Barry Rubin explains at the GLORIA Center some of the many things that are wrong with the Annapolis conference: What would you do if your foreign policy agenda had these priorities: * Get Arab and European support for solving the Iraq crisis. * Mobilize Arab and European forces against a threat led by Iran and […]
Archives for November 2007
“The Palestinians believe Israel is not ready for total peace”
An Orwellian story on the Annapolis Appeasement Party: it’s Israel that isn’t ready for peace. Forget about those suicide bombers and the annihilationist rhetoric. The ones who don’t want peace are, of course, the Jews. Maybe Matthew Lee means that Israel isn’t ready for total surrender. Meanwhile, there is nothing much in this document. They’re […]
Sanity Alert: Bid to stop whipping over toy bear
An update on this story. “Bid to stop whipping over toy bear,” from CNN (thanks to Mackie): LONDON, England (CNN) — UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Tuesday that officials were working to secure the early release of a British teacher who faces being whipped in Sudan after she allowed her class to name a […]
Christians forced to emigrate from Iraq
“Attacks target doctors, lawyers, professors, journalists.” “Prelate Says Mosul Christians Targeted,” from Zenit (thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist): ROME, NOV. 26, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The bishop of Mosul, Iraq, said that in his city, as in other parts of the nation, there is an effort to force Christians and educated professionals to emigrate. Bishop Faraj Raho, […]
Abbas slammed as “traitor” at anti-Annapolis rallies
Hamas and Islamic Jihad hold to the hard line, refusing to understand that Abbas is getting what they want by different means. By Nidal al-Mughrabi for Reuters (thanks to Mackie): GAZA (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of Palestinians joined anti-Annapolis rallies in Gaza and the West Bank on Tuesday, chanting “Death to Israel” and calling […]
Gang rape in Annapolis
Human Events asked me to write about reactions on the “Muslim street” to the Annapolis summit, so I did that for this week’s column: “Gloom Before Annapolis.” But the “Muslim street” reactions didn’t leave me much room to say what I really thought of the conference itself. Frank Gaffney’s piece in the Washington Times, “Gang […]
77 police officers hurt in Paris riots; “genuine urban guerillas with conventional weapons and hunting weapons” among rioters
Escalation. “Rampaging Youths” Update. “77 police officers hurt in Paris riots,” by Angela Charlton for the Associated Press: VILLIERS-LE-BEL, France – Rampaging youths rioted for a second night in Paris’ suburbs, firing at officers and ramming burning cars into buildings. At least 77 officers were injured, a senior police union official said Tuesday. The overnight […]
Islamic reformer blocked from speaking in modern, moderate Indonesia
Yet another indication of why large-scale Islamic reform is not on the horizon. “Indonesia: Egyptian Islamic scholar blocked from speaking at seminar,” from AKI (thanks to Fjordman): Jakarta, 26 Nov. (AKI) — The Indonesian government has yielded to the pressure of the country”s traditional religious institutions and prevented an Egyptian progressive Islamic academic from speaking […]
Saudis free 1,500 jihadists after they “repent”
But what did they repent of? They repented of takfir — the practice of branding fellow Muslims non-Muslims, and thus lawfully to be killed. This practice is used promiscuously by modern jihad groups, and it is that that Saudi authorities made sure they “repented” of — because that targets them. They did go farther — […]
Christian leaders ask for Muslim forgiveness
The signers are a veritable who’s who of Christian leaders in the United States. And there’s nothing essentially wrong with such a gesture: no community has a monopoly on evil, or is entirely free from it. But it is singularly unfortunate in this instance, since Muslim groups worldwide have never, in any context, offered a […]
Bride, groom stopped in Iraq actually terror suspects
The blushing bride War Is Deceit Update: “Official: Bride, groom stopped in Iraq actually terror suspects,” by Mohammed Tawfeeq for CNN (thanks to Jihad Watch News Editor Marisol Seibold): BAGHDAD (CNN) — Soldiers manning a checkpoint near Baghdad stopped a wedding convoy to find that the purported bride and groom were wanted terror suspects, an […]
New bin Laden message coming soon, addressed to Europe
I’ll bet the Europeans are in a frenzy of anticipation. “Islamist site says new Bin Laden message soon,” from Reuters : DUBAI (Reuters) – Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden will address the people of Europe in a message to be posted on the Internet “soon,” an Islamist Web site said on Monday. “Soon, God […]
In “Call for Donations,” Al Qaeda Admits Financial Stress
Good news. Andrew Cochran has details at the Counterterrorism Blog. On 20 November 2007, Andrew Cochran reported on this blog about the success of the U.S. ITFC in shutting down elements of Al-Qaeda’s financial network in Iraq, and that the government of a key Gulf state has assisted in these efforts. On the same day, […]
Fitzgerald: Legitimate questions for Hillary and Huma
Now that the rumors about Hillary and her aide have hit the Times of London, Hillary will feel she cannot abandon her protégé. She instead is likely to become indignant, more determined to be seen, defiantly, with Huma Abedin on every occasion and to attack those who express the slightest, perfectly justified reservations about the […]
Hillary and Huma
Drudge is highlighting the Hillary Clinton/Huma Abedin innuendo, which has made the Times of London. Pamela had background on this awhile ago: the whispers are that Hillary Clinton is carrying on a lesbian relationship with her top aide, Huma Abedin. It’s certainly a salacious rumor, but what concerns me about it is not the affair […]
Hizballah poised to launch bloody reprisals in Britain for any attack on Iran
And a CIA op says there are a dozen Hizballah cells in the U.S. “Hezbollah Will Avenge Iran Strike,” by Jason Groves in the Daily Express (thanks to Mackie): TERRORIST group Hezbollah is poised to launch bloody reprisals in Britain for any Western attack on Iran, a former intelligence chief has warned. Richard Kemp, who […]
U.S. to give terrorists anti-terror training courses
No, I am not making this up. “Terror group told to prepare for U.S. training,” from WorldNetDaily.com (thanks to Doug): Much of the senior leadership of the most active Palestinian terrorist organization in the West Bank recently received orders to prepare to enter U.S.-run security training courses, according to the author of a new book. […]
“Anemic supplicants pleading with a collection of keystone cops for anything that can be dubbed success”
Keystone Kops, yes, and also murderous thugs. “Owls Gather at Annapolis,” by Youssef Ibrahim in the New York Sun (thanks to Ruth King): Mr. Bush the son, and his secretary of state Ms. Rice are going into this one as anemic supplicants pleading with a collection of keystone cops for anything that can be dubbed […]
“Youths” rioting again in Paris suburbs
“A brother of one of the dead teenagers, Omar Sehhouli, said the rioting ‘was not violence but an expression of rage.’” Right. Omar Sehhouli. Typical French Catholic youth, I suppose. Note the non-specifics about the perpetrators, and the frequent recourse to passive voice. “Riots break out in Paris suburbs,” from the BBC (thanks to all […]
Sudan: British teacher arrested after her pupils name teddy bear Muhammad
An innocent mistake! “‘Muhammad’ teddy teacher arrested,” from the BBC (thanks to all who sent this in): A British school teacher has been arrested in Sudan accused of insulting Islam’s Prophet, after she allowed her pupils to name a teddy bear Muhammad. Colleagues of Gillian Gibbons, 54, from Liverpool, said she made an “innocent mistake” […]