More hypocritical Saudi window-dressing. Arab News today carries a tut-tutting article about the new jihadist magazine for women, containing the usual protestations about jihad being a spiritual struggle, these people are un-Islamic, etc.
It is particularly and bitterly ironic that this story would appear today, in the wake of the most vivid example since 9/11 of the fact that large and highly motivated groups of Muslims do not think that jihad is simply a spiritual struggle, but warfare against unbelievers, including children. It is also ironic that it would come from Saudi Arabia, a country whose Embassy in the United States was advocating violent jihad and oppression of the dhimmis as recently as last November.
Some highlights of the Arab News piece:
RIYADH, 7 September 2004 — A cross-section of Saudi women has come out strongly against the launch of a new Internet magazine targeting Saudi and other Arab women as well as children in the Al-Qaeda-inspired drive against “infidels in the Arabian Peninsula.”
They said that by calling on women to join in the preparations for Jihad, the deviant group was straying away from the path of Islam, which stands for mercy, compassion, tolerance and justice.
“What do they want to achieve?” asked radio journalist and broadcaster Samar Fatany from Jeddah. “They really need to think about the consequences of their actions. What they are preaching is extremism and revenge which are totally un-Islamic.”
She was confident that the website would have no adverse impact on Saudi women who are “God-fearing and in no way influenced by misguided teachings.”
Oh, and what has caused all these un-Islamic teachings to proliferate? Why, America and Israel, of course:
According to Fatany, the situation reflects the weakness of the Arab world and the inaction on the part of the international community to stand up for justice and peace. She said the “unjust US foreign policy on the one hand and Israeli atrocities against Palestinians on the other have also been responsible for breeding such negative tendencies in the region.”
Another Saudi female journalist Hala Al-Nasser said the promoters of the Internet magazine were giving a twist to the concept of Jihad. “To me, Jihad means constant struggle and perseverance with oneself for the cause of peace.” She said Saudi women would not be attracted by the kind of message being put out on their website.