Islam before family. “O believers, take not your fathers and brothers to be your friends, if they prefer unbelief to belief; whosoever of you takes them for friends, those — they are the evildoers. Say: ‘If your fathers, your sons, your brothers, your wives, your clan, your possessions that you have gained, commerce you fear may slacken, dwellings you love — if these are dearer to you than God and His Messenger, and to struggle in His way, then wait till God brings His command; God guides not the people of the ungodly.” — Qur’an 9:23-24
“Suicide bomber kills 7 of his own family in Iraq,” by Sameer N. Yacoub for the Associated Press, July 7 (thanks to Block Ness):
BAGHDAD (AP) “” A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-rigged belt at a gathering of his own family in western Iraq, killing his pro-government cousin and six other relatives, officials said Saturday.
The blast targeting a leader in the Sahwa militias in the city of Ramadi is a reminder of how extremism still divides Iraq’s Sunni Muslim minority, with some working with al-Qaida-linked insurgents against others who support the Shiite-led government.
The killing is part of a surge in violence six months after the last American troops withdrew.
The bomber entered the home of his cousin, the local Sahwa leader, on Friday night as the extended family was gathered for a meal, said a police official in Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, 115 kilometers (70 miles) west of Baghdad.
He approached the militiaman and detonated his explosives, killing his target as well as his wife, three of their teenage children, his brother and another relative, said the official. He could provide no other details including the number of wounded….
Anbar is the province where Sunni tribes first revolted against al-Qaida in late 2006 and 2007, joining U.S. troops to fight the insurgency.
The movement was called Sahwa, or Awakening, and helped turned the tide of the war, although deadly attacks remain a grim fact of life for Iraqis. The Sahwa militia members are a favorite target of the Sunni insurgency, which sees them as traitors….