herculean task in convincing the majority of their coreligionists to do so (particularly when Akyol rejects them and then uses them in practically the same breath).

But since Akyol rejects the authority of passages from Islamic law that Bostom and I cited in our respective replies, he doesn't have to answer or explain them. Instead, he spends the bulk of his article citing Muslim apologists and questionable historical sources to establish that in history, Muslims acted better. Once again, even if this is true, it establishes nothing: the mujahedin believe that they are acting in line with Islamic law, and historical examples don't disprove this.

In order to avoid ten years in prison as mandated by law in his native Turkey, in the course of his long-winded historical tour Akyol breezily dismisses the Armenian genocide, in which two million people were slaughtered, as "inter-communal violence," and blames the Armenians as much as the Ottomans.

This Holocaust denial in itself reveals the utter moral bankruptcy of Akyol's argument, but there is one more thing. He also sees dark motives behind what Bostom and Ibn Warraq (and, by implication, I also) are doing, seeing behind us the shadows of Stalin and Pol Pot:

Nevertheless, it seems to me that this all gives rise to a most disconcerting question here: What is the objective of Mr. Bostom? To de-legitimize moderates and to sanctify terrorists? Surely not. Although this may be an unfortunate by-product of what he says, I suspect his motive is much different: From his whole argument about Islam's supposedly inherent violence, there seems to derive implied appeal for full-scale secularization. This is very evident in Mr. Bostom's leniency to Ibn Warraq, an ex-Muslim who is now a fierce atheist and anti-Islamic polemicist. According to Ibn Warraq, as Mr. Bostom delightfully quotes, "There are moderate Muslims, but Islam itself is not moderate" and "Islam need [to] be marginalized for liberty to flourish."

What Ibn Warraq does is to reiterate the dull atheists mantra — that religion shrinks our liberties and instead we must shrink religion to save them. From Epicurus to Nietzsche, from Freud to Richard Dawkins, this is the unholy crusade whose political fruits included mass murderers such as the Jacobins, Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot.

And I am firmly against that secularist agenda.

In case you missed it, the sleight-of-hand he performs here is to equate Ibn Warraq's opposition to Islam with the opposition to Christianity that did indeed lead to the monstrous atheistic regimes of Jacobins, Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot.

Ibn Warraq is indeed, as far as I know, an atheist, but this has nothing to do with the statements from him that Akyol quoted. "There are moderate Muslims, but Islam itself is not moderate" is not a call to Stalinist genocide; it is an observation that certain teachings of Islam itself enjoin violence against unbelievers. If you don't believe that, go back and read Sura 9:5 and what the Islam Q&A site makes of it.

I myself am not an atheist, and I do not reply to him out of some sinister cypto-Stalinism. I made it abundantly clear why I am doing this in an earlier reply to Akyol:

Why am I doing this? To make life difficult for a moderate? No. I am only trying to point out that Akyol's conclusion (the beheadings "stem from a kind of necrophilic nihilism, not from the essence of Islam") is unwarranted, and his argument will be unconvincing to a radical Muslim, who can invoke the authorities I have cited here and others.

So in sum: Akyol's piece is not the kind of moderate Islamic presentation we need in order to neutralize the radicals. We need one that confronts and refutes their arguments; his simply ignores them. Those who are looking for moderate Muslims to rise up and refute the radicals should keep looking.

I stand by those statements. Akyol more and more seems to me like one who is trying to reassure jittery Westerners about Islam, rather than refute the radicals. But his reassurance is hollow, and is only likely to make people less guarded against future attacks by Muslims who do not accept his arguments. His arguments do nothing to stop jihadists from continuing their murderous work.

Bomb damages seat of Orthodox Church in Istanbul

This follows violent protests against the proposed reopening of the one and only Orthodox seminary in Turkey. From AFP, with thanks to Twostellas:

ISTANBUL, Oct 7 (AFP) - A home-made bomb damaged the seat of the Orthodox Church in Istanbul overnight but no one was hurt in the explosion, Anatolia news agency reported Thursday.

The device was lobbed over the wall around the patriarch's residence and exploded in the garden, blowing out several windows and damaging the roof of a nearby cathedral.

The ecumenical patriarchate in Istanbul is the Christian Orthodox world's highest authority.

An American Beslan?

From AP, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

WASHINGTON - The Education Department has advised school leaders nationwide to watch for people spying on their buildings or buses to help detect any possibility of terrorism like the deadly school siege in Russia.

The warning follows an analysis by the FBI and the Homeland Security Department of the siege that killed nearly 340 people, many of them students, in the city of Beslan last month.

"The horror of this attack may have created significant anxiety in our own country among parents, students, faculty staff and other community members," Deputy Education Secretary Eugene Hickok said in a letter to schools and education groups.

The safety advice is based on lessons learned from the Russia incident. But there is "no specific information indicating that there is a terrorist threat to any schools or universities in the United States," Hickok said.

Federal law enforcement officials also have encouraged local police to stay in contact with school officials and have encouraged reporting of suspicious activities, the letter says.

In particular, schools were told to watch for activities that may be legitimate on their own — but may suggest a heightened terrorist threat if many of them occur.

Among those activities:

_ Interest in obtaining site plans for schools, bus routes and attendance lists;

_ Prolonged "static surveillance" by people disguised as panhandlers, shoe shiners, newspaper or flower vendors or street sweepers not previously seen in the area;

_ Observations of security drills;

_ People staring at or quickly looking away from employees or vehicles as they enter or leave parking areas;

_ Foot surveillance of campuses involving individuals working together.

Boston: Islamic Society urged to respond to charges of Anti-Semitism

The Boston mosque controversy is heating up. From the Boston Globe, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

The Anti-Defamation League and Jewish leaders yesterday asked the Islamic Society of Boston to renounce one of its board members, whose writings they say are ''virulently anti-Semitic."

As Boston officials planned to reexamine details of its sale of land to the Islamic Society amid questions about the group's connections to extremists, the ADL and Temple Israel, the largest synagogue in Boston, made public for the first time a seven-month-long dispute with Islamic Society's leaders over articles written in Arabic-language newspapers by Dr. Walid Fitaihi.

The ADL said Fitaihi is the Islamic Society of Boston's treasurer, though it is unclear what role, if any, Fitaihi plays in the Society. On the Islamic Society's 2000 tax return he is listed as a board member. On its 2001 return, he is listed as the treasurer. Islamic Society officials did not return phone calls yesterday.

Since March, the Islamic Society has ''done little to reassure" the ADL and Temple Israel that they have misinterpreted Fitaihi's writings or that other leaders of the Society don't agree with his views, the group wrote in a letter to the Society.

''In the absence of such a clarification, other allegations against the ISB are gaining greater resonance, and there remains a contradiction between your values statement and your actions," the letter says.

Robert Leikind, the ADL's regional director, urged the Society to speak out, especially after a group calling itself Citizens for Peace and Tolerance raised questions at a news conference Tuesday about the Society's alleged ties to Muslim extremists.

''It's difficult to understand why they would not seize the opportunity to condemn and disassociate expressions of anti-Semitism," Leikind said. ''We are concerned over why people who we have viewed as partners would hedge on issues as important as this."

The Cambridge-based Society is building a $22 million mosque and cultural center in Roxbury, on land sold by the Boston Redevelopment Authority for $175,000.

Leikind said the ADL and Temple Israel first reached out to the Islamic Society last March after the Boston Herald reported that Fitaihi, who is living in his native Saudi Arabia, had published a series of anti-Semitic articles including one in which he condemns Jews as ''the murderers of prophets."

According to English translations provided by the ADL, Fitaihi, an endocrinologist, also wrote that Jews will be ''scourged" because of their ''oppression, murder, and rape of the worshipers of Allah."

''They have perpetrated the worst of evils and they have brought the worst corruption to the earth, and what we see of them these days is glad tidings for the Muslim heralding the fulfillment of Allah's promise of victory after the second transgression," Fitaihi wrote in the Arabic-language London daily newspaper, Al Sharq al-Awsat, on Oct. 18, 2000.

Sunni/Shiite Jihad: Two Blasts Kill at Least 39 in Pakistan

From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm, who notes that Ahmad Ludhianvi says below: "This is the worst kind of terrorism." Asks Mr. Imm: "When Muslims are killed; apparently other types of terrorism not as bad?" Apparently not; we have seen this in the past, most notably with the Saudi bombings, as well.

MULTAN, Pakistan (AP) -- Two bombs planted in a car and motorcycle exploded at a gathering of Sunni Muslim radicals in central Pakistan before dawn Thursday, killing at least 39 people and wounding about 100 others. Police suspected it was a sectarian attack.

About 2,000 angry Sunnis gathered outside a hospital where victims of the explosions in the city of Multan were taken, shouting "Shiites are infidels!" and slogans against the government, witnesses said.

The bombings came less than a week after a suicide attack left 31 dead at a Shiite mosque in an eastern city.

About 3,000 people had gathered in a residential area of Multan to mark the anniversary of the death of the leader of the outlawed Sunni radical group Sipah-e-Sahaba killed in an attack last year.

A car bomb exploded near the venue as people were starting to disperse after the overnight meeting, and two minutes later a second bomb attached to a motorcycle went off, deputy city police chief Arshad Hameed said.

"It seems to be an act of sectarian terrorism, but we are still investigating," he told The Associated Press....

A leader of the group blamed Thursday's bombings on radical Shiite Muslims.

"This is the worst kind of terrorism, and everybody knows who is behind it," said Ahmad Ludhianvi, the head of Sipah-e-Sahaba.

Iran's Missiles Can Now Hit Europe, Rafsanjani Says

From Reuters, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

TEHRAN - Iran has increased the range of its missiles to 1,250 miles, a senior Iranian official was quoted as saying on Tuesday, putting parts of Europe within reach for the first time.

Military analysts had estimated Iran's missile range at 810 miles, which would allow it to strike anywhere in Israel. But Iran's official Islamic Republic News Agency quoted Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the country's influential former president and the head of a government oversight body, as saying: "Now we have the power to launch a missile with a 2,000-kilometer range. Iran is determined to improve its military capabilities."

"If the Americans attack Iran, the world will change. . . . They will not dare to make such a mistake," Rafsanjani was quoted as saying in a speech at a national security exhibition.

The United States, which has accused Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons, expressed "serious concerns about Iran's missile programs."

Interpol downplays reports of terrorists in Central America

I hope this doesn't come back to bite them. From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

CANCUN, Mexico (AP) No evidence exists to back reports that al-Qaida terrorists are in Central America, the chief of the regional office for the international police agency Interpol said Wednesday.

Saul Hernandez said police in the region were on the watch for terrorists, but he said there was no evidence showing overseas terrorists have tried to contact Central American gangs.

Interviewed by a small group of reporters during Interpol's annual assembly here, Hernandez said investigators also had been unable to confirm the presence in Central America of a suspected al-Qaida member, Adnan Gushair El Shukrijumah, despite earlier official reports he had been spotted in Honduras.

``We do not have information that effectively confirms that this person was there,'' said Hernandez, who is also El Salvador's police commissioner.

Briton charged in terror conspiracy: raised money from US websites

From CNN, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Court documents have revealed alleged communications between a British citizen and Mohammed Naeem Noor Khan, an al Qaeda computer expert arrested in Pakistan in July.

The newly released indictment alleges that Babar Ahmad communicated with Naeem Noor Khan, an al Qaeda expert arrested in Pakistan in July.

Until U.S. officials leaked the arrest of Khan to reporters, Pakistan had been using him to track down al Qaeda operatives around the world, Pakistan intelligence sources said in early August.

In background briefings with journalists, unnamed U.S. government officials said it was the capture of Khan that provided the information that led Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge to announce a higher terror alert level.

Ahmad, 30, is accused of using U.S.-based Web sites to raise money for terrorists, including Chechen leader Shamil Basayev, who has claimed responsibility for the Beslan school massacre in Russia.

The indictment also charges Ahmad with conspiracy to provide support to terrorists, including helping to ship gas masks to the Taliban; providing material support to terrorists; conspiracy to kill, kidnap or injure people in a foreign country; and money laundering....

The document states authorities found what appears to be a 1960s or 1970s tourist brochure for the Empire State Building during a search of Ahmad's residence. That brochure includes details about the building, including its ventilation system. It also features aerial shots of the building from north, east, south and west, and a map....

Authorities also found a floppy disc that detailed movements in 2001 of a U.S. Navy battle group in the Strait of Hormuz, and discusses its vulnerability to terrorist attack, according to the affidavit. "Weakness: They have nothing to stop a small craft with RPG etc, except their SEALs' stinger missiles."

Ahmad allegedly exchanged e-mails with a U.S. Navy enlistee aboard the USS Benfold at about the same time.

One e-mail from the sailor allegedly voices enmity toward the "American enemies" and expresses support for those who attacked the USS Cole, calling them "men who have brought honor this week to the ummah in the lands of Jihad Afghanistan, Bosnia, Chechnya."

Ahmad allegedly replied, telling the sailor to "keep up the psychological warfare."

The indictment accuses Ahmad of maintaining several Web sites, including azzam.com, which posted messages saying "the best way of helping Jihad and the Mujahadeen is by actually going to the lands of Jihad and physically fighting.

"The first and most important thing that Muslims can do in the West is to donate money," the Web sites state, according to the document.

It also allegedly directs readers to obtain firearms training and, where permissible, obtain an assault rifle. "Military training is an Islamic obligation, not an option."

The Web sites, according to the indictment, provided instruction for the surreptitious transfer of funds to the Chechen Mujahadeen and the Taliban, and instructions for travel to Pakistan and Afghanistan to fight with these groups....

In a letter published in September in the British newspaper The Guardian, Ahmad wrote, "I can't comment on the case as my lawyers are dealing with it, but I am optimistic."

"I can't believe that the government can extradite a British citizen to the land that invented Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib and Bagram, for his human rights to be abused for "crimes" allegedly committed in Britain."

I can see that he himself is keeping up the psychological warfare. I can't believe that a coreligionist of those who perpetrated 9/11, Fallujah, and Beslan -- and one who probably approved of all three -- would dare to engage in that kind of moral equivalence.

Less pressure on Sudan despite new Darfur attacks

Why should this be surprising? If the UN can employ Hamas jihadists, why should it go up against jihadists in Darfur? From afrol News, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

6 October - The UN reports that "Sudan has failed to disarm militias or prevent more attacks in Darfur." Despite this "lack of progress", the UN Security Council is easing its pressure on Khartoum. There is no more talk about possible oil sanctions against Sudan but enhanced focus on African Union (AU) peacemakers, which also should be set to protect the displaced.

The UN's top envoy to Sudan, Jan Pronk, yesterday told the Security Council that the Sudanese government had made no progress last month in either stopping militia attacks against civilians in Darfur, disarming those armed groups or prosecuting the individuals responsible for the worst atrocities.

Mr Pronk told the Security Council's 15 members that, while Khartoum had not reversed the gains it had achieved in August, "there was no systematic improvement of people's security and no progress on ending impunity." In September, frequent and sometimes "atrocious" attacks by the militias, numerous breaches of the ceasefire by both the Sudanese government and the rebel groups, and an alarming rise in armed banditry had occurred, he said.

Spencer: Anti-Muslim? Not me

This week's column by Jihad Watch director Robert Spencer expands upon CAIR's new survey that found that 25% of Americans are "anti-Muslim" because they think Islam teaches violence. From FrontPage:

Twenty-five percent of Americans hold what AP calls “anti-Muslim views,” according to a story published Monday. AP added that “the poll found that people most likely to have negative attitudes were male, white, less educated, politically conservative and living in the South.” And, no doubt, wear overalls and drive pickups with gun racks and Confederate flag bumper stickers.

Working hard to dispel the prejudice of these benighted Bubbas is none other than the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), which actually conducted the survey. They’re planning activities during the Muslim month of Ramadan to counter what AP characterized as one indication of “anti-Muslim views”: “a belief that the religion teaches violence and hatred.”

How’s that again? Americans are “anti-Muslim” because they think Islam teaches violence and hatred? With Muslims shouting “Allahu akbar” (Allah is greatest) while beheading civilians in Iraq and murdering children in Beslan, Russia, perhaps it’s a bit premature to convict this 25% of Americans of bigotry. With the leader of the Pakistani radical Muslim group Jaish-e-Mohammed, Maulana Masood Azhar, saying last year that “in Islam the only meaning of jihad was killing,” maybe that twenty-five percent is on to something.

But of course, CAIR maintains that all that is a hijacking of Islam. CAIR Board Chairman Omar Ahmad insisted that those who commit violence in Islam’s name “have nothing to do with Islam. People claim they are doing it for Islam, but it’s really in spite of Islam,” Ahmad said. And they have convinced Americans of this: “About two in three,” according to AP, “said they agreed that ‘the people who use Islam to justify violence are misinterpreting its teachings.’”

Maulana Masood Azhar himself was not so easily convinced. He declared that the misinterpreters were the Muslim moderates, saying that those who elaborated the ideas of the “greater jihad” and the “lesser jihad” were “against Islam.” The “greater jihad,” as American Muslim spokesmen never tire of reminding us, is spiritual struggle. The “lesser jihad,” they say, is warfare, but only for defense. In my book Onward Muslim Soldiers I detail how radical Muslims including Abdullah Azzam, Osama bin Laden’s mentor, and Hassan Al-Banna, founder of the Muslim Brotherhood (the first modern radical Muslim group), rejected the concept of the “greater jihad” as being founded upon inauthentic traditions of the Prophet Muhammad. Azhar evidently shares this view.

What’s more, from the standpoint of Islamic theology and tradition, the radicals have the better of the argument. The courageous ex-Muslim Ibn Warraq writer explains: “For every text the liberal Muslims produce, the mullahs will use dozens of counter-examples [that are] exegetically, philosophically, historically far more legitimate.” He adds that “it is time for moderate Muslims to question honestly the principles of their faith. To admit the role of the Qur’an in the propagation of violence.”

To admit the role of the Qur’an in the propagation of violence is simply to open one’s eyes and read the statements of Osama bin Laden and other radical Muslim leaders. Is to do this “anti-Muslim”? Certainly CAIR, as shown by this AP article, thinks of all such efforts as “anti-Muslim,” and the media uncritically accepts the group’s contention that to discuss the roots of terror in the doctrine of jihad is to hate Muslims. But in fact, to criticize the elements of Islam that give rise to terror is not to be anti-Muslim at all; individual Muslims themselves may not accept or even know about the doctrines that Osama and others use to justify themselves.

Moreover, to ignore these elements out of fear of being anti-Muslim plays into the hands of the jihadists by foreclosing on any honest examination of why they’re really doing what they’re doing — which foreclosure, of course, destroys the chance that any positive and truly effective steps can be taken to stop them.

It is not hating Muslims to ask them to remove the hate from their religion, and to accept the principles of human rights that are accepted everywhere else in the world. But will Omar Ahmad and CAIR admit this? I doubt it. Ahmad, of course, was reported as saying in 1998 that “Islam isn’t in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant. The Koran should be the highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion on earth.” He has since claimed that his remarks were misrepresented, but the reporter says she remembers his statement, if not his exact words, and declines to retract her story.

Is Omar Ahmad himself “anti-Muslim”?

Double slam for Islam: Hub mosque, Muslim radicals under fire

More on the radical Boston mosque and the protests against it. From the Boston Herald, with thanks to Miss Moneypenney:

The Muslim organization behind a vast new $22 million mosque in Roxbury received a double blow yesterday after an Islamic scholar accused its leaders of tolerating ``hateful views'' and a city councilor ordered a probe into how the group acquired a choice piece of Hub-owned land at a bargain rate.

Councilor Jerry P. McDermott (D-Brighton), vice chairman of the Post Audit and Oversight Committee, ordered city officials to explain why a 1.9-acre parcel along Malcolm X Boulevard, conservatively valued at $401,187, was sold to the Islamic Society of Boston for $175,000 and ``in-kind benefits'' to Roxbury Community College.

The Herald reported last week that the land deal is the subject of a lawsuit asserting that it represents an unconstitutional government subsidy of a religion: Islam.

``We want a full accounting by the end of the month,'' McDermott said. ``If they can afford a $22 million mosque, why can't they pay fair-market value for the land?''

Boston Redevelopment Authority officials said they could not comment due to the litigation.

Also yesterday, a Muslim-American scholar joined the growing chorus of voices urging the Islamic Society's leadership to disavow any connections to radical Islam.

At a press conference sponsored by Citizens for Peace and Tolerance (www.hatefreeamerica.com), Dr. Ahmed Subhy Mansour, an Egyptian-born political refugee once jailed there for defending moderate Islamic causes, said ``I am here to testify that this radical culture is here inside this society.''

Mansour, a former visiting fellow at Harvard Law School, said he went to the society's current headquarters in Cambridge a year ago and discovered ``Arabic-language newsletters filled with hateful statements against the United States.'' He also said the center's library housed books and videos ``representing fanatical beliefs that insult other people's religions.''

Netherlands: Security service fears leak as four suspects held

Is there a jihadist in the Dutch security services? And if there is, how did he get there? Perhaps because they can't ask pointed questions about Muslims' attachment to jihad ideology? From Expatica, with thanks to Intellfrance:

AMSTERDAM — Police are investigating whether information from the Dutch intelligence service AIVD has fallen into the hands of recently arrested terror suspects, it was reported Tuesday.

During the arrest of a 37-year-old man in Utrecht on 26 September, police seized information that possibly originated from the AIVD. The man is suspected of possession or the transport of explosives.

He was arrested the same night that a Moroccan family was detained in Utrecht on the same suspicions. The family was later released.

But another suspect — a 30-year-old man and possibly a relative of the Moroccan family — was arrested on Saturday in Utrecht. He is also being held on suspicion of the possession of explosives.

Thai Prime Minister Sacks Two Ministers

From AP:

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- The Thai prime minister fired his agriculture and defense ministers Wednesday as part of a high-level shake-up aimed at tackling a deadly outbreak of bird flu and a bloody separatist insurgency in the Muslim-dominated south....

To help quell the Muslim insurgency, Thaksin appointed Aree Wong-areeya, himself a Muslim and a longtime civil servant at the Interior Ministry. He was made deputy minister of education and asked to help reform Islamic religious schools in the south, which have been accused by some security officials of sheltering militants and promoting separatism.

Thaksin told reporters he wants Aree to supervise the schools and not ``allow those crazy teachers to instigate the Muslim youths in the wrong way, like they do currently.''

Good luck, Aree!

Iran Moves Toward Nuclear Production

These are the folks who decorated their missiles with messages such as "crush America." From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iran has produced "a few tons" of the gas needed to enrich uranium, a top nuclear official said Wednesday, confirming the country has defied international demands and taken a necessary step toward producing nuclear fuel - or nuclear weapons.

Uranium hexafluoride gas is the material that, in the next stage, is fed into centrifuges used to enrich uranium. Uranium enriched to a low level is used to produce nuclear fuel to generate electricity and enriched further can be used to manufacture atomic bomb.

Iran said last month that it has started converting about 40 tons of raw uranium being mined for enrichment - plans the international community specifically said it found alarming. Iran maintains its intentions are peaceful energy purposes.

"We have converted part of the raw uranium we had and produced a few tons of uranium hexafluoride gas," said Hossein Mousavian, Iran's chief delegate to the International Atomic Energy Agency told The Associated Press in an interview. He would not specify how much.

Calling all Muslims who honor tolerance and human dignity

In the Washington Post (thanks to Jeffrey Imm), Jim Hoagland rightly disparages the "war on terror" label, as I did many months ago and for the same reasons. Hoagland says:

The mobilizing utility of the "war on terrorism" label has run its course. To continue to use it for rhetorical or organizational purposes would obscure the moral, political and social responsibilities that Muslim societies must now assume to cleanse themselves of fanatical fringe groups and ideologies.

Hoagland concludes:

Launching a war against al Qaeda and other terrorism groups and their supporters was necessary. Pursuing it in its present form will not be sufficient, for President Bush or for President Kerry. The leadership in a broader struggle must inexorably pass to Muslims who honor tolerance and human dignity -- and who are willing to place themselves at risk to defend those values for all faiths and races.

I agree. The only problem is finding Muslims who honor tolerance and human dignity without either having secret terrorist ties or making their case for tolerance and human dignity in such a way as to leave highway-wide loopholes for the activities of Muslim radicals.

So I am issuing a call today. I have done this before and come up empty, but no harm in trying again. If you are a Muslim who is willing to renounce and reject the elements of Islamic theology and law that deny equality of rights to women and non-Muslims, and that mandate violence against unbelievers, please comment here or contact me at director@jihadwatch.org. I am looking forward very much to hearing from you.

France Tries Suspected Islamic Militants

From AP, with thanks to Twostellas:

PARIS - Ten suspected Islamic militants, including one of Osama bin Laden's alleged associates, went on trial Wednesday in connection with the millennium plot to attack the Christmas market in the eastern French city of Strasbourg.

Eight of the suspects were on hand for the trial at the Paris criminal court. Another is detained in Britain while one who had been released pending trial did not appear in court. All are Algerians or French-Algerians.

The trial is expected to last three months.

Four of the suspects allegedly trained in the use of arms and explosives in al-Qaida camps in Afghanistan in the 1990s.

All are suspected of involvement, to varying degrees, in a plan to attack the market on New Year's Eve 2000. The well-known market is set up around the city cathedral during the Christmas period and becomes a major gathering place.

UNRWA Terrorist Activity Under-Reported

A report from Israel National News detailing the utter moral corruption of the UN.

Peter Hansen, the Commissioner-General of UNRWA in Gaza, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation two days ago that some UNRWA workers are Hamas terrorists. "I am sure that there are Hamas members on the UNRWA payroll," Hansen said, adding, "I don't see that as a crime... We do not do political vetting and exclude people from one persuasion as against another."

Hansen attempted to draw a distinction between 'political' and 'militant' Hamas members. Both the United States and the European Union do not accept this distinction, however, and have outlawed or blacklisted all branches of Hamas and have frozen all Hamas assets.

"Despite the gravity of this matter," HonestReporting.com reported yesterday, "Hansen's admission that Hamas members are on the UN payroll has - as of now - received scant media attention. The Associated Press, for example, buried Hansen's statement in an article that focused primarily on IDF air strikes, and the New York Times has yet to even acknowledge Hansen's admission. This error of omission is particularly troubling in light of Israel's ongoing campaign in Gaza to stop Hamas from firing rockets into Israeli towns such as Sderot."

Israel has admitted that its latest accusation against UNRWA - to the effect that a Palestinian terrorist was filmed loading a Kassam rocket onto a UN ambulance van - is probably not true. The object seen being loaded onto the van was most likely a stretcher, IDF sources now say. Hansen demands a clear Israeli apology.

Israel insists, however, that Hansen is not the impartial observer his job description mandates. In the wake of the 2002 Jenin operation, Hansen was one of those who falsely accused Israel of having perpetrated a massacre. He used terms at the time such as, 'wholesale obliteration... a human catastrophe that has few parallels in recent history,' 'helicopters... strafing civilian residential areas,' and 'bodies... piling up' in 'mass graves.' HonestReporting.com notes that Hansen even claimed to have seen some of the alleged carnage with his own eyes.

Armed Palestinians were filmed in May of this year using UNRWA ambulances to transport terrorists. Other documented UNRWA violations of its neutrality:

* Sept. 2003: After the Israeli military court convicted three UNRWA employees for terrorist activities, Israel detained at least 16 other UNRWA staff members for various security-related matters.

* Dec. 2002: An Israeli intelligence report indicated that numerous UNRWA facilities in Judea, Samaria and Gaza had been used by Palestinian terrorists as meeting grounds and for weapons storage.

* Sept. 2002: Nahd Attala, a senior official of UNRWA in Gaza, revealed that in June-July 2002, he used his UNRWA car for the transportation of armed Fatah members on their way to carry out a missile attack against Jewish communities. In addition, Nahd said he used an UNRWA car to transport a 12-kg. explosive charge for his brother-in-law, a Fatah member.

* August 2002: Nidal Nazzal, a Hamas member and ambulance driver employed by UNRWA, confessed to transporting weapons and explosives in an UNRWA ambulance. He said he had taken advantage of the freedom of movement he enjoyed as part of his UNRWA job to transmit messages among Hamas members in various PA-controlled towns.

* February 2002: Ala Muhammad Ali Hassan, a Tanzim member, confessed to having carried out a sniper shooting from the school run by UNRWA in the al-Ayn refugee camp near Nablus. He also told his interrogators that bombs intended for terrorist attacks were being manufactured inside the UNRWA school's facilities.

Jive Turki

Prince Turki says that modern terrorism comes from unfair British policies in the Middle East dating back to World War I. From Arab News, with thanks to Kemaste:

JEDDAH, 6 October 2004 — Saudi Ambassador in London Prince Turki Al-Faisal in a forthright speech during the Conservative Party’s annual conference, linked the sources of current terrorism to a disaffection and “sense of injustice that can be traced back to the World War I.”

Quoting Lord Crewe who said, “What we want is not a united Arabia, but a weak and disunited Arabia, split into little principalities as far as possible under our suzerainty — but incapable of coordinated action against us.”

Prince Turki described the division of the Middle East among the Western powers as like “portioning out cake”.

He pointed out that both then as now, Britain was playing a key role in “two of the most turbulent regions in the Middle East — the Palestinian territories and Iraq”, and that the British made promises of “fair play” to the indigenous Arabs in Palestine and promised a brighter future to the people of Iraq.

The British government, Prince Turki said, viewed with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, “but on one clear understanding, and I quote, ‘that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine.’

“That promise was broken and has continued to be broken by the West. As I see it there a direct link between the events of yesterday and the terrible realities we face today.”

Turki didn't address how this British unfairness has given rise to jihad terrorism in Indonesia, or the Philippines, or Thailand, or Kashmir, or Nigeria, or Chechnya, or anywhere else where it appears today around the globe in regions thousands of miles removed from Israel. Nor did he explain the Islamic terrorists' consistent and thoroughgoing use of jihad terminology, and how their struggle relates to that of the great Islamic empires of the past, which invaded and conquered numerous regions in aggressive wars based on the same ideology.

Does he really think that if the West abandons Israel, terrorism will cease? Tell them that in Bali, and Mindanao, and southern Thailand.

Behead anyone you like!

A few weeks after we definitively established here that beheading of hostages is perfectly permissible under Islamic law, Amir Taheri adds that most Islamic teachers today are saying so too — or when they don't, they only denounce beheading on political, not religious grounds. From OpinionJournal:

Who are we allowed to seize as hostage? Who are we allowed to kill?

For the past few weeks these questions have prompted much debate throughout the Muslim world. The emerging answer to both questions is: Anyone you like!

Triggered by the atrocity at a school in Beslan, in southern Russia, last month, the debate has been further fueled by kidnappings and "exhibition killings" in Iraq. Non-Muslims may find it strange that such practices are debated rather than condemned as despicable crimes. But the fact is that the seizure of hostages and "exhibition killing" go back to the early stages of Islamic history.

In the Arabia of the seventh century, where Islam was born, seizing hostages was practiced by rival tribes, and "exhibition killing" was a weapon of psychological war. The Prophet codified those practices, ending freelance kidnappings and head-chopping. One principle of the new code was that Muslims could not be held hostage by Muslims. Nor could Muslims be subjected to "exhibition killing." Such methods were to be used solely against non-Muslims, and then only in the context of armed conflict.

Seized in combat, a non-Muslim would be treated as a war prisoner, and could win freedom by converting to Islam. He could also be ransomed or exchanged against a Muslim prisoner of war. Non-Muslim women and children captured in war would become the property of their Muslim captors. Female captives could be taken as concubines or given as gifts to Muslims. The children, brought up as Muslims, would enjoy Islamic rights.

He could also be killed. Islamic law outlined four options: the prisoner could be enslaved, ransomed, freed outright, or killed.

Centuries later, the initial code was elaborated by Imam Jaafar Sadeq, a descendant of the Prophet. He made two key rulings. Whoever entered Islam was instantly granted "full guarantee for his blood." And non-Muslims, as long as they paid their poll tax, or jiziyah, to the Islamic authority would be protected.

He didn't originate this. This goes all the way back to Qur'an 9:29: "Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book [Jews and Christians], until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued."

Recalling this background is important because what we witness in the Muslim world today is disregard of religious tradition in favor of political considerations.

Yes, but this sentence can easily be misread. Most will probably assume that the radical Muslims are discarding the religious tradition in carrying out these killings. Not so: it is the "moderates" who condemn the killings who are departing from the religious tradition:

A survey of Muslim views over the past weeks shows overwhelming, though not unanimous, condemnation of the Beslan massacre. But in all cases the reasons given for the condemnation are political rather than religious. Muslim commentators assert that Russia, having supported "the Palestinian cause," did not deserve such treatment.

Sheik Yussuf al-Qaradawi, a Sunni Muslim scholar based in Qatar, was among the first to condemn the Beslan massacre. At the same time, however, he insists that a similar attack on Israeli schools would be justified because Israeli schoolchildren, if not killed, could grow up to become soldiers. (Sheik Qaradawi also justifies the killing of unborn Israelis because, if born, they could become soldiers.)...

Yet even more disturbing is the attitude of Muslim organizations in France and Britain. Both have sent delegations to Iraq to contact the terrorists and ask for the liberation of two French, and one British, hostages. The French delegation, led by Mohamed Bechari, went out of its way to advertise France's "heroic opposition" to the Iraq war in 2003. "I am here to defend France's Arab policy," Mr. Bechari told reporters. "In Iraq as well as in Palestine, France is for the Arabs."

The two British Muslim delegates made their case in a different way by arguing that, although Britain participated in toppling Saddam Hussein, a majority of the British were opposed to the war. Thus British hostage Ken Bigley should be released not because hostage-taking is wrong but because such a move could strengthen anti-war sentiment in Britain.

By refusing to come out with a categorical rejection of terrorism, Muslim leaders and opinion-makers are helping perpetuate a situation in which no one is safe. The 9/11 attacks against the United States were based on the claim, made by al Qaeda's No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahiri, that all citizens of democratic countries could be murdered because, being actual or potential voters, they have a share of responsibility for the policies of their governments.

Israel arrests 13 UN workers for links to terrorism

Backing up David Bedein's story here. From The Telegraph, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:

Israel has arrested 13 United Nations employees over "suspected links to terrorism", an Israeli army officer has said. The names and job titles of the UN staff members were not revealed and it was not clear when they were arrested.

Confused Reporting about a Confused Poll: 1 in 4 Hold Anti-Muslim Views

Stories like this show why CAIR can so easily portray anti-jihad efforts as "anti-Muslim": the media uncritically accepts the group's contention that to discuss the roots of terror in the doctrine of jihad is to hate Muslims. To criticize the elements of Islam that give rise to terror is not to be anti-Muslim at all; individual Muslims themselves may not accept or even know about the doctrines that Osama and others use to justify themselves. But to ignore these elements out of fear of being anti-Muslim is completely wrongheaded: it plays into the hands of the jihadists by foreclosing on any honest examination of why they're really doing what they're doing -- which foreclosure, of course, destroys the chance that any positive and really effective steps can be taken to stop them.

This story should not assume that Americans are "anti-Muslim" because they think Islam teaches violence. It is a simple fact that Islamic teachers around the world today do teach violence in the name of the religion. Anyone who doubts that should search the archives here. But to take note of that fact is not to hate Muslims: it is to ask them to remove the hate from their religion, and to accept the principles of human rights that are accepted everywhere else in the world.

From AP, with thanks to Charles:

WASHINGTON - About one in four Americans holds anti-Muslim views, such as a belief that the religion teaches violence and hatred, according to a survey an Islamic advocacy group released Monday.

The survey by the Council on American-Islamic Relations found a majority of Americans hold positive views of Muslims, while a substantial number have no opinion at all.

Anti-Islamic sentiment surged in this country after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks by terrorists who claimed to be acting in the name of the faith. Since then, anti-Muslim views have been encouraged by a continuing string of terror attacks, including decapitations, in Iraq, as well as a violent attack on school children in Russia, said Omar Ahmad, chairman of the council's board.

"They have nothing to do with Islam. People claim they are doing it for Islam, but it's really in spite of Islam," Ahmad said.

I wish that just one time, Omar, you would back that up from Islamic sources when you say it, and give us a real refutation of the detailed Islamic justifications that radical Muslims have so often given for their actions. The bare assertion that they're acting "in spite of Islam," when put against their mountains of citations from Qur'an and Hadith, just won't cut it anymore. If you really did this, Omar, you would dispel a lot of the suspicion you decry.

But Omar Ahmad, of course, was reported as saying in 1998 that "Islam isn’t in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant. The Koran should be the highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion on earth." He has claimed that his remarks were misrepresented, but the reporter says she remembers his statement, if not his exact words, and declines to retract her story.

UPDATE (thanks to Anthony): The German press has picked up on this story, also portraying Americans as "anti-Muslim." (Do not adjust your set. This link is in German.)

British policeman jailed for passing info to Saudis

Muslim radicals routinely preach that Muslims should have no loyalty to non-Muslim states, but only to fellow Muslims. This is the fruit. From the BBC, with thanks to Twostellas:

A police officer has been jailed for two-and-a-half years for accepting money to pass on information to a Saudi Arabian intelligence officer.

Ghazi Kassim, 53, was paid to leak information on dissidents by a Saudi embassy diplomat, the Old Bailey heard.

He admitted three charges of public office misconduct by misusing his position to gain and sell information about people of Middle Eastern origin.

He had also been researching radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri.

Kassim passed his information to Dr Ali al-Shamarani, a third secretary at the embassy, who flew out of Britain shortly before Kassim was arrested in July last year.

A married man with three children, Kassim had been a policeman for 15 years but was sacked after his arrest.

On Monday, the court was told £14,000 had been traced to Kassim's bank account.

Roger Smart, prosecuting, said: "Ghazi Kassim conducted research into private individuals using confidential databases held by the Metropolitan Police.

"He received tasking from Dr Ali al-Shamarani to go to question people at their home addresses, which he did."

Mr Smart said: "He did not declare he was a police officer when he did this, nor did he declare for whom he was carrying out this research.

"He received significant cash payments for his work from the Saudi diplomat."

Mr Smart added: "At the very least, his greed and /or other motivation has in effect risked putting into the hands of a third party information that would not otherwise have been freely obtained."

I suspect he had another motivation that was more important to him than greed.

Militants said to have killed 2 hostages

Yet more deaths. From AP, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- A militant group claimed Monday to have killed two hostages, one a Turk and the other an Iraqi who was a longtime resident in Italy, the Arab news network Al-Jazeera reported. Two abducted Indonesian women, meanwhile, were freed, diplomats said.

The station said it had received video footage from a group calling itself the Salafist Brigades of Abu Bakr Al-Sidiq accusing the Turkish and Iraqi hostages of being spies. A segment broadcast on the network showed four armed militants dressed in black standing behind two kneeling men.

Al-Jazeera identified the Iraqi as Anwar Wali but did not give the Turkish man's name.

In Italy, Wali's family said the Italian Foreign Ministry had notified them that his death was confirmed. The Foreign Ministry told me that my brother was killed," the victim's brother, Emad Wali, said by telephone from the family's home in Castelfranco Veneto in northeast Italy.

Saddam Possessed WMD, Had Extensive Terror Ties

Information from newly discovered Iraqi intelligence documents. From CNSNews.com, with thanks to all those who sent this to me:

CNSNews.com) - Iraqi intelligence documents, confiscated by U.S. forces and obtained by CNSNews.com, show numerous efforts by Saddam Hussein's regime to work with some of the world's most notorious terror organizations, including al Qaeda, to target Americans. They demonstrate that Saddam's government possessed mustard gas and anthrax, both considered weapons of mass destruction, in the summer of 2000, during the period in which United Nations weapons inspectors were not present in Iraq. And the papers show that Iraq trained dozens of terrorists inside its borders.

One of the Iraqi memos contains an order from Saddam for his intelligence service to support terrorist attacks against Americans in Somalia. The memo was written nine months before U.S. Army Rangers were ambushed in Mogadishu by forces loyal to a warlord with alleged ties to al Qaeda.

Other memos provide a list of terrorist groups with whom Iraq had relationships and considered available for terror operations against the United States.

Among the organizations mentioned are those affiliated with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and Ayman al-Zawahiri, two of the world's most wanted terrorists. Zarqawi is believed responsible for the kidnapping and beheading of several American civilians in Iraq and claimed responsibility for a series of deadly bombings in Iraq Sept. 30. Al-Zawahiri is the top lieutenant of al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, allegedly helped plan the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist strikes on the U.S., and is believed to be the voice on an audio tape broadcast by Al-Jazeera television Oct. 1, calling for attacks on U.S. and British interests everywhere.

The source of the documents

A senior government official who is not a political appointee provided CNSNews.com with copies of the 42 pages of Iraqi Intelligence Service documents. The originals, some of which were hand-written and others typed, are in Arabic. CNSNews.com had the papers translated into English by two individuals separately and independent of each other.

New Citizens Group Challenges Mosque Leaders to Address Honestly the Radical Islamist Roots of Boston Mosque

A press release from Citizens for Peace and Tolerance about the new mosque in Boston:

New Citizens Group Challenges Mosque Leaders to Address Honestly the Radical Islamist Roots of Boston Mosque

Concerned about threat to Boston ’s tolerant communal tradition

October 5th, 2004 –Citizens for Peace and Tolerance ( CPT), a group of concerned citizens, academics, and community activists, today called on the Islamic Society of Boston (ISB) to honestly answer concerns about radical Islamist roots of its $22 million Roxbury mosque. CPT, a new group comprised of Christians, Muslims and Jews, is responding to recent media reports which document a troubling connection between the Islamic Society of Boston and radical Islamists and terrorist organizations including Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. CPT spokespersons are also very concerned over the reluctance of the Boston political establishment and many in the media to discuss these matters.

CPT spokesperson Dennis Hale, a Boston College professor of history, said that the organization believes in the diversity of the Boston community and in the need to promote a climate of tolerance and civil society. “This is not about a mosque being built in Boston,” he said. “It is about the potential radicalization of the Boston Muslim community.” Hale said CPT takes pride in Boston’s long tradition of welcoming diverse groups of immigrants, and commends Mayor Thomas Menino for his leadership in this area.

CPT is concerned that some of the founders of the Islamic center in Boston may be part of a global and national effort by radicals and extremists to control mosques and radicalize their communities. Hale noted that “Muslims are the main victims of radical Islamists. Radical Islamists using funding from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states have taken over many mosques and now control a significant portion of all mosques in North America.” He also noted that there are several documented reports around the country of Mosque leaders with connections to terrorist organizations. “This is a disturbing development for moderate Muslims and for peaceful coexistence in our nation and communities.”

Steve Cohen, a local lawyer and member of the group, said, "We are troubled by certain statements and actions by the leaders of the Islamic Society of Boston. We do not believe that the ISB has been truthful and forthcoming about the center’s founders, their hateful ideology and their relationship to the center.” Cohen added that, “too often radical Muslims use the vocabulary of tolerance and compassion to obfuscate and deny their radical agenda. Radical Islamists have frequently replaced boards of trustees, using well intentioned, highly articulate and educated moderates as spokespersons.”

The ISB has made non-credible excuses in response to media inquires. These excuses include the claims: that words were taken out of their “historic and linguistic” context and that words have multiple and arbitrary meanings. When reporters found a radical cleric on their Board, the ISB called it an “administrative oversight”. Citizens for Peace and Tolerance is asking for an honest recognition by ISB officials of the seriousness of the charges raised by media reports.

CPT announced it is seeking to enlist moderate Muslims in support of its goal of a hate-free Boston. “We are concerned by the ISB’s refusal to clearly and unambiguously disavow any and all Wahhabi and Muslim Brotherhood hateful and racist ideology as it appears in texts of their library,” noted Hale.

“We are also disturbed by the lack of public discourse and very limited media coverage relating to the role that radical Islam plays in American mosques and in particular the Islamic center being built in Boston,” Dennis Hale noted. “We are in a rhetorical trap of political correctness that does not know how to be ethnically sensitive and honest at the same time. This is very dangerous, given the intentions of radical Islamists. There’s a knee-jerk reaction by most of our civic leaders to refrain from any criticism of a perceived vulnerable minority. They don’t know how to deal with it; they are concerned about being accused of being anti-Muslim, and so they avoid it. Unfortunately, radical Islamists are well aware of this aversion and fully exploit it.”

Citizens for Peace and Tolerance is planning to promote public discourse about the threat of radical Islam and its potential influence on Boston’s tradition of tolerance.

UN Abets Jihad Terror: Mortar Attacks on Israelis from UN Safe Haven

Has the UN become an active jihadist force? From David Bedein in FrontPage, evidence that UNRWA (the United Nations Relief and Work Agency) is helping Palestinians attack Israel, a UN member state -- again:

Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Dan Gillerman, sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Sunday, demanding the dismissal of Peter Hansen from his position as commissioner-general of UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Work Agency), the organization that administers the Palestinian Arab refugee camps, under the premise and promise of the “right of return” to the homes and villages their ancestors left in 1948. In addition, Gillerman called for the United Nations to conduct a full investigation of UNWRA.

Reuters reports the Gillerman letter contains documentation that Hamas is using UN ambulances to smuggle arms and terrorists through the Gaza Strip.

15 months ago, the Hamas terror organization won more than 90% of the vote to run the UNRWA workers union in the UNRWA Arab refugee camps in Gaza. The salaries of UNRWA workers are paid through contributions that UNRWA receives from 38 contributing countries. The U.S. provides 30% of that budget, Canada contributes 4% of that budget, and the European countries contribute well over 55% of that budget.

In other words, the western democracies of the world pay the salaries of the Hamas terrorists on the payroll of UNRWA.

Read it all.

British Muslim Charged With Plotting Attack with "Shoe Bomber"

Just in from AP:

WASHINGTON - U.S. authorities brought charges Monday against a British man they claim conspired with admitted al-Qaida member Richard Reid to use shoe bombs to blow up planes in midair.

A federal grand jury indictment unsealed in Boston charges Saajid Badat, 25, with attempted murder, trying to destroy an aircraft and other counts related to the alleged conspiracy with Reid, who also is a British citizen and Muslim convert.

Reid's attempt to blow up a Paris-to-Miami flight on Dec. 22, 2001, was thwarted by attendants and passengers after he tried to light a fuse leading to the concealed plastic explosives in his sneakers.

According to the indictment, Badat "admitted that he was asked to conduct a shoe bombing like Reid" when he was arrested in Britain last November. Bomb components similar to Reid's — including an explosive compound known as TATP — were found at his home, the indictment said.

Iraqi Sunnis threaten to start “great jihad”

Yes, I too thought they had already started it. Also, apparently they haven't heard the common American Muslim refrain (based on a hadith that radical theorists such as Hassan Al-Banna and Abdullah Azzam reject as inauthentic) that the greater jihad is a spiritual struggle, not armed warfare. From Itar-Tass:

DUBAI, October 4 (Itar-Tass) - The Islamic Theologians League of Iraq has threatened to declare “great jihad” in response to massive killings “perpetrated by the occupation troops in the cities of Falluja and Samarra.” Muhammad Bashar al-Faydi, official representative of the League, said so at a press conference in Baghdad, the mass media reported on Monday.

He described as massacre the combat operations, staged by the U.S. Air Force in those cities. He cited examples of unprovoked murder of children and old people. “Our impression today is that our creed and the very existence of the Iraqi nation are in jeopardy. The only thing left to us is to declare ‘great jihad’,” al-Faydi said.

The Islamic Theologians League of Iraq believes that severe repressions against the Iraqi population are aimed at “pacifying” the people during preparations for the elections, which are scheduled for early 2005. “Iraqis will not accept the results of the elections, the road to which is paved with sculls and flooded with blood,” said Muhammad al-Faydi.

Missouri Mosque In Center Of Homeland Security Controversy

From AP, with thanks to Twostellas:

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) -- Members of a mosque are fighting to keep their place of worship as the federal government probes a link between the Islamic Center of Springfield and a benefactor accused of financing terrorism around the world.

The center is owned by the Saudi-based Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation, which U.S. authorities accuse of diverting donations to support a web of terrorist activities. The Saudi government dissolved the foundation this summer.

But center supporters claim the Saudi charity was simply a one-time donor whose name ended up on its property title.

"There isn't any evidence that the center was used to solicit funds or to contribute funds to terrorism," said Ahmed Ibrahim, an associate history professor at Southwest Missouri State University. "Many people are angry and upset that they are seen as contributing to terrorism."

Last month, the Bush administration designated Al-Haramain as a group suspected of supporting terrorism through its Springfield mosque and its main location in Ashland, Ore., saying the charity "shows direct links between the U.S. branch and Osama bin Laden."

Assets of the two properties have been frozen since February. The federal probe suggests the Islamic Center was a front that enabled the laundering of money to terrorists overseas.

The foundation has denied that its U.S. branch funded terrorism.

An attorney representing members of the mosque had asked Al-Haramain before it was dissolved to acknowledge its one-time donation was a gift and to correct the alleged title error.

Title error? Anyone who has ever bought a property knows these things are not done instantaneously. It is inconceivable that such a large error could have somehow gotten onto the title without anyone noticing.

Pakistani Senator calls for jihad against US

Of course, he is the deputy leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, the radical Muslim party founded by the internationally influential jihadist Syed Abul Ala Maududi, whom I profile in Onward Muslim Soldiers. From the Daily Times of Pakistan:

The naib (deputy) amir of the party, Senator Prof Khursheed Ahmad, told the gathering that the United States and its allies had crippled the economies of the Muslim countries by taking over their resources. He argued that the only way to recover from this subjugation was by waging jihad. He said that the Almighty had directed Muslims to increase their power, which included economic strength. “But we have given up jihad and accepted western hegemony which has enslaved us”, he stated. He trod familiar ‘anti-globalisation’ ground when he added that western multinationals had occupied 87 percent of the resources of the Muslim world in the name of social uplift through institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He said that these institutions had deployed their ‘puppets’ as rulers in the Muslim countries.

The emir of this group is, of course, Qazi Hussain Ahmad. Read more about his views here.

Moscow Police Intercept Car Bomb, Suspect Beaten to Death

The suspect was apparently connected with the Chechen jihadists. From MosNews, with thanks to Anthony:

Moscow police intercepted a car packed with explosives in central Moscow on Saturday and said they had thwarted a terrorist attack, Russian media reported.

Police found a 200-gram block of TNT, two anti-personnel landmines and a 20-liter canister with gasoline along with detonators and an electronic operating device in an old Lada.

A suspect arrested at the scene told investigators he was offered $1,000 to take the car to a major thoroughfare President Vladimir Putin uses to travel to and from the Kremlin, news agencies and television said, quoting security forces. The Kommersant daily has cited an unnamed source in the law enforcement agencies as saying that the suspect, whose name was reported as Pumane was a Russian naval officer on a submarine.

The daily also reported that the car in which the explosives were found was registered in the name of a woman who supposedly was a wife of a Chechen rebel.

Pumane died in hospital six hours after questioning. Initial reports said the man had suffered a heart attack, but shortly afterwards it was reported that he had bean beaten to death, apparently during the interrogation.

"No matter what supreme ideas they talk about, suicide bombers are just killing innocent civilians, people who don't have anything to do with their war"

A refreshingly insightful look at suicide bombers -- from a Japanese former kamikaze pilot. From the LA Times, with thanks to Anthony:

The survivors bitterly resent the world's appropriation of the term "kamikaze" — meaning "divine wind" and originally coined to describe the unexpected typhoons that saved 13th century Japan from invading Mongol ships — as shorthand for suicide bombers of every stripe.

There are the "Al Qaeda kamikazes" who flew passenger planes into office towers, "Palestinian kamikazes" who blow up pizza parlors filled with teenagers in Jerusalem, and "female Chechen kamikazes" willing to detonate explosive girdles in the middle of school gymnasiums crammed with children.

Japan's originals are insulted to be mentioned in the same breath.

"When I hear the comparison, I feel so sorry for my friends who died, because our mission was totally different from suicide bombers," Hamazono says as he strolls through the Peace Museum for Kamikaze Pilots in Chiran, a former air base on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu.

The kamikazes attacked military targets. In contrast, "the main purpose of a suicide bomber is to kill as many innocent civilians as they can," Hamazono says. That, he says, "is just murder."

The same distinction is made by other survivors of the Tokkotai, or Special Attack Force, conventionally known as the kamikaze. Its survivors tick off the reasons their goal-line stand against an American invasion was different from the blind lashing-out of suicide bombers today:

• They were ready to die out of love for their country, they say; suicide bombers are driven by hatred and revenge.

• The Shinto religion offers no reward of life after death. Islamic suicide bombers are promised a place in an afterlife.

• They were volunteers, motivated solely by patriotism. Suicide bombers often are recruited by militia leaders who offer money to their families.

Yet the arguments can't prevent those who use suicide tactics today from claiming Japanese kamikazes as an inspiration.

Naoto Amaki, Japan's former ambassador to Lebanon, recalled delivering a polite lecture to Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Shiite Islamist militia Hezbollah, in 2001. Amaki said he told Nasrallah that Japan's experience was a lesson in the ultimate futility of violence.

Not so, replied the sheik.

"He told me: 'We learned how to do suicide missions from the kamikazes,' " Amaki recalled. "Nasrallah said the Shiites all commend the Japanese samurai spirit."

Amaki says the analogy is faulty. "We Japanese are not a religious people; we just obey instructions. But the Arab world is looking for support wherever they can get it, so they seek out every excuse to legitimize their actions."

And kamikaze survivors resent it.

"We did what we did for military purposes," says Takeo Tagata, 88, a kamikaze instructor who was ordered to fly a mission the day before Japan surrendered. "No matter what supreme ideas they talk about, suicide bombers are just killing innocent civilians, people who don't have anything to do with their war."

Bigley's brother wants to ransom him

I understand the pain and anxiety that Bigley's brother is experiencing. I hope he will also consider the pain and anxiety that innumerable other relatives of future hostages will face if the hostage takers discover that kidnapping is a profitable enterprise. From AAP:

The brother of Iraq hostage Ken Bigley was investigating whether it might be possible to buy his sibling's life.

Paul Bigley was looking into reports in a Kuwaiti newspaper that a new Iraqi militant group had intervened to help negotiate the 62-year-old engineer's release.

He said he had heard the reports which suggested that "a different gang will want to sell him back to us".

He is now checking their authenticity with his business contacts in the Middle East.

"If this is the case we will have to buy him back, it is as simple as that," he said.

Trial begins of former commander of Muslim forces in Srebrenica

It looks as if the jihad in Bosnia followed traditional Islamic patterns going all the way back to the Prophet Muhammad, who massacred the men of the Banu Qurayzah and ordered the exile of other Jewish tribes of Arabia. From the Malta Independent Daily, with thanks to Twostellas:

This week The Hague tribunal will hold another high-profile trial – that of Naser Oric, the former commander of Bosnian Muslim forces in Srebrenica.

The presiding judge is Carmel Agius together with two newly sworn-in ad litem judges from Demark and Germany.

Oric was in charge of the enclave’s armed forces until the town fell to the Serbs in 1995 and some 7,000 of its male inhabitants were killed, in the largest massacre on European soil since the end of the second world war.

Although the trial, due to start on 6 October, will focus on the events that took place several years before the 1995 massacre, its horrors are bound to resurface in The Hague tribunal’s courtrooms.

Oric, 37, is accused of crimes against Bosnian Serbs that he and the forces he commanded allegedly committed in the months between the outbreak of hostilities in Bosnia in the spring of 1992 and the designation of Srebrenica as a UN safe area in 1993.

The prosecutors allege that between June 1992 and March 1993 the troops under Oric’s command destroyed at least 50 Serbian hamlets and villages in the wider Srebrenica area, expelled thousands of their inhabitants and plundered their property – notably livestock and food supplies.

They are hoping to prove that Oric personally planned and participated in at least some of those attacks.

Sing along with Osama: Malaysia Islamists Turn to Music to Get Youth Vote

Radical Muslims relax the traditional Islamic ban on music long enough to get a few recruits. From Reuters, with thanks to Twostellas:

By Jahabar Sadiq KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia's Muslim opposition, which says musical concerts encourage a hedonistic lifestyle, held one itself at the weekend, aiming to undo its party-pooper image and lure youths who rejected it in a recent election. Nearly 2,000 people sat sedately and watched an all-male line-up perform pop, blues and Islamic music that preached family values and worship mixed with poetry and parable recitals at the concert organized by Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS).

"We want to show that there is entertainment in Islam," said Muhaimin Sulam, organizer of the PAS "Alternative Entertainment" concert in capital Kuala Lumpur late on Saturday.

But is there really? In Islam Unveiled I quote Khomeini:

Allah did not create man so that he could have fun. The aim of creation was for mankind to be put to the test through hardship and prayer. An Islamic regime must be serious in every field. There are no jokes in Islam. There is no humor in Islam. There is no fun in Islam. There can be no fun and joy in whatever is serious.

Indicted Virginia Islamic leader was 'overjoyed' by shuttle crash

Al-Timimi was supposed to be a "moderate." From the Washington Times, with thanks to Susan:

An Islamic spiritual leader scheduled for arraignment today on charges of counseling others to engage in a holy war against America told followers that he was "overjoyed" by the crash of the space shuttle Columbia, which killed six U.S. astronauts and one Israeli.

According to court records, Ali Al-Timimi, 40, of Fairfax, a primary lecturer at the Dar al Arqam Islamic Center in Falls Church, also known as the Center for Islamic Information and Education, said the Feb. 1, 2003, disintegration of the Columbia as it entered the Earth's atmospere brought welcome adversity to the United States.

"This morning, the world heard news about the crash of the space shuttle," Mr. Al-Timimi said, according to a six-count indictment handed up in U.S. District Court in Alexandria. "There is no doubt that Muslims were overjoyed because of the adversity that befell their greatest enemy.

"Upon hearing the news, my heart felt certain good omens that I liked to spread to my brothers," Mr. Al-Timimi said....

Mr. Al-Timimi, a U.S. citizen, was indicted last week by a federal grand jury in Alexandria on charges of counseling members of the so-called Virginia jihad to wage holy war against the United States. He also was accused of aiding the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, violating the Neutrality Act, using firearms in the furtherance of crimes of violence and counseling others to use firearms and explosives.

He is scheduled for arraignment before U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema in Alexandria. If convicted, he faces life in prison.

Member of the Beslan terrorist group a British citizen

He attended, of course, the notorious Finsbury Park Mosque. In Onward Muslim Soldiers I show the hollowness of the common idea that the jihad impulse is just an expression of nationalism by exploring the internationalist character of the jihad movement: Saudis in Afghanistan, Afghans in Bosnia, etc. This is another indication of that fact. It wasn't just "Arabs," as was widely reported, who are in Chechnya (and Beslan). Any radical Muslim could have been there. The movement is ideological, not racial or nationalistic.

From The Observer, with thanks to Twostellas:

A member of the group responsible for the Beslan school massacre last month is a British citizen who attended the infamous Finsbury Park mosque in north London, The Observer can reveal. Two other members of the group, loyal to Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev, are also believed to have been active in the UK until less than three years ago. They are suspected of taking part in the raid on the school in which 300 people, half of them children, died.

Russian security sources described Kamel Rabat Bouralha, 46 years old and the oldest of the three, as a 'key aide' of Basayev, who has a £5.5 million price on his head. Basayev has boasted of training the men who took control of the school and wired it with explosives. Investigators believe that the three men, all Algerian-born, travelled to Chechnya from London to take part in fighting there in 2001.

Al-Qaida infiltrated U.S. military meal company?

From WND, with thanks to Kemaste:

U.S. officials are probing the possibility the al-Qaida terrorist network sought to infiltrate a Texas company in order to contaminate ready-to-eat meals designated for the military.

A high-ranking al-Qaida operative provided information leading authorities to nearly a dozen illegal immigrants working for the McAllen, Texas-based Wornick Co., the largest supplier of the meals, according to McAllen's The Monitor newspaper.

The firm that places the workers at Wornick has been charged with conspiring to make and use false employment eligibility verification forms.

U.S. Attorney Michael Shelby explained, "Immediately after the liberation of Afghanistan from the Taliban in 2002, U.S. forces on the ground received specific information that links McAllen, Texas, by name and the Wornick facility by name to information within al-Qaida's possession."

The Texas paper noted the Department of Defense has a $67 million contract with Wornick to produce the meals.

Armed with the al-Qaida operative's information, the FBI was led to an employee-placement firm, Remedy Intelligent Staffing in McAllen, which referred a number of workers to Wornick.

"There had to be an investigation into the possibility that al-Qaida had the intention of infiltrating the Wornick Company for the purposes of contaminating -- possibly -- the MREs produced by the company," Shelby stated, according to The Monitor.

Shelby said no contaminated meals have been found, but 10 temporary employees at Remedy, involved in all aspects of assembling the meals, were convicted in July on charges of stealing Social Security numbers.

US had plans to invade Pakistan

From ANI, with thanks to Ali Dashti:

WASHINGTON: In a book that is likely to be released later this month, its author has startlingly revealed that the Bush Administration has firmed up plans to carry out an invasion of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province (NWFP), which is seen as the command centre of the al-Qaeda terrorist network.

George Friedman, the founder and chairman of the well regarded news and analysis service, Stratfor, reveals in his book titled "America's Secret War", the ongoing, but hidden struggle between the United States and its enemies.

"The United States will threaten Iran with war if it aids the al-Qaeda. The United States will have to invade northwest Pakistan. There are plans for this already. In addition, if Pakistan collapses due to an invasion, the United States and India will have to jointly occupy Pakistan. The end game is Pakistan," the Daily Times quotes Friedman as saying.

Visa violators targeted in anti-terror efforts

The race to November is not just between Bush and Kerry. From AP:

WASHINGTON -- More than 350 people who have committed crimes or are suspected of terrorist links have been arrested in a fed