Bismillah [IslamCity] US Inaugurates NEW $700 Million Embassy in Baghdad

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*US Inaugurates New $700 Million Embassy in Baghdad*



*By PATRICK QUINN, Associated Press Writer Patrick Quinn, Associated Press
Writer*
*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090105/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iraq*
**
BAGHDAD – *The United States inaugurated its largest embassy ever in the
heart of the Green Zone on Monday, officially opening the fortress-like
compound that was intended to stand as a testament to America's commitment
to Iraq. Addressing an inauguration ceremony under tight security,
Ambassador Ryan Crocker said the $700 million embassy was testimony to
America's long-term friendship with Iraq, where about 146,000 U.S. troops
are deployed. "From this embassy in the years to come, we look forward to
building our partnership and contributing to the future," Crocker said.*
**
*During the ceremony at the new embassy, U.S. Marines raised the American
flag over the building, which sits on a 104-acre site and has space for
1,000 employees. The adobe-colored buildings resemble a corporate campus
surrounded by huge walls of reinforced concrete. "It is from the embassy
that you see before you that we will continue the tradition of friendship,
cooperation and support begun by the many dedicated Americans who have
worked in Iraq since 2003," said U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John
Negroponte, who served as the first American ambassador to Iraq after the
2003 U.S.-led invasion, at the ceremony, held in the complex's courtyard.*
**
*Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, a longtime Washington ally, praised
President George W. Bush's decision to invade Iraq in 2003 and topple the
regime of Saddam Hussein, who was executed two years ago. "The building of
this site would not be possible without the courageous decision by President
Bush to liberate Iraq," said Talabani, a Kurd. "This building is not only a
compound for the embassy but a symbol of the deep friendship between the two
peoples of Iraq and America."*
**
U.S. diplomats and military officials moved into the embassy on Dec. 31
after vacating Saddam's Republican Palace, which they occupied when they
captured Baghdad in April 2003. The palace will now seat the Iraqi
government and the office of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who did not
attend the Monday's ceremony because he was traveling in Iran. Crocker said
that, since 2003 invasion, "perhaps no single week has been more important
than this past week. On Dec. 31 we left the republican palace."

*For nearly six years, the grandiose and gaudy palace, with its gold-plated
bathroom fixtures and enormous chandeliers, served as both headquarters for
occupying forces and the hub for the Green Zone — the walled-off swath of
central Baghdad that was formally turned over to the Iraqi government on New
Year's Day.*
**
The handover came on the same day that a security agreement between Iraq and
the United States went into effect. It replaced a U.N. mandate that allowed
the U.S. and other foreign troops to operate in Iraq. Under the new
agreement, U.S. troops will no longer conduct unilateral operations and will
act only in concert with Iraqi forces. They must also leave major Iraqi
cities by June and the entire country by the end of 2011. Another accord
mapped out the bilateral relations. "Iraq has now assumed the lead for all
security operations and our bilateral relationship going forward will be
governed" by the two agreements, Crocker said. "Iraq is in a new era and so
is the Iraqi-U.S. relationship."

Though violence has plummeted around Iraq in the past year, with attacks
dropping from an average 180 a day to just 10, horrific bombings still
plague the capital. Many recent attacks have targeted pilgrims during
ceremonies commemorating the death of a much revered Shiite saint.


Hundreds of thousands of Shiite pilgrims are expected to visit Karbala and
other shrines around Iraq during Ashura, which on Wednesday will mark the
anniversary of the 7th-century death of Prophet Muhammad's grandson Hussein.
He was killed in a battle on the plains of Karbala near the Euphrates River.
The battle, part of the dispute over the leadership of a young Muslim nation
following Muhammad's death in 632, enshrined Islam's split into Sunni and
Shiite branches. Iraqi security forces have deployed thousands of troops in
Baghdad, Karbala and on roads linking the two cities to safeguard the
ceremonies. Attacks by al-Qaida in Iraq, Sunni insurgents and even a Shiite
cult have killed hundreds of people in recent years.
*Robert Fisk: The Iraqis Don't Deserve Us. So We Betray Them...*
http://news.independent.co.uk/fisk/article2886358.ece

*Always, we have betrayed them. We backed "Flossy" in Yemen. The French
backed their local "harkis" in Algeria; then the FLN victory forced them to
swallow their own French military medals before dispatching them into mass
graves. In Vietnam, the Americans demanded democracy and, one by one - after
praising the Vietnamese for voting under fire in so many cities, towns and
villages - they destroyed the elected prime m

Bismillah [IslamCity] NAZIsrael Threatens 'DISPROPORTIONATE' Retaliation for New Hamas Rocket Attacks

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*"BOYCOTT America & Britain"*

"Boycott All NON ESSENTIAL Goods & Services (Starting With their Currency)
from BRITAIN (For CREATING An ILLEGITIMATE Entity Called ISRAEL) & the US
(For Its STAUNCH Support for the Continued ZIONIST OCCUPATION of Palestine."
**
*Israel** Threatens Response to New Militant Rockets*

*By MATTI FRIEDMAN, Associated Press Writer **Matti Friedman, Associated
Press Writer** ** *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090201/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_palestinians*

*JERUSALEM – Gaza militants launched two rockets and a mortar shell into
southern Israel early Sunday, drawing a threat of "disproportionate"
retaliation from Israel's prime minister and further straining a cease-fire
that ended Israel's Gaza offensive. The flare-up in violence came just over
a week before Israel's parliamentary vote, pitting Israeli Foreign
Minister Tzipi
Livni — one of the architects of the offensive — against the more
hawkish Benjamin
Netanyahu. Continued fighting could influence the outcome by raising
questions about the effectiveness of Israel's actions in Gaza.*

There were no casualties from Sunday's attacks, though one rocket landed
near a kindergarten in a community near Gaza, police spokesman Micky
Rosenfeld said. Warning sirens sent residents scrambling for shelter.

*Speaking to his Cabinet on Sunday, Israel's outgoing prime minister, Ehud
Olmert, said Israel would respond "when and where we choose."*

*The Israeli offensive was aimed at halting years of rocket attacks, and the
military declared a cease-fire on Jan. 18 after declaring its goals had been
achieved. But Sunday's rockets, which followed sporadic rocket fire and the
killing of an Israeli soldier in a border bombing attack last week,
illustrated the difficulties of achieving a complete end to the attacks.
Despite years of efforts, Israel's high-tech military has failed to stop the
projectiles.*

*The government's position, Olmert said, is that "if there is shooting at
residents of the south there will be an Israeli response that will be harsh
and disproportionate by its nature to the shooting at residents of Israel
and at our forces." Israeli defense officials said they had not yet
formulated a response to the latest rocket fire, but said a return to the
offensive — in which Israeli tanks and infantry units penetrated deep into
Gaza — was unlikely. Instead, they said Israel would consider airstrikes,
including possible attempts to kill Hamas leaders. They spoke on condition
of anonymity because they were discussing classified security matters.*

Both Israel and Hamas have been talking to Egyptian mediators about a
long-term truce. Israel wants an end to arms smuggling into Gaza from Egypt.
Hamas wants Israel and Egypt to reopen Gaza's borders, which have been
virtually sealed since Hamas violently seized power in June 2007.

*Responding to Israel's concerns, U.S. Army engineers arrived at the
Gaza-Egypt frontier on Sunday to set up ground penetrating radar to detect
smuggling tunnels, an Egyptian security official said. Inside the Rafah
terminal — the gateway between Egypt and Gaza — four army trucks loaded with
wooden crates and drills could be seen accompanied by four U.S. Army
engineers. The Egyptian officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of
the sensitivity the subject. Israel has repeatedly called on Egypt to do
more to end the smuggling.*

On Sunday morning, AP Television News footage in the border town of
Rafahshowed surveillance cameras mounted on the roof of a house on the
Egyptian
side. An Egyptian soldier was visible on the balcony, looking into Gaza with
binoculars. The equipment had been installed in the last few days.

*Attacking Hamas could be risky for the outgoing Israeli government. Renewed
fighting could erode support for Livni, who has replaced Olmert as head of
the centrist Kadima party and is the only serious challenger to the
front-runner, hardline Likud leader Netanyahu, according to recent opinion
polls. Netanyahu has been campaigning on a platform that calls for a tough
stance against Hamas, and he stands to benefit if Israelis conclude that the
offensive failed to achieve its goal of making residents of southern Israel
safer.*

Hamas has not taken responsibility for any of the new attacks, which have
been claimed by smaller militant groups. But Israel says it holds Hamas,
which has ruled Gaza since seizing power in June 2007, responsible for all
attacks emanating from Gaza. Hamas spokesman Taher Nunu said Olmert's threat
was an attempt by Israel to "find false pretexts to increase its aggression
against the people" and to undermine Egyptian efforts to mediate a long-term
cease-fire. Since ending the offensive, Israel has conducted retaliatory
strikes and pounded tunnels Hamas uses to smuggle in weapons from Egypt.
Israeli forces have also shot and killed three men who Palestinians
identified as farmers along the Gaza-Israel border.

Gaza is still struggling to recover from the punishing three-week offens

Bismillah [IslamCity] Robert Fisk - Why Do They HATE the West So MUCH, We Will Ask (Gaza MASSACRE)

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Robert Fisk: Why Do They Hate the West So Much, We Will Ask*

*Wednesday, 7 January 2009** *

*
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-why-do-they-hate-the-west-so-much-we-will-ask-1230046.html
*

*So once again, Israel has opened the gates of hell to the Palestinians.
Forty civilian refugees dead in a United Nations school, three more in
another. Not bad for a night's work in Gaza by the army that believes in
"purity of arms". But why should we be surprised? Have we forgotten the
17,500 dead – almost all civilians, most of them children and women – in
Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon; the 1,700 Palestinian civilian dead in
the Sabra-Chatila massacre; the 1996 Qana massacre of 106 Lebanese civilian
refugees, more than half of them children, at a UN base; the massacre of the
Marwahin refugees who were ordered from their homes by the Israelis in 2006
then slaughtered by an Israeli helicopter crew; the 1,000 dead of that same
2006 bombardment and Lebanese invasion, almost all of them civilians?*

What is amazing is that so many Western leaders, so many presidents and
prime ministers and, I fear, so many editors and journalists, bought the old
lie; that Israelis take such great care to avoid civilian casualties.
"Israel makes every possible effort to avoid civilian casualties," yet
another Israeli ambassador said only hours before the Gaza massacre. And
every president and prime minister who repeated this mendacity as an excuse
to avoid a ceasefire has the blood of last night's butchery on their hands.
Had George Bush had the courage to demand an immediate ceasefire 48 hours
earlier, those 40 civilians, the old and the women and children, would be
alive.

*What happened was not just shameful. It was a disgrace. Would war crime be
too strong a description? For that is what we would call this atrocity if it
had been committed by Hamas. So a war crime, I'm afraid, it was. After
covering so many mass murders by the armies of the Middle East – by Syrian
troops, by Iraqi troops, by Iranian troops, by Israeli troops – I suppose
cynicism should be my reaction. But Israel claims it is fighting our war
against "international terror". The Israelis claim they are fighting in Gaza
for us, for our Western ideals, for our security, for our safety, by our
standards. And so we are also complicit in the savagery now being visited
upon Gaza.*

*I've reported the excuses the Israeli army has served up in the past for
these outrages. Since they may well be reheated in the coming hours, here
are some of them: that the Palestinians killed their own refugees, that the
Palestinians dug up bodies from cemeteries and planted them in the ruins,
that ultimately the Palestinians are to blame because they supported an
armed faction, or because armed Palestinians deliberately used the innocent
refugees as cover.*

*The Sabra and Chatila massacre was committed by Israel's right-wing
Lebanese Phalangist allies while Israeli troops, as Israel's own commission
of inquiry revealed, watched for 48 hours and did nothing. When Israel was
blamed, Menachem Begin's government accused the world of a blood libel.
After Israeli artillery had fired shells into the UN base at Qana in 1996,
the Israelis claimed that Hizbollah gunmen were also sheltering in the base.
It was a lie. The more than 1,000 dead of 2006 – a war started when
Hizbollah captured two Israeli soldiers on the border – were simply
dismissed as the responsibility of the Hizbollah. Israel claimed the bodies
of children killed in a second Qana massacre may have been taken from a
graveyard. It was another lie. The Marwahin massacre was never excused. The
people of the village were ordered to flee, obeyed Israeli orders and were
then attacked by an Israeli gunship. The refugees took their children and
stood them around the truck in which they were travelling so that Israeli
pilots would see they were innocents. Then the Israeli helicopter mowed them
down at close range. Only two survived, by playing dead. Israel didn't even
apologise.*

Twelve years earlier, another Israeli helicopter attacked an ambulance
carrying civilians from a neighbouring village – again after they were
ordered to leave by Israel – and killed three children and two women. The
Israelis claimed that a Hizbollah fighter was in the ambulance. It was
untrue. I covered all these atrocities, I investigated them all, talked to
the survivors. So did a number of my colleagues. Our fate, of course, was
that most slanderous of libels: we were accused of being anti-Semitic.

*And I write the following without the slightest doubt: we'll hear all these
scandalous fabrications again. We'll have the Hamas-to-blame lie – heaven
knows, there is enough to blame them for without adding this crime – and we
may well have the bodies-from-the-cemetery lie and we'll almost certainly
have the Hamas-was-in-the-UN-school lie and we will very definitely have the
anti-Semitism lie. And our leaders will huff and puff and re

Bismillah [IslamCity] The NEW United States of Israel

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*"BOYCOTT America"*

"Boycott All NON ESSENTIAL Goods & Services from the US as a SHOW of PROTEST
Against America's STAUNCH Support (Military, Diplomatic, Economic, Moral
etc) for the Jewish OCCUPATION of Palestine."**

*May 4, 2002*
*The New United States of Israel*

*by Sam Bahour*

*http://www.counterpunch.org/bahour0504.html*

*P**resident Bush astonished even his closest advisors today by issuing a
Presidential Decree announcing that the State of Israel has become the 51st
state of the union. Additionally, President Bush declared that he was
renaming the union itself to the "New United States of Israel."*

*When asked by CNN's White House Correspondent Wolf Blitzer how he could
justify a new state in the union which is so geographically distant,
President Bush replied, "It seems you have forgotten that Hawaii is not
attached to our land mass and Alaska is connected to Canada, not America.
Having our new state connected to the Middle East is a minor inconvenience
for their representatives with regard to travel, but as you are aware most
of the house and senate members are there, physically or mentally, most of
the year so it will not be a problem."*

*House Republican Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX) refused to be
interviewed on camera but mentioned that President Bush joked the other day
at a Republican party working breakfast when he asked how Americans would
react to moving Congress to Jerusalem. Armey stuttered while defending
President Bush by speculating that the President probably felt that "the new
state's national guard, previously called Israeli Defense Forces, were in a
better position to provide security to Congress given they are already armed
to the teeth with the latest US armaments and have a nearby
environmentally-accepted military testing ground, namely the West Bank."*

A leading Homeland Security military analyst close to President Bush, who
requested to remain anonymous, responded to questions regarding the
"transfer" by saying, "By moving Congress to Jerusalem President Bush would
be making a strategic move to fight terror. Our intelligence sources have
confirmed that Al-Qaeda and Ossama Bin Laden have all of their coordinates
already set on DC. In three months, the move to Jerusalem would be complete
and Bin Laden would have to start all over again. This disruption to Bin
Laden's planning will definitely take longer to recover from than the
President's term in office. President Bush is to be commended on
safeguarding one of our most precious national institutions."

*When President Bush was asked why he felt it was necessary to change the
name of the United States of America he snapped back in a hesitating voice
saying, "What the hell is the difference! We built the USA on Native
American Indian soil and they built Israel on Native Palestinian soil. We
speak English and they speak English. We both came to 'a land with no
people, for a people with no land.' Furthermore, most of our accounts are
managed from Israel. If you don't believe me call your representatives and
senators and ask them. Better yet, dial 1-800-CALL-AIPAC and they can tell
you all about how our government's 401K plan works."*

Following the President's press conference, CEO Glen Barton from
Caterpillar, a heavy equipment manufacture, stated that all Israeli
settlements in the West Bank were strictly built to US Building Code
specifications. Mr. Barton stated, "these beautiful, hilltop residential
areas would serve as perfect neighborhoods for congresspersons and senators.
Plus, they were all built with equipment made right here in the USA."
National Security experts noted that these Israeli settlement neighborhoods,
formally illegal obstacles to peace, are much safer than downtown DC and
they did not see the security risks of this landmark decision to relocate
Congress as a major obstacle.

*Religious leaders throughout the US praised the President's moves and
looked forward to these developments bringing an end to the crisis at the
Church of Nativity in Bethlehem. The Vatican issued an upbeat statement in
67 languages saying, "American leadership has ensured that Bethlehem will be
rebuilt in time for the Year 3000 Millennium celebrations."*

*Palestinian President Yasir Arafat was interviewed from his hospital bed,
where he was being treated for hyperventilation after hearing the news.
Arafat said, "President Bush asked me to earn his respect by leading. Well,
I now announce that the State of Palestine is declared in the State of
Texas. As of our arrival in Texas in 6 days, all Texans will be subjected to
Palestinian military occupation and kindly asked to take refuge on the
Mexican border. I urge all not to panic. I expect in a short 35 years we
will be in a position to discuss holding an international conference to
discuss a long-term interim agreement that will result in the loss of your
right to return to your homes and the loss of your right to freedom and
independence, but we will, and I repeat, we will 

Bismillah [IslamCity] Jews Who Accuse Nazis of Genocide Commit GENOCIDE Against Palestinians

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*"BOYCOTT America"*

"Boycott All NON ESSENTIAL Goods & Services Made in the US Because of Its
STAUNCH Support (Military, Diplomatic, Economic, Moral etc) for the Jewish
OCCUPATION of Palestine."**

* *

*Jews Who Accuse Nazis of Genocide Commit Genocide Against Palestinians*

*Monday ,18 February 2008( Posted : 06:02:58GMT) *

*By Latheef Farook *

*Gaza** is a small beach side strip of around 365 sq miles by the
Mediterranean Sea. Sandwiched between Egypt and Israel this territory with
about 1.5 million Palestinians is one of the most densely populated areas in
the world. Most of the inhabitants here are refugees who traditionally owned
their homes and lands in what we now call Israel.*

*But they were chased out at gun point by Jewish terror gangs, and their
lands grabbed by migrant Jews with the assistance of the British mandatory
authority, to set up the Jewish state of Israel in Palestine in 1948. *

*During the June 1967 Israeli war of aggression against neighbouring Arab
countries Gaza was brought under Israeli occupation. Since then the people
there were subjected to untold oppression, cruelties and miseries besides
daily killings, arbitrary arrest and torture. As in the case of many other
societies, Palestinians in Gaza too were a mixed society of civil servants,
doctors, teachers, lawyers, health care workers, engineers, journalists,
politicians, students and the thousands of people upon whom any society
depends to keep services running. Decades of Israeli oppression and
humiliation produced angry young men most of whom are fighting back, though
with limited means, the occupation and oppression as any people would do
under attack. *

Unable to face the fierce Palestinian opposition, Israel withdrew its forces
from Gaza in 2005 after 38 years and handed over control of the Rafah
border, Gaza's sole contact with the outside world, to Egypt while
Palestinian forces, monitored by European Union officials, too were
stationed.

Almost four decades of systematic Israeli oppression and repeated border
closures have driven Gazans to poverty and inevitably around 80 percent of
the population depend on food aid for day-to-day subsistence. Without such
aid they would die in a matter of days. Such is the pitiable situation these
poor people are in. Israel, heartless as it is, has on many an occasion
blocked the food that relief agencies have been delivering to the people,
and it is thanks to international pressure, particularly through the media
channels, that it has not as yet launched a genocidal campaign against the
Palestinians by starving them and depriving them of other essentials.

*The current economic blockade and squeeze on Gaza began in 1991. It was
tightened with the institutionalization of the Israeli occupation enabled by
the disastrous Oslo Accord of 1993. This cruel economic squeeze continued
with greater intensification following the second intifada in 2000. After
Israel redeployed its settlers and troops Gaza was transformed into a prison
the key to which, as stated by the UN's special rapporteur John Dugard,
Israel had "thrown away." *

*Elections*

In a spotless democratic election, held under the supervision of former US
President Jimmy Carter who described it as free and fair in January 2006
Hamas, known for its integrity, commitment to the Palestinian cause and
pursuit of peace with dignity, was elected with an overwhelming majority.

*This alarmed Israel, the US and their European and Arab collaborators who
wanted Hamas crushed at any cost. They introduced measures to collectively
punish the Palestinians for electing Hamas. Israel, backed by US and Europe,
stopped all donations and cut off the flow of all money to starve Palestine
into submission. The Arab regimes too joined this financial blockade knowing
very well the misery they were causing to the Palestinians who needed this
money to keep body and soul together. *

The task of overthrowing the Hamas government was entrusted to Palestine
Authority President Mahmoud Abbas who was bribed, armed and even given arms
training by the US. Thus proving to the world the US claim to promote
democracy is a farce. In the midst, as the world was busy watching the World
Cup Football Championships, Israel, under the guise of trying to free a
captured soldier, bombed Gaza Strip in June 2006 with its F-16 fighter
planes and helicopter gun ships while artillery fire from tanks surrounded
and turned Gaza into a virtual slaughter house.

Within days roads, bridges, power plants, water supply, universities,
schools, hospitals, play grounds, mosques and even tombs and ministry
buildings were bombed and destroyed causing untold misery to the people
already starving. In an unprecedented lawlessness, and the violation of
international law, Israel started mafia-style abduction of Hamas cabinet
ministers, mayors and parliamentarians.

*As usual there was deafening international silence at this Israeli
barbarity. Egypt, once in the forefront fighting the Pal

Bismillah [IslamCity] War on Muslims - British Pair Who FORCED Their Muslim Colleague to EAT Bacon Lose Appeal

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

"O ye who believe! Take not into your intimacy those outside your ranks:
They will not fail to corrupt you. They only desire your ruin: Rank hatred
has already appeared from their mouths: What their hearts conceal is far
worse. We have made plain to you the Signs, if ye have wisdom."

(Al-Qur'an, 3:118 Aal-E-Imran [The Family of Imran])
*Pair Who Forced Their Muslim Colleague to Eat Bacon Lose Appeal*
**

*Friday, October 10, 2008, 08:00*
*
http://www.thisissuttoncoldfield.co.uk/greatbarr/Pair-forced-Muslim-colleague-eat-bacon-lose-appeal/article-388442-detail/article.html
*
**
*A Kingstanding man who subjected his **'**vulnerable**'** Muslim colleague
to a 10-month bullying campaign saw his appeal against a jail sentence for
racially aggravated harassment thrown out by the Appeal Court this week.*
**
Sean Martin Melaney, 29, of Streatham Grove, along with two other road
maintenance workers, admitted to harassing colleague Amjid Mehmood. All four
worked for a road maintenance firm in Walsall. The three were each sentenced
at Wolverhampton Crown Court in April to three-years imprisonment.

The workmates had bullied Mr Mehmood by:



■ *Pulling his trousers down and exposing him to passing motorists while
working on the M6.*

*■** Force-feeding Mr Mehmood bacon, which it is against his religious
beliefs to eat.*

*■** Dropping him off in Lozells at the time of the Asian/Afro-Carribean
race riots in 2005 and then driving off, telling him the residents would
come and get him.*
*■** Tied Mr Mehmood to railings with duct tape, stripping him and dousing
his clothing in dirty water.*
**
Despite the Crown Court's findings Melaney and Lee Paul McDermott, 31, of
Blue Stone Walk, Rowley Regis, appealed the three-year jail term. Jonathon
Challiner, defending Melaney, told the judges that the incidents were
initially 'horseplay' but conceded it 'developed into a campaign of racial
harassment.

John Evans representing McDermott said: "Mr Mehmood was a quiet man with a
stutter as well as being Asian and this had made the butt of what started
out as practical jokes." Mr Evans said his client thought he got on 'quite
well' with Mr Mehmood and said that the jail term was too long for incidents
that occurred from 'time to time', only eventually escalating.

A third man, Phillip Skett, 39, of College Road, Erdington, did not appeal
his three-year sentence.

*Mr Justice Pitchford, sitting in the criminal appeal court with Lady
Justice Hallett and Judge Nicholas Cooke QC, said the conduct of the pair
had been **'**appalling**'**.*
**
*Refusing the appeal he said Mr Mehmood was: "A man who was vulnerable in
his workplace, by virtue of his personal qualities, his minority race and in
the troubled times in which he was living.*
**
*"We have considered the matter of these men**'**s conduct, its persistence
over a prolonged period and its traumatic effect on their victim. "We
conclude that the sentences were both principled and appropriate."*
**

*Tolerance Born Out of Real Understanding*


*Christelle Sadeghi & Josiane Bechara, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=98715&d=20&m=7&y=2007*

BRUSSELS/BEIRUT, 20 July 2007 ― *As the world enters a new age of
enlightenment, conflicts plague the earth while large distances between
continents vanish as a result of a newly emerging global community. The
amalgamation of people with different cultural backgrounds, traditions and
values enriches this community, yet it also contributes to the appearance of
ideological deadlocks and collisions. The result is a multitude of vast
cultural clefts separating people today. Hence the search for a process of
peace-making through the promotion of tolerance. *

UNESCO's Declaration of the Principles of Tolerance states that "tolerance
is respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of our world's
cultures, our forms of expression and ways of being human. Tolerance is
harmony in difference". The Oxford Dictionary states that tolerance is the
ability to tolerate the beliefs and actions of others and to permit them. It
also describes tolerance as being "the capacity to endure hardship or pain".


However, when the pain of acceptance sometimes exceeds its threshold, can
tolerance still achieve harmony? One could then consider tolerance as
promoting passivity toward injustices that violate our basic human rights.
Without attempting to further understand people who are different from us,
this form of tolerance can actually lead to intolerance. It can shut down
conversations rather than encourage them.

*This kind of tolerance can be a form of avoidance ― it prevents individuals
from asking questions, learning about themselves and others. By defining the
limits of tolerance, one might run the risk of promoting intolerance too.
Instead one should view it as th

Bismillah [IslamCity] Emailed Photos Promoting 'MIRACLES' of Islam

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Emailed Photos**

*

*Adil Salahi | Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=115080&d=3&m=10&y=2008*

*Question*

*Some people circulate through e-mail some photos which they say support the
truth of Islam. Recently I received a photo of the moon which shows a clear
line in the middle. It is said to confirm the Qur'anic statement that the
moon was split during the lifetime of the Prophet. Do these photos prove
anything of the truth of Islam? Should we circulate them to all people,
particularly non-Muslims as a proof of the truth of Islam?*

*Answer*

God gave prophets and messengers He sent prior to the message of Islam
different miracles as signs they showed to their people in support of what
they preached. He gave Moses nine of these signs, such as the way his stick
was turned into a quick moving snake which swallowed the objects of sorcery
used by Pharaoh's sorcerers. He gave Jesus the ability to cure the blind and
the albino and to bring the dead back to life. He, however, did not
associate the message of Islam with any such miracle or sign.

*The proof of Islam as a message from God is there within the message. It
only needs to be studied and carefully examined for its truth to be clearly
seen by all. The Qur'an is there for all people to read. It is a book of
truth that admits no falsehood. Human progress and increased knowledge
always show the truth of every Qur'anic statement. Besides, it lays down a
code of living that can be easily adapted to any society, community and
generation, bringing out the best in all people. *

*There were numerous signs and 'miraculous' events that took place during
the lifetime of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and by his actions, such as
a small amount of food being served to an army of people, each eating his
fill with the food left at the end being more than it was at the start; a
small quantity of water turning into a spring at which a large army
replenishes its full stock; a man whose eye was dislocated by an enemy shows
it to the Prophet who puts it back in place; and many similar events.
However, none of these is taken as an ultimate proof of the message of
Islam. We say that they serve to confirm that the Prophet was certainly
God's messenger, but he never suggested that these were his proofs. The real
proof is in the message itself; in the Qur'an. We need no other proof.*

*Those people who circulate this photo showing a line in the middle of the
moon claim that it supports the Qur'anic statement that the moon was split
during the Prophet's lifetime. To start with, the photo does not prove
anything. Nowadays, it is very easy to produce any photo one wishes, using
some computer software like Photoshop. If you have a fine picture of the
moon, like the ones captured by spacecraft, you can easily introduce a line
in it or superimpose something else to prove what you wish. So, if you hold
such a photo to a non-Muslim and tell him that it proves the Qur'anic
statement in the first verse of Surah 54, he only needs to look at other
photos of the moon that do not show that line to realize that it was
superimposed. He will then think that you are resorting to deception. This
does not serve Islam. *

*Some years back, a photo was circulated showing two lines of trees, claimed
to be in the middle of a forest in Germany, with the inscription of the
first article of the Islamic faith clearly seen on them. People celebrated
this as if it was all that was needed to convince the world population of
the truth of Islam. However, they realized that this was not the case.
Sometime later, it transpired that it was all fake. The question that
escaped almost all people was that why would such trees in a German forest
bear an inscription in Arabic, when few Arabs would see it, if it was meant
to deliver a message to the German people or to the world at large. *

*God says in the Qur'an: "Never have We sent a messenger otherwise than
speaking the language of his own people, so that he might make (the truth)
clear to them." (14:4) Would it not have served a better purpose if the
inscription on those trees was in German, so that every passerby would read
and understand it? Similar photos of vegetables, fish and animals were
circulated bearing a similar message. They are all fake and serve no
purpose. *

*The way to preach Islam is to abide by its truth and explain it to people
clearly, in the way they understand. We do not need to resort to deception
because it will certainly harm our cause.*

*Preaching Islam After the Prophet &** Practice of Ablution*

*Adil Salahi, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=98241&d=6&m=7&y=2007*

*Question*

*Some people claim that 100,000 companions of the Prophet (peace be upon
him) left the **Middle East** after the Prophet's death and traveled
throughout the world to preach Islam. Could you please shed light on this
and whether they left their women and children back home? *

*Answer*

After the Prophet (peace be upon h

Bismillah [IslamCity] Hair DYEING & Trimming EYEBROWS

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Hair DYEING & Trimming EYEBROWS*

* *

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=114537&d=19&m=9&y=2008*



*Question*

*What is the rule on hair dyeing? Is it forbidden to dye one's hair black?
Does the same ruling apply when a person's hair starts to go gray at an
early age? How does this apply to a person whose hair is not black? How
about women trimming their eyebrows?*



*Answer*

*Hair dyeing is permissible, provided it is not intended for deception. A
man got married after dyeing his hair. After the marriage, his wife
discovered that he was much older than he looked. Her father complained to
Umar ibn Al-Khattab, the second Caliph, who annulled the marriage, saying to
the man: 'You have committed an act of deception'. *

* *

*When the Prophet suggested to Abu Bakr that he should dye his father's
hair, because he was very old and his head looked very white. The Prophet
told Abu Bakr that he should avoid dyeing it black. This is because such an
old man would look odd if he were to wear black hair. In fact, such a sight
could make people laugh. *

* *

So, the important factor to observe is that the hair of an old man should
not be dyed in its original color so as not to invite derision. Moreover,
deception must not be the intention. Hence, a hair dye, which is clear to be
a dye, as in the case of using henna, is permissible. Young people who have
gray hair may use a dye giving a natural color, provided they do not try to
deceive anyone with regard to their ages.



*The Prophet denounced thinning eyebrows in order to give a woman an
attractive appearance. However, if a woman's eyebrows are too thick so as to
cause her embarrassment, then she may take off a small part of hair to avoid
such harm.*



*Wearing a Beard*


*Edited by Adil Salahi*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=113215&d=22&m=8&y=2008*



*Question*

*Please comment on those people who claim that wearing a beard is not
important from the Islamic point of view. They even say that it is not
something to talk about. However, Imam Muhammad ibn Al-Hasan reports a
Hadith which states that "Ibn Umar used to hold his beard with one hand and
trim any longer hair." Therefore, the Hanafi school considers shortening
one's beard below that length to be forbidden, and says that this is the
view of all scholars, which proves unanimity. *



*Answer*

This question shows the unfortunate state of lack of knowledge that has long
prevailed among Muslims concerning the details of their religion. Let us
briefly consider the Hadith the reader quotes, assuming that it is
authentic, and outline what it implies.



*The Hadith simply speaks of the practice of one of the Prophet's companions
who commands great respect for his thorough knowledge. The Hadith does not
quote Ibn Umar as saying that what he used to do was ordered or recommended
by the Prophet (peace be upon him). It simply states what he used to do.
This may simply be a matter of personal choice. Had Ibn Umar followed his
action with a statement to the effect that he was doing it as a result of an
order by the Prophet, it would have taken the Hadith into a higher degree to
make the order given to Ibn Umar applicable to others. He makes no such
comment. Therefore, his action does not constitute any requirement of any
level, which other people should observe.*



Now to claim that not following his example is forbidden means that we are
required to follow the practice of people other than the Prophet. This is
not so. No one should be followed or obeyed, unless their action is based on
an order by the Prophet. This means that we do not follow them, but follow
the Prophet. This is what is required of all Muslims.



*What is more is that the reader claims that this is the unanimous opinion
of all scholars. This is totally untrue. No scholar of olden or modern days
claims such unanimity on the point of wearing a beard or its length. The
question of wearing a beard is based on a different Hadith which quotes the
Prophet as saying: "Adopt a way different from that of the Jews: Trim your
mustaches and leave your beards." This is an authentic Hadith, but scholars
differ as to whether the order given is one of obligation or recommendation.
When we take a broad view of what the Prophet's companions did and what
scholars say, weighing up the evidence in support of the different views, we
will come to the conclusion that the order in this Hadith is one of
recommendations. This means that wearing a beard is a Sunnah. Therefore, it
is not obligatory.*



I realize that there are scholars who have a different view. They consider
wearing a beard obligatory. I respect their views. When we have such a
difference of views, people should take the view supported by the stronger
evidence. If a person cannot do that, then he takes the view of the scholar
he trusts, or he may do whatever suits his circumstances.



*Contraception

***

*Adil Salahi | Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=111705&d=

Bismillah [IslamCity] War on Muslims - Mystery of Siddiqui Disappearance

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Mystery of Siddiqui Disappearance*

*By Syed Shoaib Hasan **
**BBC News, **Islamabad** *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7544008.stm*



*Aafia Siddiqui, whom the **US** accuses of al-Qaeda links, vanished in **
Karachi** with her three children on **30 March 2003**.*



*The next day it was reported in local newspapers that a woman had been
taken into custody on terrorism charges. Initially, confirmation came from a
**Pakistan** interior ministry spokesman.  But a couple of days later, both
the **Pakistan** government and the FBI publicly denied having anything to
do with her disappearance. *

* *

*Two days after Aafia Siddiqui went missing, "a man wearing a motor-bike
helmet" arrived at the Siddiqui home in **Karachi**, her mother told the
BBC. "He did not take off the helmet, but told me that if I ever wanted to
see my daughter and grandchildren again, I should keep quiet," Ms Siddiqui**
'**s mother told me over the phone in 2003. The mother also related the
affair to other newspapers. *

* *

*But the government continued to deny having anything to do with her
daughter**'**s disappearance. This is despite the fact that Mrs Siddiqui**'*
*s other daughter, Fauzia, says she was told by then Interior Minister Syed
Faisal Saleh Hayat in 2004 that her sister had been released and would
return home shortly. *

* *

*Research at the time refused to turn up anything on the status of Aafia
Siddiqui - she was not listed as wanted by any federal or Pakistani agency.
At that point, it seemed she had vanished off the face of the earth. *



*Islamic activities*



Aafia Siddiqui is the youngest of three children of a British-trained
doctor. Her brother is an architect based in Houston, while Fauzia is a
neurologist who used to work at Mount Sinai hospital in New York. Aafia
Siddiqui went to school in Karachi and graduated with a biology degree from
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US.



*It was during this time that she got actively involved in on-campus Islamic
activities. A fellow Pakistani student recalls her as being one of the
"hello, brother" types. "They were the ones with scarves who used to get
after us to come to the association meetings," the student, Hamza, told the
BBC. "I remember Aafia as being sweet, mildly irritating but harmless. You
would run into her now and then distributing pamphlets." *



After graduation, Aafia Siddiqui married Muhammad Amjad Khan, a young
Pakistani doctor in Boston. She continued with her studies, enrolling in
Brandeis University near Boston for a PhD in neuro-cognitive science. Her
degree has often been misreported as being in microbiology or genetics.



*US** discrimination*



At that time, her main problems arose from married life. She and her husband
argued over where to bring up their children. "Aafia wanted them to be
brought up in the US and receive a Western education, but Amjad was against
it," her mother said in 2003.



*The **11 September 2001** attacks in the **US** changed everything. Her
husband was detained by the FBI for questioning. The reason was his purchase
of night vision goggles, body armour and military manuals. He is said to
have told the FBI it was for big-game hunting. Aafia Siddiqui was also
questioned briefly, but later released, as was her husband. *



Soon, they decided to return to Pakistan, citing the increasing
discrimination against Muslims in the US following the 9/11 attacks. In
Pakistan, the already estranged couple soon separated, and they divorced in
2002, while she was pregnant with their third child. Following the birth,
Aafia Siddiqui worked briefly in Baltimore, US, before returning to
Pakistanin December 2002, where she disappeared months later.



*Mounting charges*



*Various theories about her disappearance started to appear in international
and local publications. The first of these was on **23 June 2003** - three
months after her disappearance - in Newsweek. An investigative report,
calling her a micro-biologist, said she and her husband were part of an
al-Qaeda sleeper cell. In **Baltimore**, she is alleged to have opened a
mailbox for a suspected al-Qaeda operative now in **Guantanamo** **Bay**.
Majid Khan has been accused of planning to blow up petrol stations across
the **US**. *

* *

*The charges started to mount. In 2004 then-FBI director Robert Mueller
announced at a press conference that Aafia Siddiqui was wanted for
questioning. She was later named as part of an alleged al-Qaeda diamond
smuggling operation in **Liberia**. Publications such as Newsweek quoted the
FBI as saying this was to finance al-Qaeda**'**s biological and chemical
weapons programme. After that, her name remained on the list of disappeared
- until she surfaced last month in **Afghanistan** in **US** military
custody. *



*Sister speaks out*



Aafia Siddiqui is now in the US facing charges of assaulting and attempting
to kill US personnel while in detention in Afghanistan. The FBI has been
unable to make 

Bismillah [IslamCity] Hey US, Welcome to the THIRD World

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Hey U.S., Welcome to the Third World!*

*It's been a quick slide from economic superpower to economic basket case.*

*Rosa Brooks
September 18, 2008 *

*
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-brooks18-2008sep18,0,6908905.column
*



*Dear United States, Welcome to the Third World! *


*It**'**s not every day that a superpower makes a bid to transform itself
into a Third World nation, and we here at the World Bank and the
International Monetary Fund want to be among the first to welcome you to the
community of states in desperate need of international economic assistance.
As you spiral into a catastrophic financial meltdown, we are delighted to
respond to your Treasury Department**'**s request that we undertake a joint
stability assessment of your financial sector. In these turbulent times, we
can provide services ranging from subsidized loans to expert advisors
willing to perform an emergency overhaul of your entire government. *


*As you know, some outside intervention in your economy is overdue. Last
week -- even before Wall Street**'**s latest collapse -- 13 former finance
ministers convened at the University of Virginia and agreed that you must
fix your "broken financial system." Australia**'**s Peter Costello noted
that lately you**'**ve been "exporting instability" in world markets, and
Yashwant Sinha, former finance minister of India, concluded, "The time has
come. The U.S. should accept some monitoring by the IMF." *


We hope you won't feel embarrassed as we assess the stability of your
economy and suggest needed changes. Remember, many other countries have been
in your shoes. We've bailed out the economies of Argentina, Brazil,
Indonesia and South Korea. But whether our work is in Sudan, Bangladesh or
now the United States, our experts are committed to intervening in national
economies with care and sensitivity.


*We thus want to acknowledge the progress you have made in your evolution
from economic superpower to economic basket case. Normally, such a process
might take 100 years or more. With your oscillation between free-market
extremism and nationalization of private companies, however, you have
successfully achieved, in a few short years, many of the key hallmarks of
Third World economies. Your policies of irresponsible government
deregulation in critical sectors allowed you to rapidly develop an energy
crisis, a housing crisis, a credit crisis and a financial market crisis, all
at once, and accompanied (and partly caused) by impressive levels of
corruption and speculation. Meanwhile, those of your political leaders
charged with oversight were either napping or in bed with corporate
lobbyists.*


*Take John McCain, your Republican presidential nominee, whose senior staff
includes half a dozen prominent former lobbyists. As he recently put it, "I
was chairman of the [Senate] Commerce Committee that oversights every part
of the economy." No question about it: Your leaders**'** failure to notice
the damage done by irresponsible deregulation was indeed an oversight of
epic proportions. *


*Now you are facing the consequences. Income inequality has increased, as
the rich have gotten windfalls while the middle class has seen incomes
stagnate. Fewer and fewer of your citizens have access to affordable
housing, healthcare or security in retirement. Even life expectancy has
dropped. And when your economic woes went from chronic to acute, you
responded -- like so many Third World states have -- with an extensive
program of nationalizing private companies and assets. Your mortgage giants
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are now state owned and controlled, and this week
your reinsurance giant AIG was effectively nationalized, with the Federal
Reserve Board seizing an 80% equity stake in the flailing company. Some
might deride this as socialism. But desperate times call for desperate
measures.*


Admittedly, your transition to Third World status is far from over, and it
won't be painless. At first, for instance, you may find it hard to get used
to the shantytowns that will replace the exurban sprawl of McMansions that
helped fuel the real estate speculation bubble. But in time, such
shantytowns will simply become part of the landscape. Similarly, as
unemployment rates continue to rise, you will initially struggle to find a
use for the expanding pool of angry, jobless young men. But you will
gradually realize that you can recruit them to fight in a ceaseless round of
armed conflicts, a solution that has been utilized by many other Third World
states before you. Indeed, with your wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, you are
off to an excellent start.


Perhaps this letter comes as a surprise to you, and you feel you're not
fully ready to join the Third World. Don't let this feeling concern you.
Though you may never have realized it, you've been preparing for this moment
for years.


[EMAIL PROTECTED]

*When Truth and Rights Are Crucified for US Security*

*By Thalif Deen at the united nations*

*http://www.sunda

Bismillah [IslamCity] Jerusalem - Part 3

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Jerusalem***

*Updated: 5 15 04 *

*http://www.birthofanangel.com/Armageddon.html*
THE HORRIBLE TRUTH

*Benjamin Freedman Speaks:*
A Jewish Defector Warns America *by Benjamin H. Freedman*
*
Introductory Note:
*

*Benjamin H. Freedman was one of the most intriguing and amazing individuals
of the 20th century. Mr. Freedman, born in 1890, was a successful Jewish
businessman of New York City who was at one time the principal owner of the
Woodbury Soap Company. He broke with organized Jewry after the
Judeo-Communist victory of 1945, and spent the remainder of his life and the
great preponderance of his considerable fortune, at least 2.5 million
dollars, exposing the Jewish tyranny which has enveloped the **United States
**.*

* *

*Mr. Freedman knew what he was talking about because he had been an insider
at the highest levels of Jewish organizations and Jewish machinations to
gain power over our nation. Mr. Freedman was personally acquainted with
Bernard Baruch, Samuel Untermyer, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Joseph
Kennedy, and John F. Kennedy, and many more movers and shakers of our times.
This speech was given before a patriotic audience in 1961 at the **Willard**
**Hotel** in **Washington**, **D.C.**, on behalf of Conde McGinley**'**s
patriotic newspaper of that time, Common Sense. Though in some minor ways
this wide-ranging and extemporaneous speech has become dated, Mr. Freedman**
'**s essential message to us -- his warning to the West -- is more urgent
than ever before. -- K.A.S. *

*

*

*That is where all the trouble started. The **United States** got in the
war. The **United States** rushed **Germany**. You know what happened. When
the war ended, and the Germans went to **Paris** for the **Paris** Peace
Conference in 1919 there were 117 Jews there, as a delegation representing
the Jews, headed by Bernard Baruch. I was there: I ought to know. Now what
happened?*

*The Jews at that peace conference, when they were cutting up
**Germany**and parceling out
**Europe** to all these nations who claimed a right to a certain part of
European territory, said, "How about **Palestine** for us?" And they
produced, for the first time to the knowledge of the Germans, this Balfour
Declaration. So the Germans, for the first time realized, "Oh, so that was
the game! That**'**s why the **United States** came into the war." The
Germans for the first time realized that they were defeated; they suffered
the terrific reparations that were slapped onto them, because the Zionists
wanted **Palestine** and were determined to get it at any cost. *

*That brings us to another very interesting point. When the Germans realized
this, they naturally resented it. Up to that time, the Jews had never been
better off in any country in the world than they had been in **Germany**.
You had Mr. Rathenau there, who was maybe 100 times as important in industry
and finance as is Bernard Baruch in this country. You had Mr. Balin, who
owned the two big steamship lines, the North German Lloyd**'**s and the
Hamburg-American Lines. You had Mr. Bleichroder, who was the banker for the
Hohenzollern family. You had the Warburgs in **Hamburg**, who were the big
merchant bankers -- the biggest in the world. The Jews were doing very well
in **Germany**. No question about that. The Germans felt: "Well, that was
quite a sellout." *

*It was a sellout that might be compared to this hypothetical situation:*

*Suppose the **United States** was at war with **Russia**. And we were
winning. And we told **Russia**: "Well, let**'**s quit. We offer you peace
terms. Let**'**s forget the whole thing." And all of a sudden Red
**China**came into the war as an ally of the
**Russia**. And throwing them into the war brought about our defeat.** ***

*A crushing defeat, with reparations the likes of which man**'**s
imagination cannot encompass.*

*Imagine, then, after that defeat, if we found out that it was the Chinese
in this country, our Chinese citizens, who all the time we had thought were
loyal citizens working with us, were selling us out to the Soviet Union and
that it was through them that Red China was brought into the war against us.
How would we feel, then, in the **United States** against Chinese?** I don**
'**t think that one of them would dare show his face on any street. There
wouldn**'**t be enough convenient lamp posts to take care of them. Imagine
how we would feel?***

*Well, that**'**s how the Germans felt towards these Jews. They**'**d been
so nice to them: from 1905 on, when the first Communist revolution in **
Russia** failed, and the Jews had to scramble out of **Russia**, they all
went to **Germany**. And **Germany** gave them refuge. And they were treated
very nicely. And here they had sold **Germany** down the river for no reason
at all other than the fact that they wanted **Palestine** as a so-called
"Jewish commonwea

Bismillah [IslamCity] War on Muslims - ‘Muslim Massacre’ Computer Game Condemned

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*'Muslim Massacre' Computer Game Condemned*


*Josie Clarke I The Independent*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=4§ion=0&article=114189&d=12&m=9&y=2008*

LONDON: *A computer game in which players control an American soldier sent
to "wipe out the Muslim race" has been condemned as offensive and tasteless
by a British Muslim group. The goal of "Muslim Massacre," which can be
downloaded for free on the Internet, is to "ensure that no Muslim man or
woman is left alive," according to the game's creator.*

*Players control an "American Hero" armed with a machine gun and rocket
launcher who is parachuted into the **Middle East**. Users progress through
levels, first killing Arabs that appear on screen and later taking on Osama
Bin Laden.*

The game's creator, a freelance programmer known as Sigvatr, described the
game on the SomethingAwful.com website as "fun and funny."In a "How you can
help" section, he writes to visitors: "Don't whine about how offensive and
'edgy' this is."

British Muslim youth organization The Ramadhan Foundation expressed its
"deep condemnation and anger" at the game. The group said: "This game is
glorifying the killing of Muslims in the Middle East and we urge ISP
providers to take action to remove this site from their services as it
incites violence toward Muslims and is trying to justify the killing of
innocent Muslims. We have written to the British government to urge an
inquiry into this game and take action to shut down the site. This is not
satire but a deliberate attempt to demonize Muslims."

The foundation's chief executive, Mohammed Shafiq, added: "Encouraging
children and young people in a game to kill Muslims is unacceptable,
tasteless and deeply offensive. "There is an increase in violence in this
country and some of it comes from video games. When kids spend six hours a
day on violent games they are more likely to go outside and commit violence.

*"If it was the other way around, with a game featuring Muslims killing
Israelis or Americans, there would be uproar and rightly so.*

"I would urge ISPs to take action against sites like this and there can be
no justification for this sort of video game. I hope the person who made
this game thinks again."

The game was first released in January this year but has become more popular
in recent days after being linked to several prominent blogs.

*Muslims and Anti-Semitism*



*Sunday, 29 July 2007***

*http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/3901/*



The responsibility of the Muslims and the Jews in the West is tremendous:
living together, both citizens of the same countries, they should raise
their voices in the name of justice and mutual respect. In France, for
example, one finds a unique situation; namely, the largest Jewish and Muslim
communities in Europe living together. In America, we find the same
situation with two important religious communities sharing the same
citizenship. That itself should be an ideal opportunity for people to learn
to live in harmony. However, the reality is that problems are on the rise.
While tensions have been incidental in the past, the situation has been
exacerbated during the second intifada, and more recently, during the
upsurge of violence in the Middle East. The trend appears to be that the
Muslim immigrants as well as native European and American Muslims are
becoming extremely sensitive to the events occurring in Palestine and are
demonstrating their frustration quite overtly.


*Malicious words, cries of "down with the Jews" shouted during protest
demonstrations, and in a few cities in **France**, reports of synagogues
being vandalized. One also hears ambiguous statements about Jews, their
"occult-like" power, their insidious role within the media and their
nefarious plans. After September 11th, the false rumor that 4,000 Jews did
not show up for work the morning of the terrorist attacks against the World
Trade center, was relayed throughout predominantly Muslim areas. *


It is very rare to hear Muslim voices that set themselves apart from this
kind of discourse and attitude. Often, one will try to explain away this
phenomena being a result of extreme frustration and humiliation. That may be
true, but one must be honest and analyze the situation deeply. Much like the
situation across the Muslim world, there exists in the West today a
discourse which is anti-Semitic, seeking legitimacy in certain Islamic texts
and support in the present situation in Palestine. This is the attitude of
not only marginalized youth, but also of intellectuals and Imams, who see
the manipulative hand of the "Jewish lobby" at each turn or every political
setback,


The situation is far too serious for one to be satisfied by simple
explanations based on current frustrations. In the name of their faith and
their conscience, Muslims must take a clear position so that a pernicious
atmosphere does not take hold in the Western countries. Nothing in Islam can
legitimize xenophobia or the rejection of a human being due to his/her
re

Bismillah [IslamCity] Rulings Concerning Eid Al-Fitr

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

Praise be to Allaah.



Allaah has set out several rulings concerning Eid, including the following:



*1 – It is mustahabb to recite takbeer during the night of Eid from sunset
on the last day of Ramadaan until the imam comes to lead the prayer. The
format of the takbeer is as follows: *



Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, laa ilaaha ill-Allaah, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu
akbar, wa Lillaahi'l-hamd (Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, there
is no god except Allaah, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, and all
praise be to Allaah).



Or you can say Allaahu akbar three times, so you say:



Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, laa ilaaha ill-Allaah, Allaahu
akbar, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, wa Lillaahi'l-hamd (Allaah is Most
Great, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, there is no god except
Allaah, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great , Allaah is Most Great,
and all praise be to Allaah).



Both are permissible.



Men should raise their voices reciting this dhikr in the marketplaces,
mosques and homes, but women should not raise their voices.



*2 – You should eat an odd number of dates before leaving for the Eid
prayer, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did
not set out on the day of Eid until he had eaten an odd number of dates. He
should stick to an odd number as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) did. *



*3 – You should wear your best clothes – this is for men. With regard to
women, they should not wear beautiful clothes when they go out to the Eid
prayer-place, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said: "Let them go out looking decent" i.e., in regular clothes that
are not fancy. It is haraam for them to go out wearing perfume and makeup. *



*4 – Some of the scholars regarded it as mustahabb to do ghusl for the Eid
prayer, because it is narrated that some of the salaf did this. Doing ghusl
for Eid prayer is mustahabb, just as it is prescribed for Jumu'ah because
one is going to meet people. So if one does ghusl, that is good. *



*5 – The Eid prayer. The Muslims are unanimously agreed that the Eid prayer
is prescribed in Islam. Some of them say that it is Sunnah, some say that it
is fard kafaayah (a communal obligation) and some say that it is fard 'ayn
(an individual obligation), and that not doing it is a sin. They quoted as
evidence the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) commanded even the virgins and women in seclusion, i.e., those who did
not ordinarily come out, to attend the Eid prayer place, except that those
who were menstruating should keep away from the prayer-place itself, because
it is not permissible for a menstruating woman to stay in the mosque; it is
permissible for her to pass through but not to stay there. *



It seems to me, based on the evidence, that it is fard 'ayn (an individual
obligation) and that every male is obliged to attend the Eid prayer except
for those who have an excuse. This was the view favoured by Shaykh al-Islam
Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him).



*In the first rak'ah the imam should recite Sabbih isma rabbika al-A'ala
(Soorat al-A'la 87) and in the second rak'ah he should recite Hal ataaka
hadeeth ul-ghaashiyah (al-Ghaashiyah 88). Or he may recite Soorat Qaaf (50)
in the first and Soorat al-Qamar (54) in the second. Both options are
narrated in saheeh reports from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him). *



*6 – If Jumu'ah and Eid fall on the same day, the Eid prayer should be held,
as should Jumu'ah prayer, as is indicated by the apparent meaning of the
hadeeth of al-Nu'maan ibn Basheer which was narrated by Muslim in his
Saheeh. But those who attend the Eid prayer with the imam may attend Jumu'ah
if they wish, or they may pray Zuhr. *

* *

*7 – One of the rulings on Eid prayer is that according to many scholars, if
a person comes to the Eid prayer-place before the imam comes, he should sit
down and not pray two rak'ahs, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) prayed Eid with two rak'ahs, and he did not offer any
prayer before or after it. *



Some of the scholars are of the view that when a person comes he should not
sit down until he has prayed two rak'ahs, because the Eid prayer-place is a
mosque, based on the fact that menstruating women are not allowed there, so
it comes under the same rulings as a mosque, which indicates that it is a
mosque. Based on this, it comes under the general meaning of the words of
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): "When any one of
you enters the mosque, let him not sit down until he has prayed two
rak'ahs." With regard to the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) did not offer any prayer before or after the Eid prayer,
that is because when he arrived the prayer started.



*Thus it is proven that we should pray Tahiyyat al-Masjid (two rak'ahs to
"greet the mosque") whe

Bismillah [IslamCity] Market CRASH & Latin American CRISIS Point to WANING Power of the US

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*"Destiny of Superpowers"*

"Do they not travel through the earth and see what was the End of those
before them? They were even superior to them in strength, and in the traces
(they have left) in the land: but Allah did call them to account for their
sins, and none had they to defend them against Allah." (Al-Qur'an, 40:21)

*Market Crash and Latin American Crisis Point to Waning Power of **U.S.***



*By Ameen Izzadeen** *
*
http://www.dailymirror.lk/DM_BLOG/Sections/frmNewsDetailView.aspx?ARTID=26747
*
**
*The waning power of the **United States** is more visible than ever now.
With a major financial crisis causing financial institution after financial
institution to crash in the United States, the message is clear that even a
mighty superpower can be shaken to its core by policies of its own making —
its own unbridled capitalist system. *
**
The collapse of the greed-driven market was visible way back in July last
year when the US Labour Department released its monthly report, which
indicated that for the first time in four years, the economy had failed to
generate jobs. The credit crunch was in the making with loans becoming
expensive. Yet the focus of the George W. Bush administration was, in spite
of the falling dollar and the rising oil prices, on injecting billions of
unproductive dollars into the Iraq and Afghan wars — money that could have
been well made use of to rejuvenate the US economy.

*But such Keynesian wisdom would not dawn on a president, who has been
pre-occupied for the entirety of his two presidential terms with thoughts of
how to colonize oil-rich Muslim **West Asia** and other developing nations
rich with natural resources. Perhaps, Bush seeks to make the United States
economically secure and financially sound by plundering Iraq**'**s oil after
browbeating the Nouri al-Maliki government to hand over Iraq**'**s oil wells
to US firms. But this policy has helped only the oil lobby, the Republican
Party**'**s main financial backer. Big Oil, as the lobby is nicknamed, has
benefited tremendously from Bush**'**s war-on-terror projects in **
Afghanistan**, **Iraq** and **Central Asia**. *
**
It's the economy stupid, said Bill Clinton during his campaign for the White
House in 1992. But the Bush administration seems to have gone beyond the
bounds of stupidity. Its delayed measures such as the taking over of
insurance giant AIG and mortgage giants Fannie and Freddie and bailing out
of other institutions could not stop the worldwide market plunge, which,
according to some analysts, is the worst since the Great Depression of 1929.
That there were few or no countermeasures to arrest the rot when the first
warning signs appeared as early as last year showed that the administration
was virtually at a loss. It had no answer to China's foreign exchange
accumulation of more than two trillion dollars which it acquired over years
of trade surplus with the US.

*According to economist Charles Whalen, the first signs of the credit crunch
emerged in March 2007, with a smattering of analysts and journalists warning
that financial markets in the **United States** were on the verge of
collapse. By early August 2007, business journalist Jim Jubak said a crunch
had finally arrived in the business sector, but not yet for consumers. Then,
in early September 2007, a survey sponsored by a mortgage trade group
provided evidence that households were feeling the crunch too: a third of
home loans originated by mortgage brokers failed to close in August 2007
because brokers could not find investors to buy the loans. *
**
"In an effort to explain the current credit crunch with an illustration,
Jubak described the situation in the market for loans that finance corporate
buyouts. In the past, banks have been willing to lend to the buyout firms
because the banks have been able to resell the loans to investors. The
problem in July 2007, however, was that the market for new and existing
buyout loans had shrunk rapidly.

"Indeed, 'Investors with portfolios of existing loans discovered [in late
July 2007] that they couldn't sell their loans at any price. They were stuck
owning loans that were losing big hunks of value by the hour. And they
couldn't find an exit'. Because other investors do not want to get caught in
the same situation, buyout deals sit idle. According to the September 3,
2007 issue of BusinessWeek, banks now have a $300 billion backlog of deals."
(Whalen, The Oracle November 2007).

*If the economic power of the US is crumbling only now under the ongoing
financial crisis, its social and moral power had long since disappeared,
with the Bush administration burying it in the graveyard of the war on
terror. Its political power and diplomatic power has currency only in
economically-weak developing countries and oil-rich West Asian countries
whose insecure leaders sing hosannas to Bush at the **Washington** temple. *
**
*The **United States**'** failure to help its ally Georgia in the war
against **Russia** amply dem

Bismillah [IslamCity] Jerusalem - Part 1

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Jerusalem***

*Updated: 5 15 04 *
*http://www.birthofanangel.com/Armageddon.html*
**
*The name means, "a place of peace". How ironic that a city which has never
known peace, could be the spark that ignites another world war.*
**
*The questions this page will seek to begin to explore are:*

*WHY?*
**

   1. *Why are most evangelic groups hoping that **Israel** will ignite the
   world in flames?*
   2. *What does Revelation say about Armageddon? Can we do anything to
   change it?*
   3. *If **Israel** is a haven for Jews to feel safe, how many actually do
   feel safe?*
   4. *So why does **Israel** exist and continuing to create more hate
   against ALL Jews?* *Who pays for this? *
   5. *How was the State of **Israel** created?** *
   6. *How did the **US** get involved in World War One?** *
   7. *How did this lead inevitably to World War Two?** *
   8. *How can this lead to World War Three?** *

*Many say this is a problem of Zionism against the Moslem religion. *
*The horrible truth is that Evangelicals support the slow genocide of the
Palestinians in **Israel**, many who are Orthodox Christians, by taking away
their water and making impossible for them to remain.*
**
*The basic question is very simple:*


*1. **Is the goal of Zionism to rebuild a temple for animal sacrifice?**
*

*2. **Did Jesus come for all humanity? Why was he hated by the Jewish
King and the temple hierarchy?***

*3. **Are the 12 tribes of the true **Israel** the 12 signs of the
Zodiac?***

*4. **Is Zionism a political movement or an agenda of the Lubavitcher
sect of Jews?***
*5. **Do the People of the Torah follow the God of Love or the god that
demands blood?*

*God is Love. But they tell you that God is a vengeful God who will burn you
in hell for all eternity for not choosing their religion in a world full of
thousands of sects and religions. *
**
*Why do Evangelical Conservatives support the state of **Israel**?  It**'**s
simply because they believe that Jesus will return when three things happen:
*
**

*#1. **Israel** is restored as a nation, with **Jerusalem** as its capitol.*

*#2. The main Jewish temple is rebuilt.*
*#3. A special unblemished red cow is sacrificed in this temple.*
**
*So where did these "prophesies" come from?*
**
*Please click here to be
taken to the next page which explains Bible prophesy.  *
**
*The Bible was originally a collection of scrolls. Who collected the
scrolls? Who translated them? Who decided what would be part of the modern
Bible and what would not? These and other questions are explored in my news
group/discussion list: 1wonderswhy located at Smartgroups
You can also write to me at:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
**
*One thing is certain, since the Bible scrolls have seen many changes and
translations, many groups do not agree on the means. There are many Jews
that are opposed to the Nation of **Israel**.  *
**

*1. **Jews that believe in the Torah! *
*2. **Jews that believe GOD is the GOD of everyone. They believe in
compassion.*
**

*We are all from the VERY SAME CREATOR! THE SAME GOD!*

* *

A Hasidic Jew marches along with thousands of others during a Palestinian
rally in New York Friday, Oct. 13, 2000. Many members of Neturei
Karta,
a Hasidic sect  which does not believe there should be a state of Israel,
participated in the march and rally, denouncing Israel's violent actions in
the latest outbreak of Middle East animosity. Sign on left reads
"Palestinian blood is not water". Photo by Robert Mecea



If the Zionists destroy the Dome of the Rock do you have any doubt at all
that we will have World War 3?



Any doubt at all?

*The only way **Israel** can continue to exist in its present
form...treating Arabs as inferior sub-humans, mass arrests and detentions,
banning people from the land of their birth, firing on unarmed civilians,
etc. Is with the generous aid of the **US** government which pours Billions
of dollars into the hands of the Israeli Zionists.*

*You pay to support **Israel** with you tax dollars. Billions of dollars!*

* *

The political reasons we support Israel are simply divide and conquer.
If Israel were not a major bone of contention in the Middle East...with all
that oil money, Arab states could become very rich and powerful. Which is
one of the main reasons we tricked Saddam Hussein into attacking Kuwait.

   - *Is there any excuse for Israeli soldiers killing unarmed civilians and
   children? *

The only way there will be peace in the "Holy Land", is when we see the
entire Planet as a Holy Land and all the people on it as future space
travelers and spiritual brothers. This may seems a bit far out for some, but
is it crazier than spilling your guts for some rocks and sand? Remember, the
temple of God is within YOU! If its not there, you won't find it anywhere
else! (Victor C Forsythe)

Bismillah [IslamCity] Congress Hindu CARD Revives Kashmir Intifada

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Congress' Hindu Card Revives **Kashmir** Intifada*



*By Ameen Izzadeen** *
*
http://www.dailymirror.lk/DM_BLOG/Sections/frmNewsDetailView.aspx?ARTID=25313
*
**
The struggle for Kashmir's freedom is on the boil again. As the anger and
frustration of the people in this disputed Muslim-majority territory rose to
Himalayan heights, the Manmohan Singh government bungled, not knowing how to
bring the situation under control.

*By wooing Hindus or playing the Hindu card, the government was also
responsible for igniting a second uprising involving a new generation of
Kashmiri Muslims. The government, which is constitutionally committed to
uphold secularism, ignored Muslim sentiments. It probably did so because it
was emboldened by the relative calm in the region, which is the centre of
two major wars between **India** and **Pakistan** in 1947 and 1965 and a
near-nuclear war in 1999. Statistics showed that the yearly death toll in
Kashmir had fallen to a mere 700 last year from a staggering 10,000 in the
1990s -- and the sharp decline in the number of violent incidents made the
Indian leadership gloat over a false sense of victory. By 2001, the Indian
government claimed that the insurgency, led by Jihadis or holy warriors,
whom the Indian leadership called "terrorists", had been more or less
crushed. *
**
The use of the term terrorists to refer to Kashmir's pro-independence
activists was intentional. It helped India to project the Kashmiri problem
as a terrorist problem and win some international sympathy. The West backed
and continues to back New Delhi's stance on Kashmir because of India's
regional superpower stature and its immense value as a strategic partner in
trade and military matters.

The Western nations applied little or no pressure on India over human rights
violations, which included the use of excessive force, disappearances and
allegations of rape of Kashmiri women by Indian soldiers. India also banned
international human rights activists from visiting Kashmir, in an apparent
move to cover up atrocities allegedly committed by Indian soldiers. But,
again, very little was spoken about these in the Western media or in the
corridors of power in western capitals.

*To some extent, the Indian government**'**s claim that it had crushed the
Kashmiri struggle may have been true. But the events of the past few weeks
in this scenic region, referred to as the paradise on earth, indicated that
the government had not succeeded in eliminating the zeal or the dream of the
people. It was naïve to assume that the issue of Muslim anger would not crop
up when the Manmohan Singh government decided to hand over 100 acres of
state land to the Amarnath shrine in **Jammu**, which is Hindu-dominated.
Probably, the government thought that the Kashmiri Muslims could be beaten
into submission by the use of excessive military power, a time-tested
formula. *
**
*The issue appears to be linked to the Congress Party**'**s political
survival. The Congress government, which now depends on mercenary MPs for
its survival after the departure of its communist allies, was apprehensive
about its dwindling popularity, months before the general elections. So it
did what was usually expected from a BJP government - wooing the Hindu
voters. The Singh government**'**s land grant to the Amarnath cave shrine
where a stalagmite formation in the shape of a Shiva phallus or lingam
attracts hundreds of thousands of Hindus every July, was similar to a former
Congress government**'**s tacit endorsement of Lal Krishna Advani**'**s Rath
Yathra which led to the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992. *
**
When Advani's fanatics marched to the Masjid, the then Congress government
did not impose a curfew in Ayodhya or order the police or the army to use
force to prevent the marchers from demolishing the 16th century mosque.

*But the fire power came aplenty when the Kashmiri Muslims revolted against
the government**'**s decision last month. Some 35 people were killed and
more than a thousand wounded in weeks-long protests by the Kashmiri Muslims
who suspected that the land grant was aimed at settling more Hindus in the
Muslim-majority region. The protests then snowballed into a mammoth march
for freedom and the authorities imposed a curfew and arrested Kashmiri
leaders such as Mirwaiz Umer Farooq and Syed Ali Shah Geelani while angry
Hindus blockaded the main supply roads to the Muslim areas. Hundreds of
thousands of Kashmiri Muslims braved the bullets and teargas canisters,
shouting pro-Pakistan and pro-independence slogans in an emotion-filled
exercise that helped them vent their spleen on the Indian government. *
**
When the Kashmiri Muslims staged their first intifada, a people-led uprising
for freedom, in 1990, it took the Indian military nearly 11 years and a
more-than-half-a-million-strong force to suppress it. With more than 500,000
armed forces personnel being deployed to keep some 5 million Muslims out of
Indian Kashmir's six million 

Bismillah [IslamCity] Ramadan - A BLESSED Month of a Special Nature

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*What the Quran Says About Fasting*

"O ye who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to
those before you, that ye may (learn) self-restraint,-(Fasting) for a fixed
number of days; but if any of you is ill, or on a journey, the prescribed
number (Should be made up) from days later. For those who can do it (With
hardship), is a ransom, the feeding of one that is indigent. But he that
will give more, of his own free will,- it is better for him. And it is
better for you that ye fast, if ye only knew."

(Al-Qur'an, 2:183-184 (Al-Baqara))



*What the Bible Says About Fasting*

"16"When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they
disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth,
they have received their reward in full. 17But when you fast, put oil on
your head and wash your face, 18so that it will not be obvious to men that
you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father,
who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." (Matthew 6:16-18)

*A Blessed Month of a Special Nature*


*Adil Salahi I Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=113872&d=5&m=9&y=2008*

*FASTING in the month of Ramadan is one of the five pillars upon which the
structure of Islam is built. The other four are the declaration of one's
belief in God's oneness and in the message of Muhammad (peace be upon him),
regular attendance to prayer, payment of zakah (i.e. obligatory charity),
and the pilgrimage.*

*If we examine these five pillars, taking into account the fact that Islam
aims at improving the quality of human life at both the individual and
social levels, we find that the first of these five pillars is concerned
with beliefs which influence man's conduct. The second, i.e. prayer,
provides a constant reminder of man's bond with God. Zakah, the third
pillar, is a social obligation which reduces the gap between the rich and
the poor, while the fifth, i.e. the pilgrimage, has a universal aspect that
unites the Muslim community throughout the world. *

*Fasting in Ramadan, which is the fourth of these pillars, has a
particularly high importance, derived from its very personal nature as an
act of worship. Although in a Muslim country it is extremely difficult for
anyone to defy public feelings by showing that one is not fasting, there is
nothing to stop anyone from privately violating God's commandment of fasting
if one chooses to do so. This means that although fasting is obligatory, its
observance is purely voluntary. The fact is that fasting cannot be used by a
hypocrite in order to persuade others of one's devotion to God. If a person
claims to be a Muslim, he is expected to fast in Ramadan. On the other hand,
a person fasting voluntarily at any other time should not tell others of the
fact. If he does, he detracts from his reward for his voluntary worship. In
fact, people will find his declaration to be fasting very strange and will
feel that there is something wrong behind it.*

*This explains why the reward God gives for proper fasting is so generous.
In a sacred, or Qudsi hadith, the Prophet quotes God as saying: "All actions
done by a human being are his own except fasting, which belongs to Me and I
reward it accordingly." This is a mark of special generosity, since God
gives for every good action a reward equivalent to at least ten times its
values. Sometimes He multiplies this reward to seven hundred times the value
of the action concerned, and even more. We are also told by the Prophet that
the reward for proper fasting is admittance into heaven. *

*It may be noted that we have qualified fasting that earns such great reward
as being 'proper'. This is because every Muslim is required to make his
worship perfect. Perfection of fasting can be achieved through restraint of
one's feelings and emotions. The Prophet said that when fasting, a person
should not allow himself to be drawn into a quarrel or a slanging match. He
teaches us: "On a day of fasting, let no one of you indulge in any
obscenity, or enter into a slanging match. Should someone abuse or fight
him, let him respond by saying: 'I am fasting! I am fasting!'"*

This high standard of self-restraint fits in well with fasting, which is, in
essence, an act of self-discipline. Islam requires us to couple patience
with voluntary abstention from indulgence in physical desire. This is indeed
the purpose of fasting. It helps man to attain a standard of sublimity,
which is very rare in the practical world. In other words, this standard is
actually achieved by every Muslim who knows the purpose of fasting and
strives to fulfill it.

*Fasting has another special aspect. It makes all people share in the
feelings of hunger and thirst. In normal circumstances, people with decent
income may go from one year's end to another without experiencing the pangs
of hunger which a poor person may feel every day of his life. Such an
experience helps to draw the rich nearer to the poor. Indeed we are
en

Bismillah [IslamCity] From MAD DOG to POODLE - Rice to Visit Former PARIAH, US Foe Libya

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Western World Standards for Muslims:*

"If You're a POODLE then You're a Good Guy & We Welcome You to Our 'CLUB'.
But If You Try to be a TERRIER then You Will BE Branded as a TERRORIST &
Hounded With All the Means at Our Disposal Until You Become a Poodle OR
Destroyed"
*Rice to Visit Former **Pariah**, **U.S.** Foe **Libya*** Secretary of state
to meet Gadhafi, ending nearly 3 decades of animosity

**

*updated **4:34 a.m. ET** **Sept. 5, 2008***

*http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26556706*

LISBON, Portugal - *When Condoleezza Rice spends a few hours in
**Libya**and shakes hands with Moammar Gadhafi, she will close a
nearly three-decade
era of bitter animosity between the **United States** and the North African
nation that has sometimes been personal. *

*It**'**s not every day that a **U.S.** president calls a foreign leader a
"mad dog."*

As the first secretary of state to visit the former pariah, oil-rich country
in more than a half-century, Rice's visit Friday represents a foreign policy
success for a Bush administration badly in need of one in its final months.
Yet relations between the countries — once marked by brutal Libyan-linked
terrorism, U.S. airstrikes and insults — still will face strains on a number
of fronts, ranging from human rights to the final resolution of legal claims
from 1980s terror bombings.

Despite Gadhafi's 2003 decision to abandon weapons of mass destruction,
renounce terrorism and compensate victims of the 1986 La Belle disco bombing
in Berlin and the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, not all
questions have been settled.

*Empty fund for victims*

*Even as Rice prepared for her landmark face-to-face meeting with Gadhafi,
whom former President Ronald Reagan once called the "mad dog of the Middle
East," a fund set up last month to compensate U.S. and Libyan victims of
those bombings remained empty.*

A leading Libyan reformer, Fathi al-Jhami, whose case has been championed by
the Bush administration and by Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe
Biden, remained in detention, where he has been near continuously since
2002. Rights groups say hundreds of other political prisoners are still
being held.

*Libya, now an elected member of the U.N. Security Council, has voted with
the United States on issues related to Iran**'**s nuclear program and has
helped with the Darfur crisis. But its support on other key issues, notably
the **Middle East** peace process, is far from clear. Among the biggest
question marks is the often unpredictable behavior of **Libya**'**s
mercurial supreme leader, the sunglasses-clad Gadhafi, who has cultivated
images as both an Arab potentate and African monarch since taking power in a
1969 coup.*

*A meeting to remember?*

U.S. officials say they expect Rice may see Gadhafi in a tent, his favored
location for high-level meetings, surrounded by an all-female bodyguard
corps, but that plans could change. By all accounts it will be a meeting to
remember.

*In an interview with Al-Jazeera television last year, Gadhafi spoke of Rice
in most unusual terms, calling her "Leezza" and suggesting that she actually
runs the Arab world with which he has had severe differences in the past. "I
support my darling black African woman," he said. "I admire and am very
proud of the way she leans back and gives orders to the Arab leaders ...
Leezza, Leezza, Leezza. ... I love her very much. I admire her, and I**'**m
proud of her, because she**'**s a black woman of African origin."*

*Rice will be the first secretary of state to visit **Libya** since John
Foster Dulles in 1953 and the highest-ranking **U.S.** official to visit
since then-Vice President Richard Nixon in 1957. State Department spokesman
Sean McCormack noted that in that period, "we**'**ve had a man land on the
moon, the Internet, the **Berlin** Wall fall, and we**'**ve had 10
**U.S.**presidents." "It
**'**s a historic stop," he said.*

Rice has yet to discuss her expectations for her talks with Gadhafi, but
U.S. interests include combating terrorism in North Africa — where al-Qaida
offshoots have launched attacks in Algeria and Morocco, two countries Rice
also will visit on her tour this week — and perhaps most importantly
settling the claims for the Lockerbie and La Belle bombings. U.S. officials
had hoped that Libya would have deposited hundreds of millions of dollars
into the compensation fund by the time Rice arrived. But the State
Department said Thursday that the account remained empty.

*Families of victims angry*

*Some of the families of those killed in the Lockerbie bombing have raised
vehement objections to Rice meeting with Gadhafi, whom they consider to be
unrepentant for the deaths of the 280 people, including 180 Americans, who
died in the attack. The Bush administration has expressed sympathy with the
families but said it is time to move ahead with Libya, which is the first,
and thus far only, country designated by the State Department to be a "state
sponsor of terrorism" to be remo

Bismillah [IslamCity] Russia SUPPORT for Separatists Could Have Ripples

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Russia** Support for Separatists Could Have Ripples*



*By PAISLEY DODDS, Associated Press Writer 24 minutes ago *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080831/ap_on_re_eu/georgia_the_domino_effect*

LONDON - *Russia**'**s conflict with **Georgia** and recognition of its
small breakaway territories as independent states may have broad
repercussions for separatist movements in the former Soviet sphere and
around the world. The crisis could give a jolt of energy to other breakaway
regions, especially those with links to **Russia**, or embolden **China** to
pursue a tougher line in **Tibet** and **Taiwan** in the absence of tough
Western measures.*

"Any country that has a potential separatist movement will view the events
in Georgia through its own unique prism," Richard Holbrooke, the
former U.S.envoy who mediated peace in
Bosnia in the mid-1990s, told The Associated Press. "But the greatest cause
for concern lies in the Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova — all states that
border Russia."



With the exception of the Balkans, post-Soviet era Europe has grown
accustomed to the notion of territorial integrity as stable — if not
sacrosanct. Russian's push into Georgia and its recognition of the
territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia have undermined this status quo —
and may start to warm up so-called "frozen conflicts" in Moldova's
Trans-Dniester region and Azerbaijan's Nagorno-Karabakh, where Moscow backs
separatist movements.

*Azerbaijan and Armenia are locked in conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, which
is encircled by **Azerbaijan** but controlled by ethnic Armenian forces.
Russia has close historical and economic ties to Armenia, which surrendered
control of key sectors of its economy to **Russia** in exchange for debt
forgiveness. For the Kremlin, the stakes in oil-rich **Azerbaijan** have
been raised by **Washington**'**s plan to build a military base there — a
project that has incensed the Russians, who have a large military
installation in **Armenia** with hundreds of personnel, fighter jets and air
defense systems.*

*Russia** also continues to back the breakaway Russian-speaking **province**of
**Trans-Dniester**, that has split from **Moldova** over its feared
reunification with **Romania**. Russian troops remain stationed in the
province to guard a huge stockpile of Soviet-era military equipment. It**'**s
a situation with eerie echoes to **South Ossetia** — the flashpoint of the
Russia-Georgia conflict — where **Russia** kept "peacekeepers" before the
eruption of this month**'**s war.*



"By illegally recognizing the Georgian territories of Abkhazia and South
Ossetia, Dmitry Medvedev — Russia's president — made clear that Moscow's
goal is to redraw the map of Europe using force," Georgian President Mikhail
Saakashvili wrote in an editorial that appeared in the Financial Times on
Friday.

Perhaps nowhere are concerns about Russian designs in its "near-abroad" so
acute as in Ukraine. The country the size of France with a population of 46
million has long held a special place in Russian hearts and Moscow has been
humiliated by its drive to join the European Union and NATO.

Many now fear Moscow has its sights on the strategic Crimea peninsula on the
Black Sea — once one of the glories of the Russian empire. Russia has not
explicitly declared it wants to regain control of Crimea but nearly 1.2
million of the region's 2 million residents are ethnic Russians, many of
whom believe Crimea should be Russian. Russia has a lease that gives it
control of the Sevastopol military base until 2017 and has hinted that it
does not want to leave when the lease runs out.



*The events in the **Caucasus** have been watched closely by a resurgent **
China**, which has tried to extinguish separatist movements in **Tibet** and
its far western **province** of **Xinjiang**, where **Beijing** says
radicals are trying to set up an Islamic state. For **Beijing**, the
Russia-Georgia conflict may be double-edged. On one hand, the spectacle of *
*South Ossetia** and Abkhazia making a big leap toward independence with **
Moscow**'**s backing may send chills through the Chinese ruling elite as it
struggles with its own separatist movements. *



On the other, the Kremlin's use of military might to reassert dominance in a
region it considers own backyard could set a valuable precedent for Beijing
as it maneuvers to assert its will in places like Taiwan — which China has
vowed to take back by force if necessary. That may account for Beijing's
ambivalent response to Russia's request for support at a meeting last week
in Tajikistan.

China, along with four Central Asian nations, refused to endorse the
invasion or recognize the breakaway provinces — but also criticized the West
and signed a statement praising the "active role of Russia in promoting
peace and cooperation" in the region. "We have our Western friends and those
in Central Asia who are not in agreement with Russian actions. But we also
have a strong relationship with Russia," said

Bismillah [IslamCity] Ramadan - Problem of Beggars & Voluntary Fasting

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Ramadan and the Problem of Beggars*


*Badea Abu Al-Naja, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=101824&d=28&m=9&y=2007*

MAKKAH, 28 September 2007 — *There are reasons to suspect that every
foreigner coming to Makkah in ihram is not a pilgrim. Several poor
foreigners are lured by the prospects of the profitable trade of begging in
the holy city, particularly in the month of Ramadan.*

In most cases, these beggars are not ready to leave the Kingdom after the
expiry of their visas and eventually end up in the detention centers run by
the Anti-Beggary Department. Authorities have occasionally found entire
families, including small children, earning a lot of money through this
loathsome trade.

*The matter becomes horrifying when some gangs resort to the mutilation of
healthy children in order to make them effective beggars. It is suspected
that there are criminal gangs who buy or hire children from poor countries
to force them to beg in the holy cities.*

*In a visit to the Misfala district in Makkah, Arab News found a 60-year-old
Arab man in a small park not far from the Anti-Beggary Department office.
His artificial leg had been removed so that passersby could see clearly the
crude stump of his bare amputated leg. "I am hungry. I came here with my
daughter from a neighboring country on the first day of Ramadan. A few days
after our arrival I lost my way. I don't know where my daughter is. I don't
know what to do without her. Can you help this poor old man," he replied
stretching his hand apparently for some money.*

*I assured him that I could help him find the missing daughter by taking him
to the nearest police station. On hearing the word "police" the man shrunk
back saying it was no use and he could manage without the police. "I am very
tired and cannot move an inch," he said.When I asked him why he was sitting
in the hot sun, he said he would move to the shade when the heat was too
much. Then I left him and watched him from a distance. I found him drawing
the attention of passersby and receiving money from them.*

*A detained beggar at the Makkah Anti-Beggary Department jail, Ibrahim Qaid
of Yemeni nationality, said he and several others crossed the mountainous
Saudi-Yemen border with the help of a smuggler. The smuggler took them to
Makkah for a huge fee. "Unfortunately, two days after our arrival in Makkah
I was arrested while begging," he said. He is now awaiting deportation.*

*Mansour Al-Hazmi, director of the Anti-Beggary Department in Makkah, said
that about 98 percent of beggars were foreigners of various nationalities.
Some of them are legal residents while others are over stayers. "There are
several families who send their children for begging. There are also
organized groups who bring in children from poor countries and disfigure
them for begging," Al-Hazmi said, adding that begging usually peaks in
Ramadan — a time when people are usually more charitable.*

Muhammad Shafi, chairman of the Joint Committee to Combat Begging, said:
"The begging gangs are very active in the holy month because it is a time
when they are able to earn huge sums. There are organized networks of gangs
that arrange for beggars to enter the Kingdom. They also plan their
activities, including mutilating them in order to evoke the pity of
onlookers."

*Discontinuing Voluntary Fasting*


*Adil Salahi, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=101834&d=28&m=9&y=2007*

When fasting is mentioned, the limitless reward God grants for it is
highlighted. We often mentioned the Hadith in which the Prophet (peace be
upon him) quotes God as saying:

*"Every action a human being does belongs to him except fasting: it belongs
to Me and I give reward for it accordingly." *

*Mentioned in this way, the reward is much greater than we can imagine. It
is promised by the One whose generosity knows no limit, the One who assigns
a reward for even the slightest and most trivial of good actions, giving for
each action at least ten times its value and multiplying that sometimes to
seven hundred times and even more. The reward for fasting is, however,
measured by a different yardstick. It is an action, which admits no
hypocrisy. Hence, its reward is measured only by God's generosity.*

*Recognizing this, every good Muslim may try to win some additional reward
by voluntary fasting. We previously mentioned the case of some people who
tried to fast voluntarily day after day. The Prophet's advice to them was to
take matters easily and fast only a small number of days, perhaps three or
five each month. The upper limit the Prophet has placed on voluntary fasting
is to fast on alternate days. Voluntary fasting, however, may present some
difficulties because when a person fasts, he imposes on himself a system
which is at variance with that of those who are around him. He may find
himself in the middle of a social function where he will be the odd one out,
or he may have to entertain an unexpected guest, or he may have to 

Bismillah [IslamCity] Breaking Fasts, Breaking Wallets — Ramadan MEALS Will COST More This Year

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Just a THOUGHT*

* *

"EXCUSE Me, Ramadan is a Month of FASTING or Month of FEASTING"

* *

*Breaking fasts, breaking wallets — Ramadan meals will cost more this year*


*Najah Al-Osaimi I Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=113523&d=29&m=8&y=2008*

*RIYADH**: People will have to fork over more cash to break their fasts at
special iftar buffets at area hotels this Ramadan. Waleed Haidar, assistant
sales and marketing manager at the Sheraton Hotel in Riyadh, said their
iftar buffet will be offered at SR155 this year, a 15 percent increase over
last year's SR135. "We can't close our eyes to the global increase in food
prices," he said.*

Indeed, all food prices have gone up by around 30 percent in 2008 due to
food shortages, high fuel prices and a weak US currency to which the Saudi
riyal is pegged.

*Area businesses that serve food reap annual windfalls during the Ramadan
season as Saudis set out to break their daily fasts, which can include
picking up food and taking it home or going out to eat. Hotels offer
traditional foods in their dining halls. "We rely on Ramadan as a dynamic
season to compensate for any slump in profits during the rest of the year,"
said Haidar.*

Khalid Al-Edresi, marketing manager at Riyadh's Alfaysalia Rosewood Hotel,
said prices will go up for special dinners by as much as 50 percent.
Alfaysalia Rosewood offers entertainment in its fast breaking offer, which
adds to the price. The hotel also recently renovated its Prince Sultan Grand
Hall, which can seat 2,800 people in an enormous column-free hall.

"Iftar and suhoor meals will start at SR275, plus service charges," he said.
"This is an entirely new concept in Riyadh and the whole Saudi Arabia,
because it's totally different from what guests normally expect during
Ramadan," he said.

Like the Alfaysalia Rosewood, many of Riyadh's boutique and international
hotels are pulling out all of the stops to offer attractive venues for
Ramadan fast-breakings. Consider this part of the Kingdom's overall strategy
to promote Saudi domestic tourism.

*Riyadh's Mariott Hotel, for example, flew in Syrian set designers to
decorate their dining hall to resemble a scene from the popular Ramadan soap
"Bab El Hara," a historical series that takes place in an old neighborhood
in **Damascus** during the early 20th century French occupation. The hall
will include an indoor children's playground and there will be activities to
keep the little ones preoccupied as the adults chat after their meals and
prayers. "The venue will represent an authentic **Middle East**, just as
it's seen in the series," said Saleem Khan, Marriott's spokesperson in **
Riyadh**. *

Khaldoun Hayajneh, Marriot's general manager, said that while the price for
their Ramadan program will also increase this year, they will be offering
special packages for stays in the hotel. "We want more and more guests to
visit us and enjoy Ramadan in the glory of 'Bab El Hara,'" he said.

*Runaway Maids are in High Demand During Ramadan*

*Samah Ali I Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=113615&d=31&m=8&y=2008*

MADINAH: *The high demand for runaway housemaids during the month of Ramadan
is attributed to women wanting to devote more time to worship and an
increase in the number of guests. Since there are no arrangements to bring
extra maids into the Kingdom during the holy month, most families hire
illegal housemaids who charge around SR2,000 and demand weekly holidays.*

"I have been looking for a maid for some time. Most of the maids I've had
have made difficult demands such as salaries of around SR. 2,000 and
weekends off. If exempted from cooking, they may work for around SR. 1,800,"
said Umm Saeed, a housewife. She was finally able to hire a maid for SR.
1,000 through a middleman. "The maid couldn't speak Arabic and the broker
took SR300 in commission," she said.

Hanin Omar, a nurse in a Madinah hospital, said: "I have found an Ethiopian
maid for SR2,000 to help my maid during Ramadan. Many of our relatives will
be visiting us. We have to treat them well, because we meet only once a
year."

Umm Mahmoud, an old Saudi woman, said she expected plenty of visitors as the
school holidays this year fall in Ramadan. "My regular housemaid would not
be able to do all the cooking and other chores. I need extra hands," she
said, adding that a maid agreed to work for her on condition she be given
weekends off and paid SR. 1,500 a month. "She said she wouldn't do any
kitchen work and warned she would leave if the work was too hard," she
added.

Fatima, an Ethiopian, said she had been working illegally as a housemaid for
the past 15 years. "At the beginning I did not know how to cook or speak the
language. A Saudi family employed me for very low wages. But they taught me
how to cook and speak Arabic. After working with them for five years, I
looked for a better job. But I was arrested and deported," she said. She
added that after two months she returned to the Kingdom a

Bismillah [IslamCity] The Other War - Iraq VETS Bear Witness - Part 5

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*The Other War: **Iraq** Vets Bear Witness*

*by CHRIS HEDGES & LAILA AL-ARIAN*

*[from the **July 30, 2007** issue]*

*http://www.thenation.com/docprint.mhtml?i=20070730&s=hedges*
Convoys

Two dozen soldiers interviewed said that this callousness toward Iraqi
civilians was particularly evident in the operation of supply
convoys--operations in which they participated. These convoys are the
arteries that sustain the occupation, ferrying items such as water, mail,
maintenance parts, sewage, food and fuel across Iraq. And these strings of
tractor-trailers, operated by KBR (formerly Kellogg, Brown & Root) and other
private contractors, required daily protection by the US military.
Typically, according to these interviewees, supply convoys consisted of
twenty to thirty trucks stretching half a mile down the road, with a Humvee
military escort in front and back and at least one more in the center.
Soldiers and marines also sometimes accompanied the drivers in the cabs of
the tractor-trailers.

*These convoys, ubiquitous in **Iraq**, were also, to many Iraqis, sources
of wanton destruction. According to descriptions culled from interviews with
thirty-eight veterans who rode in convoys--guarding such runs as Kuwait to
Nasiriya, Nasiriya to Baghdad and Balad to Kirkuk--when these columns of
vehicles left their heavily fortified compounds they usually roared down the
main supply routes, which often cut through densely populated areas,
reaching speeds over sixty miles an hour. Governed by the rule that
stagnation increases the likelihood of attack, convoys leapt meridians in
traffic jams, ignored traffic signals, swerved without warning onto
sidewalks, scattering pedestrians, and slammed into civilian vehicles,
shoving them off the road. Iraqi civilians, including children, were
frequently run over and killed. Veterans said they sometimes shot drivers of
civilian cars that moved into convoy formations or attempted to pass convoys
as a warning to other drivers to get out of the way. *

"A moving target is harder to hit than a stationary one," said Sgt. Ben
Flanders, 28, a National Guardsman from Concord, New Hampshire, who served
in Balad with the 172nd Mountain Infantry for eleven months beginning in
March 2004. Flanders ran convoy routes out of Camp Anaconda, about thirty
miles north of Baghdad. "So speed was your friend. And certainly in terms of
IED detonation, absolutely, speed and spacing were the two things that could
really determine whether or not you were going to get injured or killed or
if they just completely missed, which happened."

*Following an explosion or ambush, soldiers in the heavily armed escort
vehicles often fired indiscriminately in a furious effort to suppress
further attacks, according to three veterans. The rapid bursts from belt-fed
.50-caliber machine guns and SAWs (Squad Automatic Weapons, which can fire
as many as 1,000 rounds per minute) left many civilians wounded or dead.
"One example I can give you, you know, we**'**d be cruising down the road in
a convoy and all of the sudden, an IED blows up," said Spc. Ben Schrader,
27, of Grand Junction, Colorado. He served in Baquba with the 263rd Armor
Battalion, First Infantry Division, from February 2004 to February 2005.
"And, you know, you**'**ve got these scared kids on these guns, and they
just start opening fire. And there could be innocent people everywhere. And
I**'**ve seen this, I mean, on numerous occasions where innocent people died
because we**'**re cruising down and a bomb goes off." *

Several veterans said that IEDs, the preferred weapon of the Iraqi
insurgency, were one of their greatest fears. Since the invasion in March
2003, IEDs have been responsible for killing more US troops--39.2 percent of
the more than 3,500 killed--than any other method, according to the
Brookings Institution, which monitors deaths in Iraq. This past May, IED
attacks claimed ninety lives, the highest number of fatalities from roadside
bombs since the beginning of the war.

*"The second you left the gate of your base, you were always worried," said
Sergeant Flatt. "You were constantly watchful for IEDs. And you could never
see them. I mean, it**'**s just by pure luck who**'**s getting killed and
who**'**s not. If you**'**ve been in firefights earlier that day or that
week, you**'**re even more stressed and insecure to a point where you**'**re
almost trigger-happy." Sergeant Flatt was among twenty-four veterans who
said they had witnessed or heard stories from those in their unit of unarmed
civilians being shot or run over by convoys. These incidents, they said,
were so numerous that many were never reported. *

*Sergeant Flatt recalled an incident in January 2005 when a convoy drove
past him on one of the main highways in **Mosul**. "A car following got too
close to their convoy," he said. "Basically, they took shots at the car.
Warning shots, I don**'**t know. But they shot the car. Well, one of the
bullets happened to just pierce the windshield an

Bismillah [IslamCity] Iraq Says US Sought Troop PRESENCE to 2015

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Iraq** Says **U.S.** Sought Troop Presence to 2015* Limit brought down to
2011 after negotiations, President Talabani says updated *5:22 a.m. ET** **Aug.
27, 2008***

*http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26417640*

BAGHDAD - *The **United States** asked **Iraq** for permission to keep its
troops there to 2015, but **U.S.** and Iraqi negotiators agreed to limit
their authorization to 2011, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said. "It was a
**U.S.** proposal for the date which is 2015, and an Iraqi one which is
2010, then we agreed to make it 2011. Iraq has the right, if necessary, to
extend the presence of these troops," Talabani said in a transcript of an
interview with al-Hurra television. *

Details have been slowly emerging about negotiations for the bilateral
security pact, which U.S. and Iraqi officials say are close to conclusion.
The agreement will provide a legal basis for the U.S. troop presence after a
United Nations mandate expires at the end of this year.

*Growing assertiveness*

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said that, while overall
negotiations continued, the two sides had accepted the end of 2011 as a
deadline for the withdrawal of the approximately 145,000 U.S. troops
stationed in Iraq.

The emerging points of agreement reflect the increasing assertiveness of the
Maliki government as it seeks to define the future of the U.S. presence in
Iraq. They also reflect the political pressures that Maliki faces at home
more than five years after the U.S.-led invasion to topple Saddam Hussein.
U.S. officials stress that no final agreement has been made. A final deal
will need to be approved by the Iraqi parliament.
*Vietnam** and **Iraq**: The Same Old Game Continues - View from **Dubai***

*By Aijaz Zaka Syed*

*http://www.sundaytimes.lk/070916/International/international9.html*

*"We have found it to be like no other war that we have fought before ...
there are no moving front lines, just a changing picture of small actions
scattered over the whole country. (But) we are winning (this) war of
attrition." You would be forgiven to think these are the views of a US
General serving in Iraq and he is discussing the strategy to win the war in
Mesopotamia. But they are not the views of Gen David Petraeus, the US top
gun and Bush White House's new magician and rabbit foot in Iraq.*

Watching Gen Petraeus deliver his much-hyped testimony before the US
Congress and make his case for continuing the so-called surge in Iraq, I was
reminded of a similar desperate attempt by another administration and
another US commander 40 years ago -- to defend their own war.

*Just as Bush recalled his top general to defend his increasingly
indefensible war in Iraq this past week, 40 years ago the then President,
Lyndon B Johnson, brought General William Westmoreland back to Washington to
defend the war in Vietnam.*

*So the comparisons of **Iraq** with **Vietnam** are not after all totally
inappropriate and far-fetched. Gen Westmoreland, the **US** commander in **
Vietnam**, insisted in an address to the joint houses of Congress in 1967
that there was "light at the end of the tunnel." He claimed the enemy was a
defeated force and could no longer mount a credible offensive on the
battlefield. To thunderous applause, Gen Westmoreland had proclaimed: "We
will prevail in **Vietnam** over the communist aggressor."*

Put Gen. Westmoreland's testimony next to that of Gen David Petraeus
delivered this week and you are struck by the disconcerting parallels
between the two reports, the circumstances in which they are presented and
the conclusions they reach. Is it any wonder then that the disaster in Iraq
is constantly compared to the blunders in Vietnam? Like his Vietnam
predecessor, Gen Petraeus read from the script penned by his White House
masters insisting that the US is winning the Iraq war and that the so-called
surge is working.

*Petraeus declared: "The military objectives of the surge are, in large
measure, being met. I believe that the best way to secure our national
interests and avoid an unfavourable outcome in Iraq is to continue to focus
our operations on securing the Iraqi people while targeting terrorist groups
and militia extremists and as quickly as conditions are met, transitioning
security tasks to Iraqi elements."*

Haven't we heard that before? This is exactly what the US hawks insisted
about another conflict, Vietnam, four decades ago. The more things change in
Iraq, the more they seem to remain the same in Washington. As the
soldier-scholar Andrew Bacevich says: "The cult of David Petraeus exists not
because the general has figured out the war, but because hiding behind the
general allows the Bush administration to postpone the day when it must
reckon with the consequences of its abject failure in Iraq."

*But no matter what Gen Petraeus and his bosses in the White House say in
their defence, this is a war whose outcome will be little different from
what eventually happened in Vietnam. **Iraq** is 

Bismillah [IslamCity] Russia - We’re ‘NOT AFRAID’ of a New Cold War

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Medvedev: We're 'Not Afraid' of a New Cold War* West fumes as Russian
president OKs recognition of rebel Georgia areas



*updated **11:30 a.m. ET** **Aug. 26, 2008***

*http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26403580*

MOSCOW - *Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, speaking in the midst of one of
the lowest points in the Russia-West relationship since the breakup of the
Soviet Union 17 years ago, said Tuesday that his country did not seek a new
Cold War — but neither was it afraid of one. "We are not afraid of anything,
including the prospect of a new Cold War," Medvedev was quoted as saying
Tuesday by the ITAR-Tass news agency. "But we don**'**t want it and in this
situation everything depends on the position of our partners."*

The statement comes hours after Medvedev recognized the independence of two
Georgian rebel provinces, defying the West. The recognition — which
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice described as "extremely unfortunate" —
follows a short but intense war with Western-allied Georgia earlier this
month.

*"If they want to preserve good relations with **Russia** in the West, they
will understand the reason behind our decision," Medvedev said. Medvedev
said that he had signed a decree on the decision to recognize the separatist
regions of Abkhazia and **South Ossetia**. Few other nations are likely to
follow the move.*

Rice said the United States continued to regard both breakaway regions as
"part of the internationally recognized borders of Georgia."

On the heels of Russia's first post-Soviet invasion of a foreign country,
recognition was another stark demonstration of the Kremlin's determination
to hold sway in lands where its clout is jeopardized by NATO's expansion and
growing Western influence. Meanwhile, the United States dispatched military
ships bearing aid to a port city still controlled by Russian troops.

*'Absolutely not acceptable'*

Rice also accused Medvedev of failing to honor his nation's commitments
under an internationally backed cease-fire. German Chancellor Angela Merkel
said Russia's recognition of the breakaway areas was "absolutely not
acceptable." She insisted Medvedev's decision violates international
agreements.

Medvedev said Georgia forced Russia's hand by launching an attack
targeting South
Ossetia on Aug. 7 in an apparent bid to seize control of the breakaway
region. In response, Russian tanks and troops drove deep into the U.S. ally's
territory in a five-day war that Moscow saw as a justified response to a
military threat in its backyard and the West viewed as a repeat of
Soviet-style intervention in its vassal states.

"This is not an easy choice but this is the only chance to save people's
lives," Medvedev said Tuesday in a televised address announcing Russia's
recognition of the breakaway territories.

Russian forces have staked out positions beyond the de-facto borders of
Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The two territories have effectively ruled
themselves following wars in the 1990s. "Georgia chose the least human way
to achieve its goal — to absorb South Ossetia by eliminating a whole
nation," Medvedev said.

*Further weakening*

*Russia's military presence seems likely to further weaken Georgia, a
Western ally in the Caucasus region, a major transit corridor for energy
supplies to Europe and a strategic crossroads close to the Middle East,
Iran, Afghanistan, Russia and energy-rich Central Asia. Medvedev ignored
Western warnings against recognizing the independence claims of the two
regions, which broke from Georgian government control in early 1990s wars
and have run their own affairs with Russian support. *

After Russia's parliament urged the move in unanimous votes Monday, the U.S.
State Department said recognition would be "unacceptable" and President Bush
urged the Kremlin against it.
*GEORGIAN CONFLICT REVEALS **MOSCOW**'S BIGGEST FEAR*
Filed Under: On
Assignment
Tuesday,
August 26, 2008 7:17 AM By Jim Maceda, NBC News Correspondent
http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/08/26/1292535.aspx   *How remote
is the former Soviet republic of Georgia to most Americans? Here**'**s one
measure: I recently received an e-mail from a viewer wondering if this
Georgia was where our Georgians (as in our Carolinans or our Virginians)
originally came from.*
**
Silly, perhaps, but the comment raises a serious concern. It's true that, as
the six-day conflict in Georgia - followed by a week of shaky cease-fire -
unfolded, each dateline became more exotic, and unfamiliar, than the last:
Tbilisi, Gori, Poti, Tskhinvali. Every day, our dispatches tried to answer
the questions we all seemed to be asking: why had a phalanx of international
reporters parachuted into Georgia to cover spiraling violence in a breakaway
region? Why - at the very height of hype and excitement about the Beijing
Olympic Games - had so many of us come to witness what started out as just
another ethnic skirmish in the Caucasus?

*Of course, ther

Bismillah [IslamCity] Georgia - Who Are the West Trying to KID

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Georgia**: Who are the West Trying to Kid?*

*
**Mary Dejevsky I The Independent*

*
http://arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=113212&d=22&m=8&y=2008&pix=opinion.jpg&category=Opinion
*

AS Russian forces started to hand over control of the Georgian town of Gori,
you could detect a note of surprise, even disappointment, in many media
reports. So the all-out Russian invasion of plucky little democratic
Georgiamight not be going to happen after all. Could it be that the
bear was
drawing in his claws?

*Well, **Russia** did not have long to worry about losing its reputation as
backyard bully. Within hours, the United States envoy to Georgia was
spinning a whole new myth to the BBC about how it was only decisive US
intervention — by which he presumably meant the warplanes laden with
humanitarian aid by then ostentatiously parked at Tbilisi airport — that the
mighty erstwhile Red Army had been turned back.*

The many Georgians who had counted on more timely and robust assistance from
their US protector surely laughed a bitter laugh. But there were signs, with
the arrival of the US secretary of state in Georgia, that this version was
gaining hold. The story of this war, it seems, will be that the US faced
down a snarling, expansionist Russia, and forced it to limp back to its
lair.

*This is a travesty. But it is only the latest and most glaring in a series
of Western misrepresentations and misreadings of Russian intentions
throughout this sorry episode. They began with the repeated references to
Russian "aggression" and "invasion", continued through charges of intended
"regime change", and culminated in alarmist reports about Russian efforts to
bomb the east-west energy pipeline. None of this, not one bit of it, is
true.*

And anyway, how did hostilities begin? Georgia sent troops into South
Ossetia. The status of that region — which declared unilateral independence
— is anomalous. It is inside Georgia's borders, but outside its control. But
one reason why the dispute has not been solved is that the "fudge" over
independence brought with it a degree of stability. Georgia's action upset
that stability. But did anyone describe it as "aggression"? Trying to
explain Russian "aggression", many reports went further, observing a "new"
mood of Russian aggressive nationalism. Today's Russia, they reasoned, was
uniquely liable to lash out, because energy wealth had fueled new national
ambitions. Where, though, is the evidence that Russian national pride is
automatically malign?

*If you exclude **Chechnya**, which Russians have always regarded as part of
**Russia**, then neither Putin, nor Medvedev, had sent troops outside
Russian borders before this point. Why was it so difficult for outsiders to
believe that **Moscow** wanted precisely what its leaders said they wanted —
a return to the situation that had pertained before **Georgia**'s incursion
into **South Ossetia**? Yes it does. If outsiders impute to
**Moscow**motives and objectives it does not have, they alienate
**Russia** even further, and make a long-term solution of many international
problems that more difficult. It is high time we treated **Russia**'s
post-Soviet leaders as responsible adults representing a legitimate national
interest, rather than assuming the stereotypical worst.*

*Beware! Don**'**t Bait the Bear!*


*Linda Heard I Arab News*

*
http://arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=113211&d=22&m=8&y=2008&pix=opinion.jpg&category=Opinion
*

*ON Wednesday, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Polish Foreign
Minister Radoslaw Sikorski signed a joint Missile Defense Pact amid great
fanfare. This involves 10 American Patriot interceptor missiles being
stationed on Polish soil as part of a global missile shield that also
includes controversial **US** radar bases in the **Czech** **Republic**.
Russians have long objected to this plan which they believe is a Cold
War-type provocation and they do not buy Ms. Rice**'**s repeated statements
that the interceptors will not point in **Russia**'**s direction. Indeed, **
Moscow** characterizes these moves as a threat to its national security and
has warned it is ready to retaliate. With the signing ceremony beamed about
the world, this could be deemed by **Moscow** as a blatant slap in the face.
*

Russia is right to be skeptical, especially given the White House's refusal
to share an early warning system in Azerbaijan and the harsh and biased
rhetoric currently emanating from Western capitals. While Ms. Rice tries her
futile best to pull the wool over Russia's eyes to the effect the defense
system is entirely benign, Sikorski's own statement contradicts this.

*"This rampaging over **Georgia**, bombing over **Georgia**, degrading **
Georgia**'**s not just military but also civilian infrastructure has shown a
face of **Russia** that we hoped belonged firmly to the past," he said on
Tuesday.*

*Russia may have overreacted by warning Poland its decision leaves it
vulnerable to a nuclear strike, but Moscow is rig

Bismillah [IslamCity] US Missile STRIKE in 1998 AIDED Bin Laden-Taliban Ties

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Documents: US Strike Aided Bin Laden-Taliban Ties*



*By PAMELA HESS, Associated Press Writer 13 minutes ago *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080821/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_bin_laden***



*WASHINGTON** - The **U.S.** cruise missile** strike on an al-Qaida training
camp in **Afghanistan** in 1998 was meant to kill Osama bin Laden. But he
apparently left shortly before the missiles struck, and newly declassified *
*U.S.** documents suggest the attack cemented an alliance with his
Talibanprotectors. The State Department documents released Wednesday
provide
details of the evolving relationship between Taliban leader Mullah Omar and
al-Qaida chief bin Laden over four month in 1998. The period begins **Aug.
21, 1998**, one day after the missile attack — retaliation for the bombings
of **U.S.** embassies in **Kenya** and **Tanzania** on Aug. 7 of that year.*

* *

*Omar said publicly on Aug. 21 he would continue to protect bin Laden. But
the next day, he told a State Department employee in private that he would
be open to negotiating bin Laden**'**s presence in Afghanistan, giving U.S.
officials faint but ultimately false hope the Taliban might hand him over to
Saudi Arabia. Bin Laden had been in **Afghanistan** since he was expelled
from **Sudan** in May 1996.*



Those talks took place sporadically over the next few months in 1998,
according to documents obtained by the National Security Archive at George
Washington University through a Freedom of Information Act request. In the
interim, however, bin Laden had traveled south in Afghanistan to Kandahar.
There, he would be close to Omar, who wanted to "keep a watch on him," said
a secret cable sent from Islamabad, the capital of neighboring Pakistan, to
U.S. diplomatic and military posts on Sept. 9, 1998.

*By the end of that October, the **U.S.** Embassy in **Islamabad** was
concerned the tables had turned and Omar was falling under bin Laden**'**s
political and philosophical sway. The **U.S.** once had believed the Taliban
**'**s ambitions were confined to turning **Afghanistan** into a Sunni
Muslim theocracy. Now, however, there were signs that Omar**'**s association
with bin Laden was driving him toward a greater goal — pan-Islamism, the
unification of all Muslims under a single Islamic state.*

"I believe that bin Laden has been able to get into the good graces of Omar
— who is very poorly educated and unsure of foreign affairs — and to
influence him in his way of thinking," according to a cable from Oct. 22.
"The potential ramifications of a Mullah Omar who is drifting toward
pan-Islamism are grim. First and foremost, it could mean that the Taliban
would under no condition expel bin Laden because they see his cause as
theirs."

*The rest of the documents detail months of unsuccessful **U.S.** attempts
to persuade the Taliban to expel bin Laden. "Time for a diplomatic solution
may be running out. Taliban brush-off of our indictment and other evidence
may indicate movement from tolerance" of bin Laden**'**s presence "to more
active support," said a Nov. 28 memo for then-Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright.*

Bin Laden remained in Afghanistan until after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001,
when he apparently was driven out by the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. He is
believed to be hiding in western Pakistan's ungoverned border area.

After the bombings of the two American embassies, the U.S. launched 62 Tomahawk
cruise missiles at two al-Qaida training camps in Afghanistan. It was
believed bin Laden was at one of them meeting with several of his top men,
but left shortly before the missiles struck.

*The Importance of Understanding Osama*

*http://www.dailymirror.lk/2007/10/03/feat/01.asp*

*Among the many pressing issues which are the subject of debate in the world
today, one that is conspicuous by the lack of adequate attention paid to it,
is the issue of Osama bin Laden. I call him an issue because, judging by the
scale of activities, fears, security arrangements, disruptions,
investigations and colossal expenditure which are the result of his presence
and his alleged activities, governments the world over have been distracted
and diverted for several years from normal business. To uncritically
attribute this to the existence and actions of one person could indicate the
need for a reassessment of the man. Because, first impressions from close
quarters are rarely found to be correct. The view from a distance and in a
historical context could be expected to be productive of a more realistic
picture of the man and an understanding of the causes that make him what he
is. Of course it is more convenient to ignore the past, and make a
stereotype of Osama, packaging and labelling him as a terrorist of the worst
type, deserving of extermination in the quickest possible way. *

*Phenomenon of the Times*

*Not that this writer believes that if Osama had been captured and killed,
the outcome of the war in Afghanistan and the conflict which followed it in
Iraq would have b

Bismillah [IslamCity] Is Islamic Slaughtering CRUEL to Animals

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Is Islamic Slaughtering Cruel to Animals*?

*By Dr. Aisha 
El-Awady
*

*02/02/2003** *

*http://www.islamonline.net/english/Science/2003/02/article01.shtml#111*

Islam's stance on what is permissible to eat and what is not is clear. There
are strict rules when it comes to meat regarding what is allowed and what is
forbidden.

*In Surat Al-Maida (The Table) Allah says: "Forbidden to you [for food] are:
Al-Maytatah (the dead animals -cattle-beasts not slaughtered), blood, the
flesh of swine, and the meat of that which has been slaughtered as a
sacrifice for others than Allah, or has been slaughtered for idols, etc., or
on which Allah's Name has not been mentioned while slaughtering, and that
which has been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong
fall, or by the goring of horns - and that which has been [partly] eaten by
a wild animal - unless you are able to slaughter it [before its death] ­ and
that which is sacrificed (slaughtered) on An­Nusub[ (stone
altars). [Forbidden] also is to use arrows seeking luck or decision, [all]
that is Fisqun (disobedience of Allah and sin). This day, those who
disbelieved have given up all hope of your religion, so fear them not, but
fear Me. This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My
Favor upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion. But as for
him who is forced by severe hunger, with no inclination to sin [such can eat
these above-mentioned meats], then surely, Allah is Oft­Forgiving, Most
Merciful." ***

*The Islamic practice of slaughtering animals by means of a sharp cut to the
front of the neck has frequently come under attack by some animal rights
activists as being a form of animal cruelty, the claim being that it is a
painful inhumane method of killing animals. In the West, it is required by
law to stun the animals with a shot to the head before the slaughter,
supposedly to render the animal unconscious and to prevent it from reviving
before it is killed so as not to slow down the movement of the processing
line. It is also used to prevent the animal from feeling pain before it
dies. ***

*German Research Studies Pain*

*It therefore may come as a surprise to those who have made such
acclimations to learn of the results of a study carried out by Professor
Wilhelm Schulze and his colleague Dr. Hazim at the **School** of **Veterinary
Medicine**, **Hannover** **University** in **Germany**. The study: 'Attempts
to Objectify Pain and Consciousness in Conventional (captive bolt pistol
stunning) and Ritual (halal, knife) Methods of Slaughtering Sheep and
Calves' concludes that Islamic slaughtering is the most humane method of
slaughter and that captive bolt stunning, practiced in the West, causes
severe pain to the animal. ***

In the study, several electrodes were surgically implanted at various points
of the skull of all animals, touching the surface of the brain. The animals
were allowed to recover for several weeks. Some animals were then
slaughtered by making a swift, deep incision with a sharp knife on the neck
cutting the jugular veins and the carotid arteries as well as the trachea
and esophagus (Islamic method). Other animals were stunned using a Captive
Bolt Pistol (CBP). During the experiment, an electroencephalograph (EEG) and
an electrocardiogram (ECG) recorded the condition of the brain and the heart
of all animals during the course of slaughter and stunning.

*The results were as follows:*

*I – Islamic Method** ***

*1. The first three seconds from the time of Islamic slaughter as recorded
on the EEG did not show any change from the graph before slaughter, thus
indicating that the animal did not feel any pain during or immediately after
the incision. ***

*2. For the following 3 seconds, the EEG recorded a condition of deep sleep
- unconsciousness. This is due to the large quantity of blood gushing out
from the body. ***

*3. After the above-mentioned 6 seconds, the EEG recorded zero level,
showing no feeling of pain at all. ***

*4. As the brain message (EEG) dropped to zero level, the heart was still
pounding and the body convulsing vigorously (a reflex action of the spinal
cord) driving a maximum amount of blood from the body thus resulting in
hygienic meat for the consumer. ***

*II - Western method by C.B.P. Stunning** ***

*1. The animals were apparently unconscious soon after stunning. ***

*2. EEG showed severe pain immediately after stunning. ***

*3. The hearts of animals stunned by C.B.P. stopped beating earlier as
compared to those of the animals slaughtered according to the Islamic method
resulting in the retention of more blood in the meat. This in turn is
unhygienic for the consumer. ***

*Western-Style Slaughtering and Mad Cow's Disease** ***

*Not only is this method of stunning animals before the slaughter severely
painful as shown by the previous experiment, but there is also a rising
concern that this method 

Bismillah [IslamCity] Why Do Girls Choose to LEAVE Their Families in Saudi Arabia

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Why Do Girls Choose to Leave Their Families?*


*Badea Abu Al-Naja & Zain Al-Alawi, Arab News*

*
http://arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=98433&d=13&m=7&y=2007&pix=kingdom.jpg&category=Kingdom
*

MAKKAH, 13 July 2007 — *Why do some girls choose to leave their families and
start a new life away from their parents and siblings? The reasons vary.
Some leave because of family problems, others run away after having sexual
relationships with men, and some leave with an aim of escaping conservative
and strict parents. By fleeing, these girls hope to seek out a new life that
would allow them to feel at peace.*

However, most girls end up facing new problems and dangers when they run
away. Asma, a high school teacher in Makkah, said that she was left
perplexed when one of her students asked her for help.

*"I was surprised when this girl told me that I had to help her. She said
she was going to run away from home if I didn't solve her problem.
Basically, she had lost her virginity," said Asma. "I spoke to her and
explained to her the difficulties she would face if she left home. I
convinced her to consult a social worker, who would be able to help her in
confidence. This would be better than speaking to other individuals who
would just take advantage of case and put her in more trouble," she said,
adding, that sometimes such young women are manipulated by people who claim
they can repair the hymen.*

*Meanwhile, Sara, a Saudi teenager, said that she has tried to flee her home
several times because her brother "keeps physically abusing" her and
prevents her from getting married. "I got fed up with my brother, who's
prevented me from going to university. He's trying to isolate me and destroy
my dreams. He's prevented me from getting married," she said, adding, "I've
had to tolerate him and his torture since my father died 10 years ago. He
beats me and burns me. My mother gets kicked if she tries to protect me,"
said Sara. "My cousins have tried to interfere, but they've not been able to
help me. I've tried to flee several times, but I come back each time for the
sake of my mother," said Sara.*

*Zahra is another Saudi girl who was regularly beaten by her father. Fed up,
she finally decided to run away. "One day I said I was off to school and
never came back. I stayed at a friend's home. My parents finally found out
where I was and took me back," she said.*

*However, some girls leave home in search for a better and financially
secure life. Authorities recently arrested a 25-year-old Saudi woman who had
been living with a 40-year-old expatriate man. The woman, whose father is
dead, was in a relationship with the man, who would provide her with gifts
and money.*

A social researcher, who asked for her name not to be published, said that
the number of girls running away is on the increase. "They usually run away
with their boyfriends to places away from their families. They're mainly
looking for safety. However, the majority are caught when they're unable to
provide documentation that they're related to their partners," she said.

She also added that not all girls run away because of illegal relationships.
"It's a stereotype, which is not exactly true. However, it's a problem that
needs solving. I would urge mothers to build good working relationships with
their children. They need to be mothers and friends at the same time," she
said.

Shadia Gazali, head of the Social Affairs office in Jurm, said that there
are many reasons why girls leave home. "Sometimes, girls run away when a
family member is involved in drugs. Such girls can't tolerate the atmosphere
at home and leave. Some run away due to poverty and illiteracy," she said.

*"These factors could destroy the psychological mindset of teenagers. Of
course, a lack of religious education would make them run away without a
second thought," said Gazali, adding that emotional dissatisfaction and
conservative practices also cause girls to run away. "Some mothers don't
care much about their daughters and this can drive them to walk out of the
door and get involved in illegal and immoral practices. Girls from broken
homes also tend to run away. They can't bear the situation at home.
Television is another factor that has inspired girls to do strange things,"
said Gazali.*

Commenting on the abuse that girls face at home, she said that those who
sexually harass their daughters or sisters and abuse them are sick people
who need help.

The General Manager of the Commission for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention
of Vice in Makkah Sheikh Ahmad ibn Gasim Al-Ghamdi said that the commission
has dealt with lots of runaway cases. "Runaways are generally around 19 and
20 years of age. The reasons vary; sometimes fathers and brothers sexually
harass them. We try solving their problems as best as possible. Some of
these cases are very sensitive," he said.

Maj. Sahil Al-Utaibi, spokesman for Makkah Police, said on average 36
reports of girls running away from home are filed with polic

Bismillah [IslamCity] FEAR of Islam - Britain’s NEW Disease

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Fear of Islam: **Britain**'s New Disease*


*Peter Oborne | The Independent*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=111511&d=5&m=7&y=2008*

*Three years ago, four young suicide bombers caused carnage in **London**.
Their aim was not just to kill and maim. There was also a long-term
strategic purpose: To sow suspicion and divide **Britain** between Muslims
and the rest. They are succeeding. In **Britain** today, there is a
deepening distrust between mainstream society and ever more isolated Muslim
communities. A culture of contempt and violence is emerging on our streets.*

Channel 4's Dispatches program discovered many violent episodes and attacks
on Muslims, with very few reported; those that do get almost no publicity.

*Last week, Martyn Gilleard, a Nazi sympathizer in **East Yorkshire**, was
jailed for 16 years. Police found four nail bombs, bullets, swords, axes and
knives in his flat. Gilleard had been preparing for a war against Muslims.
The Gilleard case went all but unreported. Had a Muslim been found with an
arsenal of weapons and planning violent assaults, it would have been a far
bigger story. There is a reason for this blindness in the media. The
systematic demonization of Muslims has become an important part of the
central narrative of the British political and media class; it is so
entrenched, so much part of normal discussion, that almost nobody notices.
Protests go unheard and unnoticed.*

Why? Britain's Muslim immigrants are mainly poor, isolated and alienated
from mainstream society. Surveys show Muslims have the highest rate of
unemployment, the poorest health, the most disability and fewest educational
qualifications of any faith group in the country. This means they are
vulnerable, rendering them open to ignorant and hostile commentary from
mainstream figures.

*Islamophobia — an unfounded dread and dislike of Muslims — can be
encountered in the best circles: Among our most famous novelists, among
newspaper columnists, and in the Church of England. Its appeal is
wide-ranging. "I am an Islamophobe," the Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee
wrote in The Independent nearly 10 years ago. "Islamophobia?" the Sunday
Times columnist Rod Liddle asks rhetorically in the title of a recent
speech, "Count me in". Imagine Liddle declaring: "Anti-Semitism? Count me
in", or Toynbee claiming she was "an anti-Semite and proud of it".*

Anti-Semitism is recognized as an evil, noxious creed, and its adherents are
barred from mainstream society and respectable organs of opinion. Not so
Islamophobia.

*"There is a definite urge; don't you have it?", the author Martin Amis told
Ginny Dougary of The Times: "The Muslim community will have to suffer until
it gets its house in order. Not letting them travel. Deportation; further
down the road. Curtailing of freedoms. Strip-searching people who look like
they're from the **Middle East** or **Pakistan**. Discriminatory stuff,
until it hurts the whole community and they start getting tough with their
children." *

Here, Amis is doing much more than insulting Muslims. He is using the foul
and barbarous language of fascism.

*All over **Europe**, parties of the far right have been dropping their
traditional hostility to minorities such as Jews and homosexuals; in **
Britain**, the BNP has come to realize that anti-Semitism and anti-black
campaigning won't work if they are serious about electoral success. To move
to mainstream respectability, they need an issue that allows them to exploit
people's fears about immigrants and **Britain**'s ethnic minority
communities without being branded racist extremists. They have found it.
Since 9/11, and particularly 7/7, the BNP has gone all out to tap a rich
vein of anti-Muslim sentiment. The party's leader, Nick Griffin, has
described Islam as a "wicked, vicious faith" and has tried to distance
himself and the party from its anti-Semitic past. Party members are now
rebuked for discussing the Holocaust and told to focus on terrorism, the
evils of Islam, and scare stories of **Britain** becoming an Islamic state.
**Griffin**'s strategy has been inspired by the press. *

Many categories of immigrants and foreigners have been singled out for
hatred and opprobrium by mainstream society because they were felt to be
threats to British identity. At times, these despised categories have
included Catholics, Jews, French and Germans and blacks. Now this outcast
role has fallen to Muslims. We should all feel ashamed about the way we
treat Muslims, in the media, in our politics, and on our streets. We do not
treat Muslims with the tolerance, decency and fairness that we often like to
boast is the British way. We urgently need to change our public culture.

*— Peter Oborne's Dispatches film, "It Shouldn't Happen to a Muslim", will
be screened on Channel 4 at **8 p.m.** on Monday***

*UK** Chief Justice Sees Shariah Role in Mediation*


*Agencies*

*
http://arabnews.com/?page=4§ion=0&article=111527&d=5&m=7&y=2008&pix=world.jpg&category=Wor

Bismillah [IslamCity] Prisoner No 650 and the US's War on Muslims

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Prisoner No. 650 and A War on Innocents***

*View from **Dubai** By Aijaz Zaka Syed*

*
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/080817/International/sundaytimesinternational_01.html
*

*Just when you think that Uncle Sam's war of terror has no more surprises to
spring on an unsuspecting world, it comes up with yet another gem. Take the
case of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist who grew up in the US
and went to top universities including the prestigious Massachusetts
Institute of Technology. The woman who had been a star student and a topper
throughout a remarkable career appeared in a New York court this past week
as a 'top al Qaeda' terrorist.*

She had to leave the US when the authorities began harassing her and her
husband for their charity activities in the wake of September 11 upheavals.

*The family lived in **Karachi** and was never involved in any illegal
activities. One day in March 2003, this talented young woman went missing
with her three children when she was on her way to **Karachi** airport to
catch a flight to **Islamabad**. This week, after five years, she resurfaced
in a **New York** court. She was barely able to walk and speak, which was
not surprising given the fact she had been involved in a "gun fight with FBI
agents" in **Afghanistan**. The **US** authorities claim Dr Siddiqui was
captured near the governor's offices in **Ghazni**, **Afghanistan** only
last month with a bag carrying "suspicious liquids in tubes."*

*If you think this yarn is rather hard to believe, here's more food for
thought. We are told Siddiqui assaulted a team of US troops and FBI
officials with a highly sophisticated weapon when they went to quiz her in *
*Afghanistan**. And where did she get the weapon? Somebody had of course
conveniently placed it near her. She is said to have fired several rounds
with the hi-tech weapon.*

*Interestingly, while all those alleged rounds of firing with the alleged
weapon failed to wound or injure **America**'s brave soldiers, Siddiqui
herself has ended up with a bullet wound in her chest. Even though one has
never been enamoured of the Bushies' extraordinary intellectual powers, this
cock and bull tale is an insult to the intelligence of American people as
well as the rest of the world.*

I mean they could have at least employed more ingenuity of thought and
imagination in cooking up this incredibly bizarre case against a lone,
defenceless, half-alive woman who seems to have no clue where she is or what
she is accused of.

*There are some basic questions that an ordinary mind like mine just can't
seem to figure out. First, where was Aafia Siddiqui hiding or hidden all
these years -- since she went missing in **Karachi** in March 2003? How did
she turn up in the remote Ghazni province in **Afghanistan**, of all the
God-forsaken places? And what happened to her three children?*

*Second, if the MIT-educated neuroscientist was indeed an al Qaeda
mastermind, why wasn't she presented in a court of law all this while? Even
today when she is facing the **US** law, she is not being tried on terrorism
charges but for allegedly assaulting US officials. So what's her original
crime, if she has indeed committed a crime?*

*Third, why wasn't the Pakistani government informed about her detention in
**Afghanistan** and her subsequent deportation to the **US**? Or are **
Pakistan**'s Enlightened and Moderate leaders also involved in this
international enterprise against a 31-year old mom of three?*

There are so many gaping holes in this "case" that the US constitution,
Magna Carta and the UN human rights charter can all go through them at the
same time. You abduct a completely innocent, married woman with a family and
put her away for five years to conveniently discover her now as a terrorist
in lawless Afghanistan.

*Elaine Whitfield Sharp, Siddiqui's lawyer, believes she has been put on
trial now because she has "become a terrible embarrassment" to the
**US**and Afghan authorities. The question is why has she been
reinvented now? It
is quite possible that Siddiqui has been FOUND now because of a relentless
campaign by British journalist Yvonne Ridley. Ridley herself had been a
prisoner of the Taleban regime for 11 days just before the **US** invasion
in 2001 and converted to Islam after her strange experience in **Afghanistan
**.*

*Ridley has been running a campaign called Cage Prisoner for the release of
a female prisoner who has been held at the Bagram airbase in
**Afghanistan**in total isolation and regularly tortured for five
years. The unknown female
prisoner, known as the Prisoner No. 650 and The Grey Lady of Bagram, was
brought to world attention after Ridley read about the woman in a book by
fellow Briton Moazzam Beg, a former Gitmo and Bagram prisoner. In his book,
Enemy Combatant, Beg talks of a woman's endless screams for help as she was
tortured. Beg first thought he was imagining his wife's screams.*

*"However, we now know the screams came from a woman who has been held in
Ba

Bismillah [IslamCity] The Lobby - AIPAC & US Foreign Policy - Part 2

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*"The Lobby": AIPAC and US Foreign Policy*

*A debate - James Petras and Norman Finkelstein:*

*http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17571.htm*

*HB*: Could I stop you at this particular point . . .  because we need to
take a station break.

*JP: I want to answer your question . . . *

*HB*: We will come back to it . . .  At this point I think we should try to
shift the topic a little bit and . . .

*JP: Let me finish my last comment. I think when the Pentagon offices are
flooded, like a crowded bordello on Saturday night, with Israeli
intelligence officers, crowding out even members of their own Pentagon staff
-- full of Mossad, full of Israeli generals, in the making of Iraq policy, I
don't think you can say that they are 'just any old Pentagon officials.'  I
think you can't dismiss the fact that Feith, Wolfowitz, Elliott Abrams have
a lifetime commitment to putting **Israel**'s interests as their prime
consideration in the **Middle East**. I think it is absurd to think that
somehow they just happen to be right-wing policy makers that happen to
support a militarist policy. Wolfowitz designed the program. Feith put
together the Office of Special Plans, the policy board that fabricated the
information for the **Iraq** war. They were constantly consulting on a
day-day, hour-to-hour basis with the Israeli government. This has absolutely
been documented a hundred times and I think it is impossible to deny this
and say, "Well, you can't deduce policy from ethnic affiliations." Yes, you
can! When that ethnic group puts forward a position that puts the primacy of
a foreign government at the center of their foreign policy and prejudices
the lives of thousands of Americans . . .  its economic interests in the
area . . .  then it's absurd to say, 'These are a bunch of irrational
policy-makers.'*

*HB*: James, let me pursue this and actually go into a slightly different
point. That is: Wouldn't it be possible, you know, it's a question for both
of you, for instance to think about whatever the neo-con group is . . .
it's not a group that represents Israeli interests, it's a group which
represents interests that 'happen' to perhaps coincide for both countries
and which represent alliances of particular politicians in both countries
with one another, and particular power configurations in both countries with
one another -- but not by any means -- all Israeli politicians or the entire
Israeli power structure, or all American politicians or all American power
structures.

*JP*: Absolutely.

*HB: So in that case, these are not really American interests. These are
just interests of a particular group of people, which is just as interested
in bringing to effect in the **United States** as it is in **Israel**. It's
just basically, if you wish, a wonderful symbiotic relationship. What would
you say, **Norman** to something like that?*

*NF: I've said in my remarks at the beginning that there is an overlapping
of interests in a regional level for reasons of which, in part, you
suggested earlier. You said that the **United States** often goes after weak
regimes as a kind of demonstration effect of its power and **Israel** also
has a desire for demonstrating its power. Often there is an overlapping, or
confluence of interests. I think, however, its also true to say on the
specific question on the occupation -- there is a conflict of interests.
Were there not a Lobby, its quite likely that the **US** would have exerted
the kinds of pressures needed to force an Israeli withdrawal. *

*On questions like **Iraq** and **Iran**, I don't see any evidence
whatsoever of its being driven by cloak-and-dagger type of operations in the
Pentagon. These operations, which Jim mentions, are so trivial next to the
very high level planning that goes on between the **United States** and **
Israel**: conscious, legal high-level planning on a daily basis. High-level
planning and high level coordination. You don't have to conjure up
cloak-and-dagger tales, many of them true, going on inside the Pentagon in
order to demonstrate there is collusion, planning and coordination between
the **United States** and **Israel**. The question is not whether that goes
on. The question is, whose interests are being served by it? There is this
notion that somehow they are managing to distort and deform **US** policy in
a crucial region, on a crucial resource, which doesn't, in my opinion, have
any basis in fact. It defies any kind of reason or any kind of common sense
reasoning -- especially coming from, in my youth, I used to be a student of
James Petras at SUNY Binghamton from 1971-74 and he used to be a Marxist,
and at that time he would tell you how people in power act from interests,
which spring from  . . . a basis in which they are the main beneficiaries.
*

*HB*: Norman, let me ask you  . . .

*NF: Just a second . . .  Mr. Wolfowitz, Mr Feith and all the others . . .
their power springs from the American state. If **Israel** gets stronger,
their po

Bismillah [IslamCity] Robert Fisk - The Age of Terror Part 4 (Completed)

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Robert Fisk: The Age of Terror - A Landmark Report*
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/fisk/article1814843.ece

*It may well be that journalists in the "West" should feel a burden of guilt
for much that has happened because they have, with their gullibility, helped
to sell US actions much more effectively than Karen Hughes. Their constant
references to a "fence" instead of a wall, to "settlements" or
"neighbourhoods" instead of colonies, their description of the West Bank as
"disputed" rather than occupied, has a bred a kind of slackness in reporting
the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Just as it did in Iraq when so many
reporters from the great Western newspapers and TV stations used US
ambassador Bremer**'**s laughable description of the ferocious insurgents as
"dead-enders" or "remnants" - the same phrase still being used by our
colleagues in Kabul in reference to a distinctly resurgent Taliban which is
being helped - despite General Musharraf**'**s denials - by the Pakistani
intelligence service, the ISI.*

Much worse, however, is the failure to enquire into the real policies of
governments. Why, for example, was there no front-page treatment of this
year's Herzliya conference, Israel's most important policy-making jamboree?
Most of the important figures in the Israeli government - they had yet to be
elected - were in attendance. The conference was the place where Ehud Olmert
first suggested handing over slices of the West Bank: "The choice between
allowing Jews to live in all parts of the land of Israel" - the "land of
Israel" in this context included the West Bank - "and living in a state with
a Jewish majority mandate giving up part of the land of Israel. We cannot
continue to control parts of the territories where most of the Palestinians
live."

*However, most speakers agreed that the Palestinians would be given a state
on whatever is left after the huge settlements had been included behind the
wall. Benjamin Netanyahu even suggested the wall should be moved deeper into
the West Bank. But the implications were obvious. A Palestinian state will
be allowed, but it will not have a capital in east Jerusalem nor any
connection between Gaza and the bits of the West Bank that are handed over.
So there will be no peace, and the words "Palestinian" and "terrorist" will,
again, be inextricably linked by **Israel** and the **US**.*

*There were articles in the Israeli press about Herzliya, including one by
Sergio Della Pergola in which he warned of the "menace" to **Israel** of
Palestinian birth rates and advised that "if the demographic tie doesn**'**t
come in 2010, it will come in 2020." Earlier conferences have discussed the
possible need for the revoking of the citizenship rights of some Israeli
Arabs. Already this year, Haaretz has reported an opinion poll in which 68
per cent of Israeli Jews said they would refuse to live in the same building
as an Arab - 26 per cent would agree to do so - and 46 per cent of Israeli
Jews said they would refuse to allow an Arab to visit their home. The
inclination toward segregation rose as the income level of the respondents
dropped - as might be expected - and there was no poll of Palestinian
opinion, though the Palestinians might be able to point out that tens of
thousands of Israelis already do live on their land in the huge colonies
across the West Bank, most of which will remain, illegally, in Israeli
hands.*

All these details are available in the Arab press - and of course, the
Israeli press, but are largely absent from our own. Why? Even when Norman
Finkelstein wrote a damning academic report on the way Israel's High Court
of Justice "proved" the wall - deemed illegal by the Hague -- was legal, it
was virtually ignored in the West. So, for that matter, was the US academics
' report on the power of the Israeli lobby, until the usual taunts of
"anti-Semitism" forced the American mainstream to write about it, albeit in
a shifty, frightened way.

*There are so many other examples of our fear of Middle Eastern truth. Our
soft handling of Hosni Mubarak**'**s increasingly autocratic regime in **
Egypt** is typical. So is reporting of **Algeria** now that British
governments are prepared to deport refugees home on the grounds that they no
longer face arrest and torture. But arrest and torture continue in **Algeria
**. Its recent amnesty poll effectively immunises all members of the
security services involved in torture and makes it a crime to oppose the
amnesty. *

*Is this really the best that we journalists can do? Save for the
indefatigable **Seymour** Hersh, there are still no truly investigative
correspondents in the **US** press. But challenging authority should not be
that difficult. No one is being asked to end the straightforward reporting
of Arab tyrannies. We are still invited to ask - and should ask - why the
Muslim world has produced so many dictatorships, most of them supported by
"us". But there are too many dark corners into which we will not look.
Wher

Bismillah [IslamCity] Russian-Georgian Conflict EXPOSES Starkly US's LIMITATIONS

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*US Limited in Georgia Crisis*



*By Peter Grier Wed Aug 13, **4:00 AM ET** *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20080813/ts_csm/atoothless***



WASHINGTON - *Russia**'**s blitz into the former Soviet **republic** of **
Georgia** has exposed starkly the limits of **US** military power and
geopolitical influence in the era following the invasion of **Iraq**. **
Georgia** is one of the closest **US** allies in **Eastern Europe**. President
Mikheil Saakashvili has visited the White House three times in the last four
years. Yet this warm relationship did not stop the Kremlin from unleashing a
ferocious military response after Georgian troops entered the separatist **
province** of **South Ossetia**.*



*US efforts to expand Western influence and spread democracy along **Russia*
*'**s borders may now be threatened. US relations with **Russia** itself, at
the least, are in flux. "This gets at the stability of the framework the **
US** thought was going to govern the post-cold-war world," says Stephen
Sestanovich, senior fellow for Russian and Eurasian Studies at the Council
on Foreign Relations.*

Russian leaders on Tuesday said they had ordered a halt to military action
in Georgia. The move followed five days of air and land attacks that had
routed Georgia's Army and sent Russian troops deep into Georgian territory.

*Russian President Dmitry Medvedev** announced on national television that
Georgia had been punished enough for its move against South Ossetia, which
has close ties to **Russia**. But Medvedev did not immediately announce any
withdrawal of forces from current positions and there were reports of
continued scattered fighting. "If there are any emerging hotbeds of
resistance or any aggressive actions, you should take steps to destroy
them," he told his defense minister at a televised Kremlin meeting.*



President Bush, for his part, on Aug. 11 demanded that Russia end its
dramatic escalation of violence in Georgia and agree to an immediate
cease-fire and international mediation. "Russia has invaded a sovereign
neighboring state and threatens a democratic government elected by its
people. Such an action is unacceptable in the 21st century," said Mr. Bush
in a statement televised shortly after his return to the US from the Beijing
Olympics.



*But since the crisis began, there has been no hint that the **United States
** would consider any kind of military move, even logistical aid for
Georgian forces, that would bring it into direct conflict with **Russia**.
The **US** and the West appear to have little leverage over a
**Moscow**that is flush with oil money and eager to reestablish its
position along its
borders.*

Expulsion of Russia from the G-8 group of industrialized nations was among
the few apparent strong actions the US and Europe could take. Other possible
moves include threatening Russia with the loss of the 2014 Winter Olympic
games at the Black Sea resort of Sochi. "The United States, its allies, and
other countries need to send a strong signal to Moscow that creating
19th-century-style spheres of influence and redrawing the borders of the
former Soviet Union is a danger to world peace," said Ariel Cohen, senior
research fellow in Russian and Eurasian studies at the Heritage Foundation,
in an analysis of the impact of the crisis.



*Georgian President Saakashvili has long been one of the Bush administration
**'**s favorite world leaders. Georgia contributed 2,000 troops to the US
effort in Iraq, and Mr. Saakashvili has talked often of his support for Bush
administration efforts to spread freedom and democracy among the countries
of the former Soviet Union. Saakashvili and Bush seem to share a good
personal chemistry. Bush visited Georgia in 2005; during Saakashvili**'**s
return visits to the White House, the two joshed about folk dancing and
their wives**'** luncheon plans.*



In March, at a White House appearance, Saakashvili thanked Bush for
supporting Georgia's aspirations to join NATO and for "protecting Georgia's
borders." "I think this is a very unequivocal support we're getting from
you," the Georgian leader told the US president, for the cameras.



The US has long publicly stated that it is in favor of a peaceful settlement
of Georgia's disputes with its breakaway provinces of South Ossetia and
Abkhazia. Yet Saakashvili decided to send troops into South Ossetia, anyway.
That appears to have been the spark that set off the crisis – or the
provocation that Russia was waiting for.

*Perhaps the Georgian leader thought the **US** would come to his aid if he
got in trouble. If so, he did not take into account the drain that Iraq has
been on US forces and the US standing in the world – or the American need to
work with Russia on other important geopolitical issues, such as the effort
to curb Iran**'**s nuclear program. *

*"In many respects, Saakashvili got too close to the **US**, and the
**US**got too close to Saakashvili Perhaps that made him
overreach," says
Charles Kupchan, sen

Bismillah [IslamCity] Robert Fisk - The Age of Terror (Part 3)

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Robert Fisk: The Age of Terror - A Landmark Report*
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/fisk/article1814843.ece

*When Daniel Fried, the US Assistant Secretary of State for European and
Eurasian Affairs visited Paris last year, he lectured European and Arab
diplomats on what he called "the US-European imperative to support
democratic reform and democratic reformers in the Middle East" - forgetting,
it seems, that just such a man, Khatami, existed in Iran but had been
snubbed by the US. His failure as a genuinely elected president produced his
somewhat cracked successor. Fried, however, insisted that bringing democracy
to the **Middle East** "is not for us a question of political theory, but of
central strategic importance", something that clearly didn**'**t matter less
than a year later in **Lebanon** and certainly not when the Palestinians
participated in genuine elections, of which more later.*

Fried took the risky step of quoting the French historian Alexis de
Tocqueville to back his claim that democracy, far from being a fragile
flower, was "robust, and its applicability is potentially universal". The
former French foreign minister, Hubert Védrine, was invited to reply to
respond to Fried's words and he cynically spoke of "people who have
historical experience, who have seen how past experiences turned out", the
subtext of which was: "You Americans have no sense of history." Védrine
spoke of meeting with Madeleine Albright when she was the US Foreign
Secretary. "I told her we had no problem regarding the objective of
democracy, but I asked whether it was a process, or a religious conversion,
like Saint Paul on the road to Damascus." And he quoted the Mexican writer,
Octavio Pas: "Democracy is not like Nescafé, you don't just add water." For
historical reasons, Védrine told Fried, "Because of colonialism, the Middle
East is the region of the world where external intervention is most at risk
of being rejected."

*And when it is imposed, as **America** says it would like to do in **
Damascus**, what will happen? A nice, flourishing electoral process to put
Syrians in power or another descent into Iraqi-style horrors with a
Sunni-Muslim regime in place in **Damascus**? And so to "**Palestine**" -
the inverted commas are more important than ever today - and its own act of
democracy. Of course, the Palestinians elected the wrong people, Hamas, and
had to suffer for it. Democratic **Israel** would not accept the results of
**Palestine**'**s democratic elections and the Europeans joined with **
America** in placing sanctions against the newly elected government unless
it recognised **Israel** and all agreements signed with **Israel** since the
**Camp David** accords of the 1970s. Even when Ariel Sharon was staging his
withdrawal of 8,500 settlers from Gaza last year, he was shifting 12,000
more settlers into the West Bank, and George W Bush had effectively accepted
this illegality by talking of the "realities" of the Jewish settlements
still being enlarged there. And that was the end of UN Security Council
Resolutions 242 and 338 upon which the "peace process" was supposed to be
based - Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied in the 1967 Middle East
war, in return for the security of all states in the area.*

One of the few honourable American statesmen to grasp what this portends is
ex-President Jimmy Carter, who wrote after the Palestinian elections in May
this year that "innocent Palestinian people are being treated like animals,
with the presumption that they are guilty of some crime. Because they voted
for candidates who are members of Hamas, the US government has become the
driving force behind an apparently effective scheme of depriving the general
public of income, access to the outside world and the necessities of life...
The additional restraints imposed on the new government are a planned and
deliberate catastrophe for the citizens of the occupied territories, in
hopes that Hamas will yield to the economic pressure." Oh, for the years of
the Carter administration...

*And now we have the wall - or the "fence" as too many journalists gutlessly
call it. The Palestinians went to the **International Court** in **the Hague
** to have it declared illegal because much of its course runs through their
land. The court said it was illegal. And **Israel** ignored the court**'**s
decision and, once more, the **US** supported **Israel**. Here was another
lesson for the Palestinians. They went peacefully - without violence or
"terrorism" - to our Western institutions to get justice. And we were
powerless to help them because **Israel** rejected this symbol of Western
freedoms.*

Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister whose Lebanese bombardment was such
a catastrophe, still says that the wall is only temporary, as if it might be
shifted back to the original frontiers of Israel. But if it is only
temporary, it can also be moved forward to take in more Jewish settlements
on Arab land, colonies which, it must

Bismillah [IslamCity] A Brief HISTORY of the US - Part 5

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE **USA*


*By Tim Lambert*
*http://www.localhistories.org/america.html*
**

*THE DEPRESSION*
President Hoover did try and help. He persuaded employers to maintain wages
at their present levels. He also increased spending on roads, bridges and
public buildings. However Hoover refused to introduce federal unemployment
relief. He believed in what he called 'Rugged individualism'. He believed
too much state help would make people dependent.

*For the unemployed life during the depression was very harsh. Many were
reduced to attending soup kitchens run by charities. (The soup was sometimes
called **'**Hoover stew**'**. Destitute people lived in shantytowns they
called Hoovervilles. **Hoover** became deeply unpopular and in 1932 **
Franklin** **Delano** **Roosevelt** was elected President.*
**

*THE NEW DEAL*
Roosevelt assured the American people that the only thing they had to fear
was fear itself. He promised the American people 'A New Deal'. However
between 1933 and 1939 he had only limited success. Unemployment fell to
between 14% and 15% by 1937. However in that year the economy dipped again.
(It was called the recession) and unemployment rose to 17%. However
industrial production rose to its 1929 level again by 1939.

*At first **Roosevelt** persuaded Congress to pass a number of laws in a
hectic period known as **'**The Hundred Days**'**. One of the first things *
*Roosevelt** did was to close all the banks in the **USA** by law. The
Emergency Banking Act of **9 March 1933** meant they would only open again
if the Federal government declared they were solvent. This measure persuaded
people it was safe to deposit their savings in banks. Restoring faith in
banks was the first step to dealing with the depression.*
**
*On **12 May 1933** the Federal Emergency Relief Act was passed to help the
unemployed. The states were given grants to provide work like repairing
roads and improving parks and schools.*
**
*Also in 1933 **Roosevelt** founded the civilian Conservation Corps, which
employed young men on conservation projects. A Public Works Administration
was created which built public buildings, bridges and dams. Also the **
Tennessee** **Valley** Authority was created to build dams and hydroelectric
plants. *
**
*The Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933 tried to raise the price of farm
produce by reducing supply. Land was set aside and deliberately not used. In
1937 the Farm Security Administration was formed to lend money to tenant
farmers to buy their land. However farmers on the plains suffered terribly
during the depression. Over planting, overgrazing and a drought combined to
create a **'**dust bowl**'**. Many farmers abandoned the land and went to **
California** in search of work.*
**
*In 1935 the Social Security Act created old age pensions and an
unemployment insurance scheme. Also in 1935 the National Labor Relations Act
or Wagner Act upheld workers right to collective bargaining. In 1938 a Fair
Labor Standards Act created a minimum wage.*
**
*Despite all of **Roosevelt**'**s efforts the depression only ended with the
coming of war.*
**

*THE APPROACH OF WAR*
In 1940 Germany conquered Denmark,
Norway , Holland, Belgium and
France. In response Roosevelt started to expand American armed forces. He
introduced conscription. Although American public opinion was opposed to
joining the war Roosevelt declared that America must be 'the arsenal of
democracy'. In January 1941 he introduced the lend-lease bill to Congress.
It empowered him to sell, lend or lease arms, food or any other supplies to
any country whose defence he deemed vital to the United States. At first
lend-lease applied only to Britain but in August Roosevelt extended it to
Russia . US troops also occupied
Iceland. 

*THE SECOND WORLD WAR*
On 7 December 1941 the Japanese attacked the American Pacific fleet at Pearl
Harbor. The next day Congress declared war on Japan. On 11 December 1941
Germany  and
Italydeclared war on the
USA.

The USA mobilised all its resources for war. Industrial output doubled
during World War II and by 1943 there was full employment. Only 2,000
aircraft were made in 1939 but by 1944 the figure was 96,000. The American
public suffered less than people in other countries because the USA escaped
occupation of air raids.

*During World War II many black people migrated from the south to the north
and west. Black people became increasingly dissatisfied with their position
in American society. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored
Peoples increased its membership. The Congress for Racial Equality was
formed in 1942. From March 1942 people of Japanese descent, on the west
coast, were interned. By September over 100,000 of them ha

Bismillah [IslamCity] Bin Laden Driver Convicted in War Crimes Trial

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Bin Laden Driver Convicted in War Crimes Trial* Military jury: Hamdan
supported terrorism, but not guilty of conspiracy

*NBC, MSNBC and news services*

*updated **11:44 a.m. ET** **Aug. 6, 2008** *

*http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26055301*

GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba - *A military jury on Wednesday found a
former driver for Osama bin Laden guilty on some counts but cleared him of
others in the first **Guantanamo** war crimes trial. A panel of six American
military officers delivered the decision in the case against Salim Hamdan, a
Yemeni. The jury deliberated for about eight hours over three days before
convicting Hamdan of supporting terrorism. He was cleared of the conspiracy
charge.*

Hamdan held his head in his hands and wept at the defense table after a Navy
captain presiding over the jury read the sentence in a hilltop courtroom on
this U.S. Navy base. He now faces up to a life sentence after the 10-day
trial, which provided the first demonstration of a special tribunal system
for prosecuting alleged terrorists. The military judge scheduled a
sentencing hearing for later Wednesday.

*It was the Bush administration**'**s third attempt to try Hamdan, who won a
Supreme Court victory that scrapped the first version of the
**Guantanamo**court system. The charges were twice dropped and
refiled.
*

The charges he was cleared of on Wednesday — two of conspiring with al-Qaida
to attack civilians, destroy property, commit murder in violation of the
laws of war — were the only charges against him in the first prosecution
attempt. He was convicted of five counts of providing material support for
terrorism, specifically that his personal services to al-Qaida included
driving and acting as a bodyguard for a man he knew to be the leader of an
international terrorist organization.

*The 11-page verdict form was so complicated that the judge called for a
yellow highlighter pen and marked the portions the jury president was to
read. Jurors were allowed to strike some of the language in the charges, so
some specifics of the verdict were not immediately clear.*

*Rules skewed, defense argues*

*Defense lawyers had feared a guilty verdict was inevitable. The rules of
the tribunal system at the U.S. Navy base appeared designed to achieve
convictions, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Brian Mizer, Salim Hamdan's Pentagon-appointed
attorney, said before the verdict. "I don't know if the panel can render
fair what has already happened," Mizer told reporters as the jury
deliberated.*

*Hamdan**'**s attorneys said the judge allowed evidence that would not have
been admitted by any civilian or military U.S. court, and that
interrogations at the center of the government**'**s case were tainted by
coercive tactics, including sleep deprivation and solitary confinement.*

The tribunal system allows for an appeal before a federal judge, and Hamdan's
team is expected to go there next.

*Appeal likely*

Before the trial started, the team asked a federal judge to declare the
process so legally flawed that it was unconstitutional. The judge, at a
hearing in Washington, ruled to let the trial proceed, after which he would
be open to reviewing whether it was proper. The rules allow four levels of
appeal, first to the Pentagon appointee overseeing the Guantanamo tribunals.
She can overturn convictions and shorten the sentence but cannot add
convictions or lengthen the sentence. After that, Hamdan could appeal to a
special military appeals court, then to the U.S. federal appeals court in
Washington and finally to the U.S. Supreme Court.

*Supporters of the tribunals said the Bush administration**'**s system
provided extraordinary due process rights for defendants. "This military
judge is to be commended for providing a fair and internationally legally
sufficient trial for the accused and the government — regardless of the
ultimate verdict," said Charles "Cully" Stimson, a former deputy assistant
secretary of defense for detainee affairs.*

*Hamdan was captured at a roadblock in southern **Afghanistan** in November
2001 and taken to **Guantanamo** in May 2002. The military accused him of
transporting missiles for al-Qaida and helping bin Laden escape
**U.S.**retribution following the Sept. 11 attacks by driving him
around
**Afghanistan**. Defense attorneys said he was merely a low-level bin Laden
employee.*

* *

*Bin Laden Driver to Seek Leniency From Gitmo Jury*



*By MIKE MELIA, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 53 minutes ago *

*
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080807/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/guantanamo_bin_laden_s_driver
*



GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba - Osama bin Laden's former driver is
expected to ask the Pentagon jury that convicted him of a war crime to spare
him from life in prison Thursday, his defense lawyers said. Salim Hamdan
wiped tears from his face on Wednesday as the panel of six military officers
delivered a split verdict at the first U.S. war crimes trial since World War
II, declaring him guilty of aiding terrorism but acquitting him of
co

Bismillah [IslamCity] A Brief HISTORY of the US - Part 3

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE **USA*


*By Tim Lambert*
*http://www.localhistories.org/america.html*
**

*THE INDIAN WARS*
As the USA expanded westward there were many wars with the Indians. In 1790
Chief Little Turtle of the Miami defeated an American force under Josiah
Harmar. The next year the Americans were defeated again. However in 1794
American troops decisively defeated the natives at the Battle of Fallen
Timbers. By the treaty of Greenville, 1795, the natives were forced to cede
most of Ohio to the Americans.

During the war of 1812 some natives sided with the British. The Creeks won a
battle against the Americans at Fort Sims in 1812. However troops led by
Andrew Jackson defeated the Creeks at Horseshoe Bend in 1814. The Treaty of
Fort Jackson forced the Creeks to cede more than half their land to the
Americans. (It later became the state of Alabama).

*Andrew Jackson later became President and in 1830 he signed the Indian
Removal Bill which forced Indians east of the **Mississippi River** to move
to **Oklahoma**. The Choctaws were forced to move in 1832. They were
followed by the Creeks in 1835 and the Chickasaw in 1837. The Cherokee**'**s
were forced to move in 1838-39. (So many of them died on the trail it was
called the **'**Trail of Tears**'**. However one tribe, the Seminoles of **
Florida**, resisted deportation. In the years 1835-1842 they fought a
guerrilla war against the Americans. This was the Second Seminole War.
However in 1837 their leader, Osceola, was captured. Most of the Seminoles
eventually surrendered and were forced to move to **Oklahoma** but several
hundred escaped and fought another war in 1855-1858. This was the Third
Seminole War. In the 1850s the **USA** also fought wars with the natives of
the Northeast. The natives were defeated in the **Rogue River** War of
1855-56 and the **Yakima** War of 1855-58. Afterwards they were forced onto
reservations.*
**

*THE **USA** IN THE MID-19TH CENTURY*
The USA continued to grow rapidly and by 1860 its population was 31 million.
New states were added. Iowa was added to the union in 1846. Wisconsin
followed in 1848 and Kansas was admitted in 1861. However the rapidly
growing nation was torn apart by the issue of slavery.

*When the constitution was written in 1787 many people hoped that slavery
would die out of its own accord. However Eli Whitney**'**s invention of the
cotton gin in 1793 gave slavery a new importance in the southern states. In
the northern states slavery was gradually abolished and the **USA** became
divided into **'**free states**'** and **'**slave states**'**.*
**

*THE **MISSOURI** COMPROMISE*
In 1803 the USA bought land from France. This was known as the Mississippi
purchase. In 1819 part of the territory asked to be admitted to the union as
a state in which slavery was allowed. However at that time the USA was
evenly divided between free states and slave states. Another slave state
would upset the balance. Furthermore northerners feared that more slave
states would be created in future. Representative James Tallmade of New York
proposed an amendment, which would have ended slavery in Missouri. However
it did not become law.

*A row occurred between northerners who believed that Congress had the power
to ban slavery in new states and southerners who believed that new states
had the right to allow slavery if they wished. Eventually an agreement was
reached. **Missouri** was admitted as a slave state but at the same time
part of **Massachusetts** became the state of **Maine** so the balance of
slave and free was preserved. Furthermore a line was drawn across the
continent. States north of it were to be free, south of it they were to be
slave. However the **Missouri** compromise was only a temporary solution.
Gaining new territory from **Mexico** created new tensions. In 1846 a man
named David Wilmot introduced the Wilmot proviso, which stated that slavery
should not be allowed in any territory taken from **Mexico**. It was added
as an amendment to bills but was never passed by Congress. Nevertheless the
Wilmot Proviso alienated the south.*
**

*THE COMPROMISE OF 1850*
Eventually a compromise was reached. The Compromise of 1850 stated that the
territories of New Mexico and Utah could decide for themselves whether they
wished to allow slavery or not when they applied to become states. A
fugitive slave law was also passed which said that slaves who ran away to
the north should be returned to their masters.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 organised the territories of Kansas and
Nebraska. It also ended the Missouri Compromise. The compromise drew a line
across the continent and banned slavery north of it. Although Kansas and
Nebraska were north of the line the Act allowed them to choose whether to
permit slavery or not when they applied to become states.

*In **Kansas** supporters and opponents of slavery came to blows in a series
of violent incidents called **'**Bleeding **Kansas**'. Feeling against
slavery in the nort

Bismillah [IslamCity] Istikharah Prayer - How It Functions & Proper Way of Doing It

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Proper Way Of Doing the Istikharah*



*
http://www.ourdialogue.com/answers/articles.php?action=show&showarticle=3582
*
*Question *

*I have joined a course but as it progressed I felt uneasy about it and
wanted to quit. However, I performed the Istikharah in order to be sure.
That night my sleep was very restless and even troubled by nightmares. I
thought that was the indication and I continued with the course, but again
felt troubled with it. I performed the Istikharah a week later, and again I
had restless sleep. Could you please explain the reason for this and what it
means?*



*Answer*
People tend to think that the Istikharah should be performed before going to
bed and that the answer is shown to them in their sleep. There is no
indication in Hadith that this is so. The Istikharah has nothing to do with
sleep. It can be performed at any time, and the answer does not come to you
in your sleep, through a dream.

The Istikharah is a prayer, seeking God's help in deciding one's course of
action concerning any matter one is facing. It is done by praying two rak'ahs
of voluntary prayer and following that with a supplication in which one says
the following:

*My Lord, I seek Your guidance according to Your knowledge and seek the help
of Your power, for You are powerful and I am not, and You know while I do
not. You are certainly the One who knows what lies beyond the reach of human
perception. My Lord, if You know that this matter (here we mention the
matter in question) is good for me in my faith and life, in the short and
long terms, then facilitate it for me and make it easy for me to have it and
bless it for me. But if You know that this matter (here we name the matter
again) is bad for me in my faith and life, in the short and long terms, then
turn it away from me and turn me away from it. Facilitate for me what is
good, whatever it may be, and make me content with it. *
**
*When we have done this, we should be certain that God would choose what is
best for us. We leave matters to resolve themselves easily and smoothly.
Whatever comes handy and easy we should take. It is not necessary that we
see a clear indication, either during sleep or when we are awake. We may
have a good piece of advice from someone we consult, or we may find things
moving in a particular direction.*
**
In the case the reader is asking about, it may happen that he goes to the
organizers of the course and request to quit, and they accept that easily,
refunding the fees he paid and settling the matter directly. He should know
that this is what God has chosen for him. On the other hand, if the
organizers show him that it is very difficult for him to quit and that it
would require some hard choices, he may consider that staying in the course
is the better alternative God has chosen for him. There may be other ways in
which his line of action may be indicated for him.

I may tell my reader that I do not know the reason for his sleepless nights
after performing the Istikharah. May be he was too anxious to find out the
result. It might have been impressed on him that he would find out during
his sleep and he was full of expectations, like a student who expects to
receive the results of his final exams the following morning.


*Istikharah Prayer - How It Functions*

* *

*
http://www.ourdialogue.com/answers/articles.php?action=show&showarticle=3558
*

* *

*Question***

*If one performs the Istikharah and repeats it the following day but sees
nothing in his dream to indicate a choice, then a couple of days later
something happens either in a dream or in reality clearly indicating a
choice, should this be treated as a response to the Istikharah?*



*Answer*

It is not necessary that one sees anything in a dream to indicate a choice
after performing the Istikharah prayer. Nor is it recommended to repeat the
Istikharah. When you perform this prayer, appealing to God for guidance, you
should be certain that God would choose the best option for you. You entrust
your problem to Him and He will help you. The help comes in making a certain
choice easier for you.

You should not push things into a certain direction; rather, you should let
them happen, and whatever comes easy is God's choice for you, which you
should happily accept. I will give you an example of a case I know. A
relative of mine wanted to buy a house in his home country. After agreeing
the price with the vendor, he did the Istikharah. The following day, he gave
instructions to his bank to transfer the money, but the transfer did not go
through because of a mistake he did. He repeated the instructions, but this
time a mistake by someone else meant that the bank could not transfer the
funds. That was enough indication for him to realize that God chose for him
not to buy that house, causing an impediment to the sale going smoothly. The
man withdrew from the deal.

*Multilevel Marketing*

*Adil Salahi, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=98996&d=27&m=7&y=2007*

*Qu

Bismillah [IslamCity] Why Middle East Continues to BLEED

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Why **Middle East** Continues to Bleed*
**
*Monday ,28 July 2008**( Posted : **06:07**:54GMT) *
**
*(**Kuala Lumpur**) Why the **Middle East** continues to bleed was the theme
of a recent forum organised by **Malaysia**'s Strategic Information and
Research Development Centre at the Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall in **Kuala
Lumpur**.*
**
In his keynote address veteran Sri Lankan journalist Latheef Farook accused
Israel, the Western nations and their oppressive puppet Arab regimes as the
primary cause for the never ending sufferings and miseries of the Arab
people in general and the Palestinians in particular .

*He said that ever since the European nations followed by the United States
gained military ascendancy they were hell bent on controlling the Middle
East where two of the most important ancient civilisations, Nile in Egypt
and Mesopotamia in Iraq, flourished .Virtually all prophets were born in
these lands which were the birth places of the three great monotheistic
religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Now the focus is on oil; and
gas that is available in such great abundance in this region. *
**
*As part of this on going conspiracy the European colonial powers toppled **
Turkey**'s **Ottoman Empire** during World War 1 with the support of Arab
dictators. Then they together with Zionist Jews established a separate
Jewish state in **Palestine** in 1948. The Palestinians, sons of the soil,
were driven to refugee camps in neighboring countries where they still
languish in appalling conditions. Ever since then the Israeli Jews continue
to persecute Palestinians with the fullest backing of the Western powers. *
**
*Since its creation **Israel** served as the outpost of the Western colonial
powers and caused death and destruction to the people in the region. In 1955
**Israel** joined **Britain** and **France** to invade **Egypt**. In June
1967 Israel attacked Egypt, Syria and Jordan and occupied Sinai, Gaza strip,
West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. **Israel** maintains a
tight grip over occupied Palestinian territories where building Jewish-only
settlement have been an on going program. *
**
In October 1973 Egypt and Syria jointly attacked Israel. In 1976 the
Zionists started the civil war in Lebanon. Apart from the Lebanese
casualties, more than 30,000 Palestinians were slaughtered in Tel Al Zatar
by Syria.

Despite all these sufferings the Arabs opted for peace and accommodate
Israel. Egypt's President Anwar Sadat signed the United States sponsored
Camp David Agreement with Israel in 1979. But Israel failed to honor its
commitments. In 1993 Israel signed the Oslo Peace Treaty with the
Palestinians. But obviously Israel was not interested in any sort of peace
with anybody as was evidenced by its house imprisonment of Yasser Arafat who
according to reports was poisoned by the Israeli's.

*Then came the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran when United States, Europe,
Israel, Gulf and other Arab regimes got together and persuaded President
Saddam Hussein to invade Iran .This triggered off the eight year with Iran
war which killed more than a million people. The only beneficiaries were **
Israel** and the arms industries in the **United States** and **Europe**.
Some estimated the cost at around 100 billion dollars. Exploiting the
situation **Israel** invaded **Lebanon** in 1982 and killed nearly 18,000,
mostly Palestinians. In one the most gruesome genocides then Israeli defense
Minister Ariel Sharon supervised the slaughter of more than 2200 Palestinian
men, women and children at Sabra and Shatilla Palestinian refugee camps. *
**
*The Iraq-Iran war ended in 1988. A year later in 1989 **Soviet
Union**collapsed. The U.S and Europe then turned their attention to
the oil rich
Arab Gulf where they once again tricked President Saddam Hussein to invade
Kuwait and precipitated the second Gulf war and unleashed a ferocious media
campaign followed by fierce aerial bombardments before despatching ground
forces into Iraq to kill hundreds of thousands of retreating Iraqi soldiers
and civilians. *
**
*The Western atrocities did not end there. They imposed United Nations
economic sanctions which killed more than 500,000 children. The UN
Humanitarian Coordinator in **Iraq** Denis Halliday as a form of "genocide"
on the people of **Iraq**. But former US Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright described" death of more than half a million children is worth the
price" *
**
*George Bush Sr. dropped 88,000 tons of explosives on Iraq in 1991,
equivalent to five Hiroshima atomic blasts and virtually turned Iraq, with
one of the healthiest and best educated populations and some of the finest
modern infrastructures in the region, into a wasteland. Western weapons
industry flourished as they sold a staggering $ 157 billion worth of
armaments. Gulf countries footed the bill were brought under the political
and military umbrella of the **United States**. It was **Israel** that badly
wanted this war and the **US** and **UK

Bismillah [IslamCity] Iran Consolidates Position in West Asia

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Iran** Consolidates Position in **West Asia***

*By Atul Aneja** *

*
http://www.dailymirror.lk/DM_BLOG/Sections/frmNewsDetailView.aspx?ARTID=21497
*

Iran's increasing influence in Iraq and Lebanon is part of a major political
transformation in West Asia which has reached a decisive stage. Within the
space of one week in July, Iran recorded two major successes in West Asia.
Through skilful diplomacy, it upstaged persistent efforts by Americans to
consolidate their influence in two theatres of conflict — Iraq and Lebanon.

*In **Iraq**, which shares a 1,458-km border with **Iran**, the government
of Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki announced that American troops would not
be stationed in the country permanently. **Iran** saw this momentous
decision as a big strategic accomplishment. The **U.S.** invasion of **Iraq*
* in 2003 brought hostile American forces to **Iran**'s doorstep. This
resulted in grave anxiety for **Tehran** as American troops were already
positioned in **Afghanistan**. With the invasion of **Iraq**, the world's
best armed military force marked its presence along **Tehran**'s eastern and
western borders. However, by early July, **Tehran** had tangible reasons to
conclude that it had achieved a stunning success. On July 7, Mr. Al Maliki
told the region's ambassadors in **Abu Dhabi** that **Baghdad** was not
interested in an open-ended Status of Forces Agreement (SoFA) with the
Americans. Such an arrangement, on the lines of post-World **War-II** **U.S.
** agreements with **Japan** and **Korea**, would have meant a permanent
American troop presence in **Iraq**. *

On July 11, a new national unity government was formed in Lebanon, in which
Iran's allies, Hizbollah and Amal, acquired a position which insulated them
against moves that could undermine their interests as well as those of their
allies.

Elaborating Mr. Maliki's remarks in Abu Dhabi, his National Security
Adviser, Muwaffaq Al-Rubaie, said during a visit to Najaf on July 9: "We
will not accept any memorandum of understanding [with the Americans] if it
does not give a specific date for a complete withdrawal of foreign troops."
The government's call had the sanction of the highly influential Ayatollah
Ali Sistani, top Shia cleric in Iraq, who is a revered figure throughout the
country. Why did the Maliki government defy the American script in Iraq?

*It appears Iraqi nationalism and sectarian fears of being overwhelmed by
the Sunni neighbours were some of the major factors that led to the move.
However, astute and persistent Iranian diplomacy appears to have clinched
the issue. Tehran relied on two major government factions — the Al Dawa
party, to which Mr. Maliki belongs, and the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council
(SIIC) — to safeguard its interests. **Iran** had patiently cultivated the
groups in a marathon effort that dates back several decades. *

The tide was not necessarily flowing Iran's way in Iraq during 2005-06. The
former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, had worked hard to
diminish Iranian influence in the country. The envoy specifically targeted
the SIIC, which had acquired a high profile in Iraq's security forces. The
Interior Ministry, behind which the SIIC was the real force, was accused of
using the state apparatus to achieve sectarian goals. The Ministry was
blamed for operating torture chambers, where grave human rights abuses were
perpetrated against Sunni groups.

*After assuming that the SIIC had been chastened, the Americans invited the
group's leader, Abdulaziz Al Hakim, to **Washington**. In December 2006, he
was feted in the White House by President George Bush. Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice met him again in November 2007. During their meetings, the
Iraqis reassured the Americans that they were restricting Iranian activity
in **Iraq**. Mr. Maliki told the Americans that the Iranians had been
persuaded to work on the Shia cleric Moqtada Al Sadr. This, according to
him, was the key factor that led to the cleric declaring a ceasefire in
August 2007. By November 2007, negotiations on stationing **U.S.** forces in
**Iraq** began. In the next three months, American, British and Iraqi
military forces planned a large-scale joint operation in **Basra** for
summer 2008. *

*However, by March 7, the situation changed dramatically. The Americans sent
the SoFA draft to the Iraqi government. The proposed agreement alarmed the
Iraqis. There were glaring loopholes which raised suspicions about **
Washington**'s real intentions in **Iraq**. For instance, the agreement did
not provide Iraqis explicit security guarantees against a military attack.
The omission aroused fears among Iraqis that they would be highly vulnerable
to attacks by their Sunni neighbours, especially **Turkey**, **Washington**'s
NATO ally. The Iraqis were also uncomfortable with the draft provision that
excluded them from exercising any jurisdiction over American forces to be
deployed following the accord. Besides, the clause that the Americans wou

Bismillah [IslamCity] Is International Justice the ENEMY of Peace (International Criminal Tribunal)

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Is International Justice the Enemy of Peace?***

*By Aryeh Neier*

*
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/080727/International/sundaytimesinternational_05.html
*

It is only a little more than fifteen years ago that the first of the
contemporary international courts was created to prosecute those who commit
war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. That court, the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), may soon
mete out justice to a new defendant, following the arrest in Belgrade of
Radovan Karadzic, wartime leader of Bosnia's Serbs.

*Yet there is already a persistent theme in criticism of such tribunals: in
their effort to do justice, they are obstructing achievement of a more
important goal, peace. Such complaints have been expressed most vociferously
when sitting heads of state are accused of crimes. The charges filed by the
prosecutor of the International Criminal Court against Sudanese President
Omar Hassan al-Bashir for crimes against humanity and genocide in Darfur are
the latest example. Indeed, the denunciations of the justice process this
time are more intense and more vehement than in the past. *

The complaints were also loud in 1995, when the ICTY's prosecutor indicted
Karadzic and his military chief, General Ratko Mladic, and even louder when
they were indicted again later in the same year for the massacre at
Srebrenica. The timing of that second indictment especially aroused critics,
because it came just before the start of the Dayton peace conference.
Because they faced arrest, Karadzic and Mladic did not go to Dayton. But, as
matters turned out, their absence did not hinder the parties from reaching
an agreement. Indeed, it may have helped as the leaders of Bosnia, Croatia,
and Yugoslavia negotiated an end to the war in Bosnia.

In 1999, the ICTY indicted Slobodan Milosevic, President of Yugoslavia, for
crimes committed in Kosovo. Again, there were denunciations that focused on
timing. NATO's intervention in Kosovo was underway, and critics claimed that
prosecuting Milosevic made the tribunal an arm of NATO and would prevent a
settlement. That prediction was wrong. Milosevic capitulated two weeks after
he was indicted, and the war ended.

The next sitting head of state to be indicted was Liberian President Charles
Taylor. Although the prosecutor for the Special Court for Sierra Leoneindicted
Taylor in March 2003 for his crimes in the war that had devastated that
country, the indictment was not disclosed publicly until three months later.
Again, timing was a principal factor in sparking outrage. The indictment was
made public in June 2003, while Taylor was attending a peace conference in
Ghana that was intended to settle the civil war in his own country.

As hosts of the conference, the Ghanaians were particularly incensed at
being asked to make an arrest under such circumstances, and refused to do
so. Though it is possible to sympathize with the Ghanaians, who were placed
in a very awkward position, the indictment intensified demands for Taylor's
removal. He fled into exile in August, effectively ending the war. Taylor is
now being tried in The Hague, and, after two decades of horrendous conflict,
Liberia is at peace and rebuilding under a democratic government.

We cannot rule out the possibility that doing justice in Darfur will make it
more difficult to achieve peace there. Justice and peace are independent
values. Each is immensely important in its own right. In the long run, doing
justice seems a way to contribute to peace, but one cannot be sure that
things will work out that way every time. On the basis of the record so far,
however, some scepticism seems in order over the claim that justice will
obstruct peace. After all, the conflict in Darfur has been underway for five
and a half years. An estimated 300,000 people have been killed by forces
ultimately controlled by al-Bashir, and an estimated 2.7 million have been
forcibly displaced. Just a week before the indictment, seven African Union
and UN peacekeepers were killed and 22 injured during an ambush by
well-armed militiamen. No peace settlement is under serious consideration.
So what basis is there for suggesting that the indictment of al-Bashir is
obstructing a settlement? What settlement is there to obstruct?

*It should be noted that the **Darfur** case was referred to the ICC by the
UN Security Council. The treaty establishing the ICC empowers the Security
Council to delay a prosecution if this is needed to bring about a peace
settlement. So critics of the indictment should at least be made to bear the
burden of demonstrating to the Security Council that a peace settlement is
likely if they wish the Council to act. *

The world embarked on the creation of international criminal tribunals a
decade and a half ago in order to end the impunity with which heads of state
and leaders of guerrilla groups commit atrocious crimes. As the arrest of
Karadzic shows, that effort is gradually succeeding. The indi

Bismillah [IslamCity] Obama Cheers Ring HOLLOW in the Mideast

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Obama Cheers Ring Hollow in the **Mideast***


*Jonathan Steele | The Guardian*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=112120&d=26&m=7&y=2008***

*What a contrast. In Western Europe Obama-mania is in full flood, epitomized
by raving crowds in Berlin last night as well as the polls which show the
Democratic candidate to be far more popular than John McCain in almost every
country. In **Israel** he is met with apprehension, and in the Palestinian
territories there is only the faintest hope that the deadlocked conflict
will ever end.*

*The difference is that Europeans know the American president holds the keys
to war or peace. He has enormous influence in dragging European governments
after him, as the disastrous **Iraq** adventure showed. So it is not
surprising that many Europeans are crying out for a man in the White House
who will be less aggressive, less unilateral, less imperial, and more
attuned to the complexities of international policy. Obama seems to be the
one. In the **Middle East** the **US** leader has much less power. **Israel*
* calls the shots, and what's happening on the ground is deeply gloomy and
anti-peace. The chances of creating a viable Palestinian state have almost
vanished as Israeli settlements on the **West Bank** go on increasing and
yet more checkpoints appear.*

No wonder that, while they like Obama more than McCain, Palestinians feel
little optimism. "Obama might create a different atmosphere," says Yasser
Abd Rabbo, the secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization,
stressing the "might". "Bush polarized things between him and Osama Bin
Laden. The moderates were the big losers. People in the middle felt
crushed," he argues. Others expect Obama will take time to focus on the Middle
East in spite of his promise this week to be engaged in peace from day one.
"He'll concentrate first on Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and the economy, which
all matter more for Americans," an adviser to the Palestinian negotiating
team told me.

His visit to the Israeli border town of Sderot was one-sided, not just
because he did not balance it with visits to places where Palestinians are
oppressed. Sderot is more than a place under threat of terror. It is a model
for how cease-fires are negotiable, and why they are the vital first step
toward any serious peace agreement. Yet Obama ignored the point.

"Why have a cease-fire in Gaza, but not one in the West Bank? Do they want
us to develop missiles and rockets here before we can have a cease-fire?"
asks Mustafa Barghouti, one of the most respected independents in the
Palestinian Parliament. He points to the spate of arrests by Israeli troops
in recent weeks in Nablus, Hebron and Jenin, which have gone virtually
unreported. The Israelis conduct almost nightly raids on schools, clinics
and charities, seizing files, computers, and patients' records.

*Since Bush's **Annapolis** conference no progress has been made. In spite
of a half a dozen meetings with Mahmoud Abbas, the Israeli Prime Minister
Ehud Olmert refuses to put forward drafts for the framework deal that Bush
wanted to see signed before he leaves office. It is all talk but no work.
Going against peace, another 9,700 housing units for settlers have been
announced for **East Jerusalem**, compared with 1,600 in the previous four
years. Eighty-six new checkpoints have gone up in the **West Bank**.
Meanwhile, the EU chooses this moment to upgrade its cultural and economic
relations with **Israel**, forfeiting the little leverage it has.*

What could Obama do as president? Watching the candidate with Israel's
President Shimon Peres in Jerusalem this week, it was hard not to be touched
by the younger man's grace. As they strolled across the lawn before making
press statements, Obama inclined his head and put his hand gently on Peres'
back like a respectful son or even grandson. Peres repaid the compliment,
all but endorsing Obama. "I've read both your books and was impressed by
their moving humanity ... Those who say the future belongs to the young are
wrong. The present belongs to the young."

*The chances of a settlement have never been bleaker. The Palestinians are
deeply split between Fatah and Hamas, and without unity there is no way
Abbas can pretend to reach a deal with **Israel**. In **Israel** every
politician is a hard-liner, whether Kadima, Labour or Likud. "Olmert is
playing a game of deception when he says peace is close. The negotiations
are going in circles. Nothing is moving forward, except the confiscation of
land, the expansion of the wall, and the building of industrial zones round
the settlements. You can't trust them to want a deal this year, next year or
any year," says Abd Rabbo.*

On both sides the public mood is grim. Israeli attitudes toward the
Palestinians are built on fear — all-pervasive and sometimes turning into
panic. Palestinians are consumed with anger, rekindled by every new
injustice — an anger that sometimes turns to rage. It is no coincidence tha

Bismillah [IslamCity] Dr. Javed Jamil - Man With a Mission

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Man With a **Mission***



*
http://islamicvoice.com/July2007/Interview/index.php?PHPSESSID=bb94ed46886b5952a3e93614b76c8660
*



Dr. Javed Jamil is a distinguished scholar whose recent works have ensured
him a place in the foremost ranks of Islamic thinkers. A clinician by
profession, he has made his mark in such diverse areas such as literature,
natural and medical sciences, theology and social work. He has published
more than a dozen works, which have won universal accolade from theologians,
political and social activists and intellectuals. Dr. Javed Jamil is the
founder Director of PEACE - an organization committed to universal peace and
brotherhood, Executive Chairman of International Centre for Applied Islamics
and Executive Director of ARSH - Mahavir Hospital, Saharanpur.


Still in his early forties, Dr. Jamil has already made a mark for his
creative and investigative works.


Interview with Dr Javed Jamil, Executive Chairman, International Centre for
Applied Islamics, Saharanpur, India


Dr. Javed Jamil's outstanding works in recent years like "The Essence of the
Divine Verses", "The Killer Sex", "Rediscovering the Universe" and "Islam
means Peace" along with his previous works like "In Search of a
Comprehensive Solution for AIDS" and "The Devil of Economic Fundamentalism"
are enough to make him one of the most thought provoking thinkers of the
present time. His latest series of articles, "Quran's Scientific and Social
Theories" is already attracting the attention in a big way. His approach is
novel, aggressive and uncompromising on the ideological issues facing the
world.


Syed Adil interviewed Dr. Jamil during his visit to Bangalore. The interview
as under:

*Did you visit **Bangalore** only for delivering some talks or you had some
other agenda.*


It is true that I was invited to Bangalore to deliver some lectures. But
this was not the only aim. I always thought Bangalore was the right city and
had the right kind of Muslim intellectuals with whom I can work for my
mission of initiating a big movement against what I call Economic
Fundamentalism, particularly the commercialisation of evils that has led to
chaos at every level.


*How far did you succeed in your plan?*



For all intents and purposes, Alhamdulillah, my tour has proved extremely
successful. It has proved to be an eye opener for the right minded people of
Bangalore especially the educated Muslims. I have been able to sensitise
people about the threats posed by economic fundamentalism and the need to
counter this without delay. At most of the places, the audience was highly
receptive to my ideas. We held a brainstorming session in the end that
debated a detailed Plan of Action, which will soon be launched. Insha Allah.


*Your theory of Economic Fundamentalism almost runs through your entire
range of works. How did you develop this theory?*


It was for the first time during the writing of "In Search of a
Comprehensive solution for AIDS" that I used the phrase "Economic
Fundamentalism", which meant the dominance of economics in the affairs of
the world including health programmes. The book was published in 1997, and
was appreciated by several internationally renowned epidemiologists like
Prof. Lalit Nath, Former Director of India's premier medical institution,
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, who described it as the most potent
weapon to fight AIDS. Since then I have been attacking this ideology and
endeavouring to present Islam as an alternative system, which alone can lead
the fight against the economic fundamentalism that began in the West but
soon became global with Westernism still holding its reins.


*Your approach towards Islam has been novel and refreshing. How do you
define your approach?*


*I look at Islam in its entirety, not only as the guideline for the
individual but also a guide for family and social institutions. I present
Islam as a system not just for Muslims, Muslim societies and Muslim
countries but also for the whole world. I have concentrated on studying the
world movements, programmes and policies, analysing them in the light of
Islam and presenting credible and effective Islamic alternatives. My
emphasis is on the application of Islamic principles to the current
situations at every conceivable level. I am trying to develop it into a
full-fledged discipline of Islamic studies, which I call Applied Islamics. *


*It is amazing to see that the medical doctors are playing an extremely
important role in Islamic movements. First, it was Dr. Asrar Ahmad.
Recently, Dr. Zakir Naik has gained extreme popularity and now you are fast
emerging as a name to reckon with. What do you think are the features that
distinguish your work from those of the other two doctors?*


It is Allah's grace that He is taking work from a number of medical doctors.
Dr Asrar Ahmad and Dr. Zakir Naik have become celebrities. They have devoted
their whole lives to Deen. I have not abandoned my profession yet, and due
to less exposure

Bismillah [IslamCity] The US Puts Up a Huge & Expensive Embassy on the RUINS of Iraq

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*New **U.S.** Embassy Rises in **Iraq***

*Conspicuously huge and self-contained but deemed inadequate for a disaster
scenario, the compound is already taking fire.*



*By Alexandra Zavis, Times Staff Writer
**July 24, 2007** *

*
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-embassy24jul24,0,7085179.story?page=1&coll=la-home-world
*



BAGHDAD — Huge, expensive and dogged by controversy, the new U.S. Embassy
compound nearing completion here epitomizes to many Iraqis the worst of the
U.S. tenure in Iraq.


*"It**'**s all for them, all of Iraq**'**s resources, water, electricity,
security," said Raid Kadhim Kareem, who has watched the buildings go up at a
floodlighted site bristling with construction cranes from his post guarding
an abandoned home on the other side of the Tigris River. "It**'**s as if it*
*'**s their country, and we are guests staying here."*


*Despite its brash scale and nearly $600-million cost, the compound designed
to accommodate more than 1,000 people is not big enough, and may not be safe
enough if a major military pullout leaves the country engulfed in a
heightened civil war, **U.S.** planners now say.*


Militants have fired shells into the compound in the fortified Green Zone,
where more than 85 rocket and mortar strikes have killed at least 16 people
since February, according to a United Nations report last month. Five more
people died in fierce barrages this month. "Having the 'heavily fortified
Green Zone' doesn't matter one iota" when it comes to rocket and mortar
attacks, said one senior military officer.


*Like much U.S. planning in Iraq, the embassy was conceived nearly three
years ago on rosy assumptions that stability was around the corner, and that
the military effort would gradually draw down, leaving behind a vast array
of civilian experts who would remain intimately engaged in Iraqi
state-building. The result is what some analysts are describing as a
$592-million anachronism.*


"It really is sort of betwixt and between," said Stephen Biddle, a senior
fellow at the U.S.-based Council on Foreign Relations who advises the
Defense Department. "It's bigger than it should be if you really expect Iraq
to stabilize. It's not as big as it needs to be to be the nerve center of an
ongoing war effort."


*In a stunning security breach, architectural plans for the compound were
briefly posted on the Internet in May. "If the government of
**Iraq**collapses and becomes transparently just one party in a civil
war, you
**'**ve got **Ft.** **Apache** in the middle of Indian country, but the
Indians have mortars now," Biddle said.*


*When completed in September, the compound will have the amenities of a
small town, with six apartment buildings, a palm-fringed swimming pool, a
gym, fast-food outlets, a barbershop and beauty salon, and a commissary
stocked with the comforts of home. It is designed to be entirely
self-sufficient, boasting its own power plant, wells and wastewater
treatment system, according to a December 2005 report for the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee. Plans are also being drawn up to build short-term
housing for several hundred additional people on a currently unused portion
of the site, said Patrick F. Kennedy, the State Department**'**s management
policy chief, who traveled to Iraq in May to review embassy staffing. How
much the housing will add to the price tag has not been determined.*


The project echoes another mega-embassy where diplomats, spies and army
brass met for drinks and golf dates in a slice of America amid the
escalating chaos in Somalia. That compound, which dwarfed even the Baghdad
facility, was dismantled by looters after the overthrow of dictator Mohamed
Siad Barre in 1991.

*The magnitude of the new compound, with nearly the same acreage as **Vatican
City**, has convinced many Iraqis that the **United States** harbors
long-term ambitions here, even as domestic pressure mounts to start bringing
the troops home. "They**'**re not leaving **Iraq** for a long time," said
Hashim Hamad Ali, another guard, who called the compound "a symbol of
oppression and injustice."*


The compound was designed to accommodate career diplomats, representatives
of almost every major U.S. government agency and their security personnel.
But U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it had been
assumed that the military presence would have diminished by now, so little
room was included for them, which could make coordination between the
civilian and military aspects of the U.S. mission difficult. The top U.S.
commander in Iraq, Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, and hundreds of headquarters
staff work out of the current embassy.


Adding pressure on the available space is the unusually high number of
non-Iraqi workers doing temporary jobs that would be handled by local
nationals at other embassies, officials here said. All of those workers need
to be housed. "Just as the military is surging, the State Department is
surging too," said Kennedy of the S

Bismillah [IslamCity] Indian Soap Operas Stir Outrage in Afghanistan

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Indian Soap Operas Stir Outrage in **Afghanistan***



*KABUL**, (Reuters) – *
*
http://www.dailymirror.lk/DM_BLOG/Sections/frmNewsDetailView.aspx?ARTID=12243
*
**
*Indian soap operas with their tales of family drama and trysts among the
rich and beautiful have transfixed Afghans brought up on turgid state
broadcasts and under a Taliban ban on television. But not everyone is a fan.
*
**
Conservative Muslim clerics and some politicians are outraged by the soap
operas aired hour-after-hour by more than a dozen private television
stations that have sprung up since the Taliban were ousted in 2001. Branding
the programmes immoral and against Islamic culture, the critics have
launched a campaign to press the private channels to pull the plug on the
soaps.

At Friday prayers at Kabul's largest mosque, Enayatullah Balegh, an
influential cleric and university teacher, told reporters he and his
followers were adamant. "We are 6,000 people in this mosque, our intention
is to go and blow up all the TV antennas if they do not stop it," Balegh
said in front of his congregation. "God is greatest, we are ready," the
congregation chanted in response.

The clerics' campaign gained traction this month when some members of
parliament, supported by the Ministry of Information and Culture, issued a
declaration to private TV channels to stop broadcasting five Indian soaps.

*But the television stations appear defiant. "It is against the media law,"
Masoud Qiam, a senior presenter for Tolo TV, told Reuters, referring to the
declaration. "We will not stop the airing of the soap operas," he said. Tolo
is Afghanistan**'**s most popular TV channel, broadcasting a mix of news and
entertainment. It has had several brushes with conservatives over its fare.
"We don**'**t consider any of the programmes against our culture. These are
the most watched programmes that people like," Qiam said. *
**
*Conservatives object to the Indian soaps as they show men and women
together, "immodestly" dressed women and the worship of Hindu idols. The
channels have made concessions, cutting scenes of Hindu worship and blurring
areas of bare flesh. But that hasn**'**t appeased the critics. *
**
"These programmes have changed the behaviour of our women and children, we
don't want them. All Muslims know that these things are not allowed in
Islam," said Gullab Khan, who was attending Balegh's Friday prayers.

*Afghan law forbids publication of material "contrary to the principles of
Islam". Problems arise in the interpretation of the law. Despite a wave of
unprecedented freedom since the overthrow of the puritanical **Taliban**, **
Afghanistan** remains a deeply conservative Islamic society. But more and
more Afghans are returning from exile, bringing back new ideas. A large
youthful population, particularly in the cities, is eager for new ways. *
**
*Afghanistan has its own pop stars who sing ballads and folk songs, and even
a rap star. The Afghan version of the American Idol talent show, put out by
Tolo, was a sensation but it also raised criticism, especially when a woman
came third. *
**
President Hamid Karzai, who has a reputation as a liberal but has been under
pressure from conservative forces over several issues including television,
has stepped gingerly into the fray. Trying to keep both sides happy in the
run-up to a presidential election he is expected to contest next year,
Karzai has insisted media freedom will be upheld but added that unsuitable
material should not be broadcast.

"There will never be interference with media freedom but media freedom
should be compatible with the culture of the Afghan people," Karzai told a
recent news conference. "We wish television to stop them," he said,
referring to programmes "in contradiction with daily life". Most viewers don
't see any contradiction.

*"I like Tulsi a lot, my children like her a lot," said mother of six Dell
Jan, referring to the main character in one of the most popular Indian
soaps. It is broadcast by Tolo and it is one of five shows the conservatives
want taken off the air. "When the serial starts on TV we stop all work, even
eating, and watch it. We love it, it**'**s entertainment for the children."*
**
*Taliban Militancy Could Engulf Pakistan, Musharraf is Warned*

*By Jane Perlez and Ismail
Khan
*

*Published: **June 29, 2007***

*http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/29/news/pakistan.php?page=1*

*ISLAMABAD:* *The Pakistani president, General Pervez Musharraf, was warned
this month that Islamic militants and Taliban fighters were rapidly
spreading beyond the country**'**s lawless tribal areas and that without
"swift and decisive action" the growing militancy could engulf the rest of *
*Pakistan**.*

*The warning came in a document by the Interior Ministry, which said that
Pakistan**'**s security forces in North West Frontier Province abutting the
tribal areas were o

Bismillah [IslamCity] Common QUESTIONS About Islam - (4) Was Islam SPREAD by the SWORD

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

"Invite (all) to the Way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching;
and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious: for thy Lord
knoweth best, who have strayed from His Path, and who receive guidance."

(Al-Qur'an, 16:125 (An-Nahl [The Bee])

*ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATION*

* *

*INTRODUCTION*

* *

*Da'wah is a duty*

* *

*Most Muslims know that Islam is a universal religion, meant for all
mankind. Allah (swt) is the Lord of the entire Universe, and Muslims have
been entrusted with the duty of conveying His message to all mankind. Alas,
most Muslims today have become callous towards this duty! While accepting
Islam as the best way of life for ourselves, most of us are unwilling to
share this knowledge with those to whom the message has not yet been
conveyed. The Arabic word Da'wah means a call or an invitation. In Islamic
context, it means to strive for the propagation of Islam.*



The Glorious Qur'an says:



*"Ah! Who is more unjust than those who conceal the testimony they have from
Allah? But Allah is not unmindful of what ye do!" [Al-Qur'an 2:140]*

* *

In order to convey the message of Islam, dialogue and debate become
inevitable. The Glorious Qur'an says:

* *

*"Invite (all) to the way of thy Lord, with wisdom and beautiful preaching,
and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious!" [Al-Qur'an
16:125]*

* *

*Twenty Most Common Questions*

* *

*In conveying the message of Islam to a non-Muslim, it is usually not
sufficient to highlight only the positive nature of Islam. Most non-Muslims
are not convinced about the truth of Islam because there are a few questions
about Islam at the back of their minds that remain unanswered.*



*They may agree with your contentions about the positive nature of Islam.
But, in the same breath, they will say - "Ah! But you are the same Muslims
who marry more than one woman. You are the same people who subjugate women
by keeping them behind the veil. You are fundamentalists, etc."*

* *

*Authored by Dr. Zakir Naik*

*ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATION*

   - *For more Queries contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED]



*4. WAS ISLAM SPREAD BY THE SWORD?*

* *

*Question:*
*How can Islam be called the religion of peace when it was spread by the
sword?*
**

*Answer:*

*It is a common complaint among some non-Muslims that Islam would not have
millions of adherents all over the world, if it had not been spread by the
use of force. The following points will make it clear, that far from being
spread by the sword, it was the inherent force of truth, reason and logic
that was responsible for the rapid spread of Islam.*



*1. Islam means peace.*

Islam comes from the root word 'salaam', which means peace. It also means
submitting one's will to Allah (swt). Thus Islam is a religion of peace,
which is acquired by submitting one's will to the will of the Supreme
Creator, Allah (swt).



*2. Sometimes force has to be used to maintain peace.*

Each and every human being in this world is not in favour of maintaining
peace and harmony. There are many, who would disrupt it for their own vested
interests. Sometimes force has to be used to maintain peace. It is precisely
for this reason that we have the police who use force against criminals and
antisocial elements to maintain peace in the country. *Islam promotes peace.
At the same time, Islam exhorts it followers to fight where there is
oppression. The fight against oppression may, at times, require the use of
force. In Islam force can only be used to promote peace and justice.*



*3. Opinion of historian De Lacy O'Leary.*

*The best reply to the misconception that Islam was spread by the sword is
given by the noted historian De Lacy O'Leary in the book "Islam at the cross
road" (Page 8): "History makes it clear however, that the legend of
fanatical Muslims sweeping through the world and forcing Islam at the point
of the sword upon conquered races is one of the most fantastically absurd
myth that historians have ever repeated."*



*4. Muslims ruled **Spain** for 800 years.*

*Muslims ruled **Spain** for about 800 years. The Muslims in **Spain** never
used the sword to force the people to convert. Later the Christian Crusaders
came to **Spain** and wiped out the Muslims. There was not a single Muslim
in **Spain** who could openly give the adhan, that is the call for prayers.*



*5. 14 million Arabs are Coptic Christians.*

*Muslims were the lords of **Arabia** for 1400 years. For a few years the
British ruled, and for a few years the French ruled. Overall, the Muslims
ruled **Arabia** for 1400 years. Yet today, there are 14 million Arabs who
are Coptic Christians i.e. Christians since generations. If the Muslims had
used the sword there would not have been a single Arab who would have
remained a Christian.*



*6. More than 80% non-Muslims in **India**.*

*The Muslims ruled **India** for about a thousand years. If they wanted,
they had the power of converting each and every non-Muslim of **India** to
Islam. Today mor

Bismillah [IslamCity] Hashim Amla - It's an Honour to Play for South Africa

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*"It's an Honour to Play for **South Africa**"*

*Neil Manthorpe*

Hashim Amla has always been a bit different, even as a kid before the beard
grew. Mature, humble and eager to learn, not to mention exceptionally
talented, he was being earmarked for great things well before his 18th
birthday. Appointment as SA under-19 captain in 2002 raised a few 'old South
African' eyebrows but they were soon lowered when he led them to the final
of the under-19 World Cup.

His rise to the Test team at the age of just 22 may seemed premature to
those who had reservations about his technique, let alone his age, but a
mountain of runs at provincial level made it inevitable. But, to a degree,
both reservations were right. He used to pick the bat up as though he was
holding a snake by the tail, it swirled and wagged all over the place, and
his maturity was already being tested by being prematurely handed the
captaincy of his province.

He knew it wasn't right, and it was too much, so handed back the captaincy
whereupon his older brother, Ahmed, took control of the KwaZula Natal
Dolphins. It allowed Hashim the time to work on his own game and make sure
his international career wasn't harpooned before it could rise to the
surface.

Nonetheless, the harpoon was sharpened and ready at the beginning of this
season when, after a dozen Tests, he averaged barely 25 despite a maiden
century worth 149 against New Zealand in Cape Town.

He went to Pakistan in October with his career hanging in the balance and,
to be truthful, that was exactly where it still lay on his return thanks to
a fine but inconclusive innings of 71 in the series-winning first Test in
Lahore. It was good, but the question marks hovered.

*On return to **South Africa** he faced, for the first time, the dreaded
questions about the reasons for his inclusion. A player as brilliant and as
talented as Amla faced the reality that people were wondering if he was a
'quota' player – call it 'target' if you prefer to be politically correct. *

Either way, Amla knew there was only one way to settle the debate. In his
own mind he had decided that he would be dropped, deservedly, unless he
delivered. It was against New Zealand at the Wanderers. He shared in a
triple century stand with Jacques Kallis and finished 176 not out. Time to
rest on his laurels? A century in the next Test suggested not. Three Test
centuries. Now did he 'belong'?

*"No, not yet. I have much to prove. I need to score centuries away from
home to prove myself," he said.Now he has done that, too, thanks to his 159
at Chennai in the first Test. And that pesky average number has moved from
25 to 37, approaching the 'very good' number of 40. Now does he belong? "I'm
still getting there. If you ever think you've 'done enough' then you're
probably going to get yourself into trouble," he replies, modest as he has
always been.*

Neil Manthorpe: How many mosques have you prayed in?

*Hashim Amla: That's a tough question. I wouldn't be able to tell you how
many. I've been to plenty. Wherever you are, there's one close by. And if
you can't make it to a mosque, you can pray right here.*

Your family?

*My father is a GP and my mother is, how should I say, a home executive. I
have an elder sister and my brother is the eldest. My sister has just
qualified as a doctor. We're a very close family. My father never played
competitively – he might take insult to that because the backyard is so
competitive – but I don't think he played much organised sport."*

Do you regard yourself as a role model?

*Yes and no. When you're playing for **South Africa** you know the spotlight
is on you. I've always believed that when you're on the cricket field it's
all about performance. If people see you as an Indian, or a Muslim, or
whatever the case is, I don't put that in my mind. When I play for **Natal**,
I'm a **Natal** guy. And when I play for **South Africa**, I'll always be a
South African. You want to do the country proud. If people want to see me as
an Indian or a Muslim, that's up to them. But I'm a South African trying to
win a game for **South Africa**. I guess I do stick out.*

For the benefit of the uninformed, please tell us about your wonderful
beard.

*It's quite simple. When God sent all the messengers – from Adam, to Moses,
to Jesus and finally to Mohammad, peace be upon them all – they all kept
beards. So I'm just trying to follow in their tradition. They were the best
of human beings, and to follow in their tradition in Islam is a noble thing.
It's out of modesty.*

Do you feel extra responsibility as a Moslem in the glare of professional
cricket?

*Islam is so simple. You only have to please the Almighty and follow the way
of the messengers that God has sent. By me practising that, and if people
see it in a positive light, then that's excellent. But it's not an overlying
feeling that I experience. I'm not an angel, but you try and live your life
to a certain code. I certainly don't feel burdened. It's been a huge hono

Bismillah [IslamCity] Of Fatwas and Infidels

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Of Fatwas and Infidels*


*Abeer Mishkhas, [EMAIL PROTECTED]

*http://arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=108283&d=27&m=3&y=2008*

*The Shoura Council last week defeated a proposal to adopt a law promoting
respect for other religions and religious symbols. The proposal that would
have had the blessings of the Arab League was opposed by 77 members and
supported by 33. In his reason for voting against the proposal, one member
told Al-Watan newspaper that the negative effects might outweigh the
positive ones as it would give legality to nonmonotheistic religions and
consequently it would allow the building of houses of worship for those
religions in Muslim countries.*

The proposal was surely influenced by the Danish cartoon crisis that
recently resurfaced. If we look at the consequences of approving such a
proposal, we will see that it would have been an important step forward. It
simply proposes respect for other religions and tolerance for those who
practice them. The proposal suggests simply that people in the world need to
learn to live together and to accept each other for what they are and that
people must also remember that respect and tolerance work both ways.

*A few days earlier, there was a report that Sheikh Abdul Rahman Al-Barrak
had issued a fatwa against two Saudi writers, Yousef Aba Al-Khail and
Abdullah bin Bejad. Their articles which were published in Al-Riyadh
newspaper questioned the Sunni Muslim view that is standard in **Saudi
Arabia** that adherents of other faiths should be considered unbelievers.
Al-Barrak called them infidels and said they should repent or be killed:
"Anyone who claims this has refuted Islam and should be tried so that he can
take it back. If not, he should be killed as an apostate from the religion
of Islam," *

*Sheikh Barrak was quoted by Reuters as saying in his March 14 religious
edict which was published on his website. Let us be clear — the two articles
were entitled "The Other in the Islamic Balance" and "The Islam of the
Shariah and the Islam of Struggle." Their thrust was that Islam does not
denounce non-Muslims as infidels. One writer argued that early Islam did not
consider people of different beliefs to be "infidels" as we now understand
the word. He cites Qur'anic verses that support his argument. He reacted to
the fatwa by saying that its aim was to prevent him from stating his opinion
and to frighten people away from interpreting the text themselves. The other
writer argued that Islam at its core was a peaceful religion that does not
hate "the other" and that it is "merciful toward all mankind." He added that
people have used religion down through the ages as a tool in disputes in
order to give themselves and their beliefs sanctity.*

The fact that those writers offered a new understanding of a difficult issue
is good; at least it opened up the subject for discussion and one expected
the discussion to be civilized. Unfortunately as has become the habit of
some, their only response is to denounce the holders of opposing views as
infidels — no reasoned argument, no logic, no historical precedents. Simply
denounce. It is sad that coverage of this matter in the Saudi papers has
been so feeble; it went unreported apart from a few comments. Writers should
be aware of the danger of such a fatwa and should leap to the defense of
others, even if they do not agree with what the other writers have said.

What the Shoura member and the two writers propose amounts to the same thing
— respect for, and acceptance of, other religions and communities. This is
something that the sheikh evidently failed to understand. For him it is
blasphemy even to suggest something different, and his only answer was a
fatwa that was a death sentence. One of the writers has said that the sheikh
is not representative of the mainstream. And while he may not be
particularly influential, he could certainly "inspire" one of his followers
to carry out the sentence of death. One of the writers says he is going to
sue the sheikh even though he acknowledges the futility of doing so.

The problem is not simply with one sheikh and one fatwa; it is the tendency
to rule out discussion and argument altogether. That is why this is no
trivial, pedantic internal discussion. There are wider implications. In an
atmosphere of menacing threats, it is hard to see how serious discussions of
issues can flourish and, at the same time, we see very clearly the central
difficulty that Saudi society has with the outside world.

*Let Us Codify Shariah Laws*


*Samar** Fatany**
Saudi radio journalist based in Jeddah.*
*http://www.arabview.com/articles.asp?article=958*
**
*The judicial system has often been criticized at home and abroad for its
failure to administer justice, largely due to inadequate legal procedures,
red tape and rigid interpretation of Shariah law by some of the appointed
judges. Many legal experts have pointed out that the problem with the
current system is both qualitative and quantitative. Cour

Bismillah [IslamCity] Common QUESTIONS About Islam - POLYANDRY (2)

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

"Invite (all) to the Way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching;
and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious: for thy Lord
knoweth best, who have strayed from His Path, and who receive guidance."

(Al-Qur'an, 16:125 (An-Nahl [The Bee])

*ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATION*

* *

*INTRODUCTION*

* *

*Da'wah is a duty*

* *

*Most Muslims know that Islam is a universal religion, meant for all
mankind. Allah (swt) is the Lord of the entire Universe, and Muslims have
been entrusted with the duty of conveying His message to all mankind. Alas,
most Muslims today have become callous towards this duty! While accepting
Islam as the best way of life for ourselves, most of us are unwilling to
share this knowledge with those to whom the message has not yet been
conveyed. The Arabic word Da'wah means a call or an invitation. In Islamic
context, it means to strive for the propagation of Islam.*



The Glorious Qur'an says:



*"Ah! Who is more unjust than those who conceal the testimony they have from
Allah? But Allah is not unmindful of what ye do!" [Al-Qur'an 2:140]*

* *

In order to convey the message of Islam, dialogue and debate become
inevitable. The Glorious Qur'an says:

* *

*"Invite (all) to the way of thy Lord, with wisdom and beautiful preaching,
and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious!" [Al-Qur'an
16:125]*

* *

*Twenty Most Common Questions*

* *

*In conveying the message of Islam to a non-Muslim, it is usually not
sufficient to highlight only the positive nature of Islam. Most non-Muslims
are not convinced about the truth of Islam because there are a few questions
about Islam at the back of their minds that remain unanswered.*



*They may agree with your contentions about the positive nature of Islam.
But, in the same breath, they will say - "Ah! But you are the same Muslims
who marry more than one woman. You are the same people who subjugate women
by keeping them behind the veil. You are fundamentalists, etc."*

* *

*Authored by Dr. Zakir Naik*

*ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATION*

** For more Queries contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

*
-
*

*2. POLYANDRY*

* *

*Question:*

*If a man is allowed to have more than one wife, then why does Islam
prohibit a woman from having more than one husband?*

* *

*Answer:*

A lot of people, including some Muslims, question the logic of allowing
Muslim men to have more than one spouse while denying the same 'right' to
women. Let me first state emphatically, that the foundation of an Islamic
society is justice and equity.



*Allah has created men and women as equal, but with different capabilities
and different responsibilities. Men and women are different, physiologically
and psychologically. Their roles and responsibilities are different. Men and
women are equal in Islam, but not identical.*



*Surah Nisa' Chapter 4 verses 22 to 24 gives the list of women with whom
Muslim men can not marry. It is further mentioned in Surah Nisa' Chapter 4
verse 24 "Also (prohibited are) women already married"*



The following points enumerate the reasons why polyandry is prohibited in
Islam:



*1. If a man has more than one wife, the parents of the children born of
such marriages can easily be identified. The father as well as the mother
can easily be identified. In case of a woman marrying more than one husband,
only the mother of the children born of such marriages will be identified
and not the father. Islam gives tremendous importance to the identification
of both parents, mother and father. Psychologists tell us that children who
do not know their parents, especially their father undergo severe mental
trauma and disturbances. *



Often they have an unhappy childhood. It is for this reason that the
children of prostitutes do not have a healthy childhood. If a child born of
such wedlock is admitted in school, and when the mother is asked the name of
the father, she would have to give two or more names! I am aware that recent
advances in science have made it possible for both the mother and father to
be identified with the help of genetic testing. Thus this point which was
applicable for the past may not be applicable for the present.



*2. Man is more polygamous by nature as compared to a woman. *



*3. Biologically, it is easier for a man to perform his duties as a husband
despite having several wives. A woman, in a similar position, having several
husbands, will not find it possible to perform her duties as a wife. A woman
undergoes several psychological and behavioral changes due to different
phases of the menstrual cycle.*



*4. A woman who has more than one husband will have several sexual partners
at the same time and has a high chance of acquiring venereal or sexually
transmitted diseases which can also be transmitted back to her husband even
if all of them have no extra-marital sex. This is not the case in a man
having more than one wife, and none of them havi

Bismillah [IslamCity] Pope BAPTIZES a Muslim & Wants to Build a CHURCH in Saudi Arabia

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Muslim Baptized by Pope Says Life in Danger*



*By Philip Pullella Sun Mar 23, **2:35 PM ET** *

*
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080323/wl_nm/pope_muslim_dc;_ylt=AstNTAkvz5wB9qF3uGQi8TIUewgF
*



VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - *A Muslim author and critic of Islamic
fundamentalism who was baptized a Catholic by Pope Benedict said on Sunday
Islam is "physiologically violent" and he is now in great danger because of
his conversion. "I realize what I am going up against but I will confront my
fate with my head high, with my back straight and the interior strength of
one who is certain about his faith," said Magdi Allam.*

*In a surprise move on Saturday night, the pope baptized the 55-year-old,
Egyptian-born Allam at an Easter eve service in St Peter**'**s Basilica that
was broadcast around the world. The conversion of Allam to Christianity --
he took the name "Christian" for his baptism -- was kept secret until the **
Vatican** disclosed it in a statement less than an hour before it began.*

*Writing in Sunday**'**s edition of the leading Corriere della Sera, the
newspaper of which he is a deputy director, Allam said: "... the root of
evil is innate in an Islam that is physiologically violent and historically
conflictual."*

*Allam, who is a strong supporter of **Israel** and who an Israeli newspaper
once called a "Muslim Zionist," has lived under police protection following
threats against him, particularly after he criticized **Iran**'**s position
on **Israel**. He said before converting he had continually asked himself
why someone who had struggled for what he called "moderate Islam" was then
"condemned to death in the name of Islam and on the basis of a Koranic
legitimization."*



His conversion, which he called "the happiest day of my life," came just two
days after al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden accused the pope of being part of
a "new crusade" against Islam.



The Vatican appeared to be at pains to head off criticism from the Islamic
world about the conversion. "Conversion is a private matter, a personal
thing and we hope that the baptism will not be interpreted negatively by
Islam," Cardinal Giovanni Re told an Italian newspaper.



*Still, Allam**'**s highly public baptism by the pope shocked **Italy**'**s
Muslim community, with some leaders openly questioning why the
**Vatican**chose to shine such a big spotlight it. "What amazes me is
the high profile
the **Vatican** has given this conversion," Yaha Sergio Yahe Pallavicini,
vice-president of the Italian Islamic Religious Community, told Reuters.
"Why could he have not done this in his local parish?"*

ANOTHER DEATH SENTENCE

*Allam, the author of numerous books, said he realized that his conversion
would likely procure him "another death sentence for apostasy," or the
abandoning of one**'**s faith. But he said he was willing to risk it because
he had "finally seen the light, thanks to divine grace."*

*Allam defended the pope in 2006 when the pontiff made a speech in Regensburg,
Germany, that many Muslims perceived as depicting Islam as a violent faith.
He said he made his decision to convert after years of deep soul
searchingand asserted that the Catholic
Church has been "too prudent about conversions of Muslims."*



At a Sunday morning Easter mass hours after he baptized Allam, the pope,
without mentioning him, spoke in a prayer of the continuing "miracle" of
conversion to Christianity some 2,000 years after Christ's resurrection.

*The **Vatican** statement announcing Allam**'**s conversion said: "For the
Catholic Church, each person who asks to receive Baptism after a deep
personal search, a fully free choice and adequate preparation, has a right
to receive it." It said all newcomers to the faith were "equally important
before God**'**s love and welcome in the community of the Church." *

*(Reporting by Philip Pullella, editing by Mary Gabriel)*

*March 17, 2008*



*Saudi Arabia Extends Hand of Friendship to Pope*



*Richard Owen in Rome *

*http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article3571835.ece*



*The Vatican is believed to be holding talks with Saudi authorities over
opening the first Roman Catholic church in the Islamic kingdom, where
Christian worship is banned and even to possess a Bible, rosary or crucifix
is an offence. *

*The disclosure came the day after the first Catholic church in Qatar was
inaugurated in a service attended by 15,000 people and conducted by a senior
Vatican official. *

The Vatican and Saudi Arabia do not have diplomatic relations. However,
Archbishop Paul-Mounged El-Hachem, the Papal Nuncio to Qatar, Kuwait, the
UAE, Yemen and Bahrain, who attended the Doha inauguration, said that moves
towards diplomatic ties were under way after an unprecedented visit to the
Vatican last November by King Abdullah. This would involve negotiations for
the "authorisation of the building of Catholic churches" in Saudi Arabia, he
said.

The move would amount to a potential revolution in Christian-Muslim
relations, si

Bismillah [IslamCity] Iraqis Still Ask if US Invasion Was WORTH It

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

"The Best Part of the Iraq Invasion JOKE is that a Couple of Months Ago When
GWB Went On a Middle Eastern Tour the Leaders Of the Countries he Visited
Received Him DOWN ON BENDED KNEES."

*Iraqis Still Ask If US Invasion Was Worth It*



*By Dean Yates Mon Mar 10, **8:33 PM ET** *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080311/lf_nm/iraq_war_dc***



BAGHDAD (Reuters) - *Five years after **U.S.** and British forces swept into
**Iraq** and toppled **Saddam Hussein**, many Iraqis are asking if the
violence and upheaval that turned their lives upside down was worth it. **The
human cost is staggering -- anywhere between 90,000 and 1 million Iraqi
civilians killed, according to various estimates; nearly 4,000
**U.S.**soldiers dead; while 4 million Iraqis are displaced.
*

On the bright side, Iraqis are rid of one of the 20th century's most
ruthless dictators. They held free elections and have a new constitution.
For Iraqis, deciding if the invasion was worth the sacrifice depends partly
on their sect and ethnicity and where they live.

*Saddam, a Sunni Arab, persecuted the country's majority Shi'ites and Kurds.
Shi'ites now hold the reins of power while once-dominant Sunni Arabs have
become marginalized.*

*In **Baghdad**, epicenter of a sectarian war in 2006 and 2007 that nearly
tore **Iraq** apart, people long for the safe streets of Saddam**'**s era.
In the Shi**'**ite south, they no longer fear Saddam**'**s henchmen, but
rival Shi**'**ite factions competing for influence. In the north, the
economy of largely autonomous **Kurdistan** is flourishing in a region that
Kurds call "the other **Iraq**."*

*Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari, a Kurd, said **Iraq** was moving in the
right direction. Those who felt the invasion was a mistake should remember
Saddam**'**s atrocities, he said. Zebari said proof that a majority of
Iraqis supported the overthrow of Saddam was their participation in 2005
elections. "The brutality of Saddam**'**s regime deformed society in many
ways so we have to be patient," he told Reuters in an interview. "Compared
to the experience of other nations I think we have done very well. But yes,
it has been very, very costly."*

Um Khalid, a 40-year old Baghdad hairdresser, said violence was so random
that no one knew if they would be its next victim. "No, no, no. What
happened was not worth it. Those who say things are better are lying," she
said.

KILLED OVER THEIR NAME

Many Iraqis vividly recall the chaotic months after the invasion on March
20, 2003, symbolized by the toppling of a big statue of Saddam in central
Baghdad.

*Their euphoria at new freedoms and hopes the United States would transform
Iraq into another rich Gulf Arab state were dashed as Sunni Arabs rose up
against their new rulers and car bombs turned markets and mosques into
killing fields.In February 2006, suspected al Qaeda militants blew up a
revered Shi**'**ite mosque in the town of Samarra, unleashing a wave of
sectarian violence that meant being a Shi**'**ite or a Sunni in the wrong
neighborhood could be a death sentence. *

* *

*"Before 2003, we lived under a tough regime, no one can deny that," said
Abu Wasan, 55, a former army brigadier-general and a senior member of Saddam
**'**s disbanded Baath party. "But at least we never heard of bodies getting
dumped on garbage just because people had a Sunni or a Shi**'**ite name." *



*The worst of the sectarian carnage is over, at least for now. A year ago,
police would find up to 50 bodies in the streets of **Baghdad** each day.
That number has dropped to single digits thanks to the deployment of
additional **U.S.** troops and ceasefires by many Shi'ite and Sunni Arabs
militants. Also in many **Baghdad** areas ethnic cleansing has already been
completed. *

*GRIM NUMBERS *

*The latest tolls from the widely cited human rights group **Iraq** Body
Count** show up to 89,000 civilians have been killed since 2003. Research
conducted by one of **Britain**'**s leading polling groups, however, puts
the death toll at 1 million. The **U.S.** military death** toll stands at
3,975. *

Other statistics make for grim reading.

*The United Nations estimates 4 million Iraqis are struggling to feed
themselves while 40 percent of the country**'**s 27 million people have no
safe water. The Iraqi doctors**'** syndicate says up to 70 percent of
specialist doctors have fled abroad. Iraq**'**s national power grid,
devastated by years of war and sanctions, leaves millions in the dark. The
country has the world**'**s third largest reserves of oil, but motorists
sometimes queue at petrol stations for hours. *

*"I have been in this queue since dawn waiting to fill my car," said
Abdullah Ahmed, 53, a taxi driver in the northern city of Kirkuk, which sits
atop huge reserves of oil. "What democracy? What prosperity? When the statue
fell, we thought we would live like the Gulf, but that was just words." *

People with such views are overlooking the joy of speaking freely, said
Ahmed Sebti, 39, owner of a kebab

Bismillah [IslamCity] After Five Years, the Iraq War is Transforming the US Military

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

"The US Army in Iraq is a PYTHON that has Just SWALLOWED a PIG. It's NOT
Clear to Me It Understands How Hard the DIGESTION Process is Going to Be.
The Army is Going to Have to Build Organizations Optimized to do
(Post-Combat) Stability Operations, & That's NOT What This Army Wants to
Do." - US Army Officer

*After Five Years, the Iraq War is Transforming the Military*



*By **Nancy** A. Youssef, McClatchy Newspapers Sun Mar 16, **6:00 AM ET** *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/20080316/wl_mcclatchy/2879735*



WASHINGTON — *When **U.S.** forces crossed the Kuwaiti border into
**Iraq**in the pre-dawn hours of
**March 20, 2003**, the military set out to shock and awe the **Middle East*
* with the swiftest transformation the region had ever seen. *



*Five years and hundreds of billions of dollars later, it**'**s the
**U.S.**military
** that**'**s been transformed. The efficient, tech-savvy Army, built, armed
and trained to fight conventional wars against aggressor states, is now
making deals with tribal sheiks and building its power on friendly
conversations with civilians.*

*Instead of planning for quick, decisive battles against other nations, as
it was five years ago, today**'**s American military is planning for
protracted, nuanced conflicts with terrorist groups, insurgents, guerrillas,
militias and other shadowy forces that seldom stand and fight.*

*The staples of American military doctrine that have developed since the Civil
War — artillery, armor, air power, speed and overwhelming force— are of
limited use against enemies who blend into civilian populations.*

* *

*Five years after the U.S.-led invasion of **Iraq**, the military is being
reconfigured to fight insurgencies, but its evolution has been an unplanned,
improvised affair, a series of course corrections in the midst of the wars
in **Iraq** and **Afghanistan**. Some changes have been simply last-ditch
efforts to stop the violence against Iraqis and **U.S.** troops, and some
say the changes impair the military**'**s ability to fight a conventional
war against a "peer competitor."*

*Divisions are dispersed into what the military calls a more modular Army so
smaller units can be moved throughout **Iraq**. The military has rolled out
new vehicles to thwart high-powered explosives. It**'**s set up new training
centers and given captains and colonels far more leeway to lead at the local
level, not simply follow a general**'**s orders.*

Pentagon leaders call this the military of the future.
"Clearly the training now is almost exclusively focused on COIN
(counterinsurgency) because that's the fight we are in. And it will continue
that way as long as the fight stays at the level that it is," said Adm. Michael
Mullen , chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in an interview with
McClatchy . In the last five years, the military has gained "speed, agility
(and) flexibility that . . . we didn't have as a much heavier force" a few
years ago, Mullen said.


*It**'**s a big departure from the transformation that then-Secretary of
Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld promised in the months leading up to the war.
Under his plan, the Army would be smaller and rely more on precision air
attacks and the latest technology. Indeed, the war in **Iraq** was supposed
to last a few weeks. The **U.S.** would dispatch the Iraqi military,
overthrow Saddam Hussein**'**s regime, install a new government led by Iraqi
exiles and introduce freedom, democracy and a market economy.*

*Within days, however, the **U.S.** lost control. Looters took to the
streets, and an insurgency took root. The **U.S.** installed an American
occupation government and tried to secure a hostile nation rather than a
grateful one.*

Back then, there was little talk of counterinsurgency. But the new Army
Field Manual puts counterinsurgency on a par with conventional war. "Winning
battles and engagements is important but alone is not sufficient," it
states. "Shaping the civil situation is just as important to success."

But while the Army has intellectually embraced counterinsurgency, it hasn't
said how it will build a force that can fight both conventional wars and
counterinsurgency campaigns. How should it train its soldiers? What kind of
enemy will the U.S. face? So far, military leaders cannot agree on those
fundamental questions.

*By adopting a new mode of warfare, "the Army is a python that has just
swallowed a pig," said a **U.S.** Army officer who spoke on the condition of
anonymity in order to speak more candidly. "It**'**s not clear to me it
understands how hard the digestion process is going to be." "The Army is
going to have to build organizations optimized to do (post-combat) stability
operations, and that**'**s not what this Army wants to do," the officer
added.*

Lt. Col. John Nagl , who co-authored the U.S. military's 2006
counterinsurgency manual with Gen. David Petraeus , now the top American
military commander in Iraq , questions whether the Army is serious about
counterinsurgency.

Bismillah [IslamCity] US Presidents & the Drive for Peace in the Middle East

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*US Presidents and the Drive for Peace in the **Middle East***


*Ray Hanania, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=105520&d=11&m=1&y=2008*



*What is it about Presidents who wait until the last minute to try and
achieve peace in the **Middle East**? *

*President George W. Bush is in **Jerusalem** meeting with Israelis and
Palestinians to help nudge the latest generation of the "peace process"
along. Why does this all sound so familiar? Bush is on the last leg of a
presidential career. His final year. And all of a sudden, he wants to do all
he can to bring about peace in the **Middle East** between Palestinians and
Israelis.*

I recognize that peace between Palestinians and Israelis is the Holy Grail
of achievements for any American politician, despite all its political land
mines and the wolf pack of lobbyists who nip and tear at anything remotely
challenging to their vision of what needs to be done.

But why always so late? It has to be ego, I think.

*Former President Bill Clinton did the exact same thing eight years ago. The
differences between Bush and Clinton are stark, of course. Clinton spent his
entire term in office pursuing the elusive achievement.But he made a massive
push in the last few months during the twilight of his administration, just
before leaving office.*

Bush turned his back on Middle East peace from the day he stepped into
office. Some might argue that he didn't want to waste his time on a Gordian
Knot so difficult that peace is impossible, but others might argue that he
was so naïve and inexperienced he did not recognize how important the Middle
East issues are on the American people. He learned nine months later
when Middle
East terrorists led by Osama Bin Laden struck America on Sept. 11, 2001.

Yet, suddenly Bush is invigorated and wants to bring about peace? All of a
sudden? Now? I guess it is always better late than never. And I have to say
that although Clinton was genuine in his desire for peace, Bush is being a
little more even handed than Clinton.

*In the final months of his push for peace, **Clinton** placed a pro-Israel
activist, Dennis Ross, at the helm of the mission.  Ross spent much of his
time taking Israeli proposals at the Camp David meeting between Yasir Arafat
and Ehud Barak, and presented them to the Palestinians as "American" ideas.
Very deceitful.*

Clinton's actions suggested the real motive was to lock in Jewish American
support and votes for his wife, Hillary, who became a New York senator and
is now in a cut-throat contest to become the Democratic nominee for
President.

What's in it form Bush? Both men are deeply religious in different ways.
Clinton more southern and passive in his Christian religion and Bush more
conservative evangelist in his own reverence. Yet what we have to be cynical
at these times of pomp and ceremony when politicians are about ready to
leave office.

Are they really chasing the elusive peace because they hope that by chance —
like winning a lottery — they just might succeed and secure for themselves
the greatest accolades in modern history?

Clinton wanted to leave office with a crown of achievement, although his
selfish push in late 2000 before leaving office left the Middle East in a
crown of thorns that turned into one of the worst periods of relations
between Palestinians and Israelis in their tragic and shared history. Is
that what Bush wants? To leave office with some major achievement of
substance? Is that all that Middle East peace is worth to the world, a
trophy on some mantel of a presidential library, and a chapter in history
books?

*I hope Bush is successful. But it will take more than a president, even one
who makes the daring trip to personally visit the **Middle East** as Bush is
doing right now. What Palestinians and Israelis need to achieve peace is a
fair American president with a firm hand. You can't leave it up to the two
sides because the two sides have proven they won't do it themselves.*

*President Bush needs to impose a peace, a peace agreement we all already
know will consist of two-states, sharing Jerusalem, some apologies on both
sides, compensation (mainly American tax dollars, of course) and a
determination that can only come from inevitability that there is no way to
avoid it. Make it happen, Mr. President.*

The world needs it. America needs it. And if it transforms your contentious
seven years in office into something that dreams are made of, you would
deserve it.

—   *Ray Hanania, the former national president of the Palestinian
American Congress, is an author and syndicated columnist based in **Chicago*
*.***

*On Rescuing Private Lynch and Forgetting Rachel Corrie*

* *

*http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/comment/0,10551,961025,00.html*


The Israeli army got away with murder - and now all activists are at risk

*Naomi Klein
**Thursday May 22, 2003**
The Guardian *
*Jessica Lynch and Rachel Corrie could have passed for sisters. Two
all-Ame

Bismillah [IslamCity] Obama Says the US Should NOT Meet With Hamas

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

Which is the GREATER Crime

"Publishing CARTOONS of the Prophet (saws) OR SUPPORTING the OCCUPATION of
Islam's 3rd HOLIEST Site."



*Obama Says **U.S.** Should Not Meet With Hamas*



*Mon Mar 3, **4:59 PM ET** *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080303/pl_nm/palestinians_israel_rice_obama_dc
*



*SAN ANTONIO**, **Texas** (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate
Barack Obama on Monday backed the Bush administration**'**s policy of
shunning contact with the Islamic militants of Hamas in its **Middle
East**peace diplomacy.
*



*The **Illinois** senator** has said he would break with President George W.
Bush**'**s stance of declining to talk to some other international
adversaries but that stance does not apply to Hamas, which controls the **
Gaza** Strip and is committed to the destruction of **Israel**.*



Obama has said in the past he would be willing to meet with leaders with
whom the Bush administration strongly disagrees, including Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Cuban leader Raul Castro.



Obama, hoping to win his party's nomination to face likely Republican
nominee Sen. John McCain in the November presidential election, said his
willingness to meet with foes "does not include Hamas."



*"You can**'**t negotiate with somebody who does not recognize the right of
a country to exist so I understand why **Israel** doesn**'**t meet with
Hamas," Obama told reporters during a campaign stop in **San Antonio**, **
Texas**. Iran does not recognize Israel either and its president has often
threatened the imminent destruction of the Jewish state, drawing criticism
from the West which fears **Iran** wants to make nuclear bombs that could
threaten the region.*



U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice left for the Middle East on Monday
to try to salvage U.S.-sponsored peace talks derailed by Hamas rocket
attacks on Israeli towns and Israel's military response in Gaza.

*"I do think it is important to us to try to jump-start the peace process,"
Obama said. "It has been under enormous strain of late."*

*(Writing by Caren Bohan; Editing by Alan Elsner)*

*Why Is Obama**'**s Middle Name Taboo?*



*By NATHAN THORNBURGH 52 minutes ago *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20080229/us_time/whyisobamasmiddlenametaboo***



*Barack Hussein Obama, Jr.: that is the full name of the junior Senator from
Illinois - neither a contrivance nor, at face value, a slur. But John
McCaincouldn
**'**t apologize quickly enough after Bill Cunningham, a conservative talk
radio host, warmed up a **Cincinnati** rally with a few loaded references to
"Barack Hussein Obama." Asked afterwards if it was appropriate to use the
Senator**'**s middle name, McCain said, "No, it is not. Any comment that is
disparaging of either Senator Clinton or Senator Obama is totally
inappropriate." *

The pundits were quick to applaud McCain's fatwa against the use of Hussein,
and broadcasters began trying to report on the controversy without actually
saying the name too much, dancing around the offending word as if they were
doing a segment on *The Vagina Monologues.* In both cases, the word comes
off as not quite illicit, but certainly a little taboo.

*So who gets to say Hussein? At the Oscars, host Jon Stewart took innuendo
about as far as it can go, saying that Barack Hussein Obama running today is
like a 1940**'**s candidate named Gaydolph Titler. But that reference,
served up to a crowd that presumably swoons for Obama, got laughs. So maybe
the H-word is more like the N-word: you can say it, but only if you are an
initiate. Blacks can use the N-word; Obama supporters can use the H-word. *

Obama's campaign thanked McCain's for his apology, claiming a victory for
the high road. Fine. But McCain might also know that if middle names become
fair game, John Sidney McCain III has his own liabilities. Recently, it has
been the unmanly middle names that have caused their owners the most
political trouble. In 2006, Jim Henry Webb hammered home the fact that his
Virginia Senate opponent was actually George Felix Allen - a middle name
that conjured up images of Felix Unger, or perhaps the real life Prince
Felix of Luxemburg, either one a far cry from the tobacco-chewing good ole
boy Allen styled himself as. In the last presidential election, both Bush
and Kerry had middle names inherited from elite East Coast families. But
Bush's middle name had much more swagger; you'll never see a TV show called
Forbes, Texas Ranger.

*Online, the onomastics are already in high gear. Lefty bloggers, in full
Obama rapture, point out that Hussein means "beautiful". One conservative
observer insinuated that Obama, as a Christian with a Muslim name, might be
marked for death by even our allies in the Islamic world, if they think he
converted from Islam (for the record, he was never Muslim). By that ornately
twisted logic, though, one might add that it was the martyrdom of Hussein in
the year 680, beheaded at **Karbala** in a clash with the caliphate, that
gave rise to 140

Bismillah [IslamCity] The Hell Disaster of Iraq - Robert Fisk

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

"It is Our Presence, Our power, Our Arrogance, Our Refusal to Learn from
History & Our Terror -- Yes, Our Terror -- of Islam That is Leading Us Into
the ABYSS. And Until We Learn to Leave these Muslim Peoples Alone, Our
Catastrophe in the ME Will Only Become Graver. There is NO Connection
Between Islam & "Terror". But there is a Connection Between Our Occupation
of Muslim Lands & "TERROR". It's Not Too Complicated an Equation. And We DON
'T Need a Public Inquiry to Get it Right." - Robert Fisk**
*The Hell-Disaster of **Iraq***

*Iraq War: Fifth Anniversary*

*By Robert Fisk*

*http://www.sundaytimes.lk/080323/International/international0006.html*

Five years on, and still we have not learnt. With each anniversary, the
steps crumble beneath our feet, the stones ever more cracked, the sand ever
finer. Five years of catastrophe in Iraq and I think of Churchill, who in
the end called Palestine a "hell-disaster".

But we have used these parallels before and they have drifted away in the
Tigris breeze. Iraq is swamped in blood. Yet what is the state of our
remorse? Why, we will have a public inquiry -- but not yet! If only
inadequacy was our only sin.

*Today, we are engaged in a fruitless debate. What went wrong? How did the
people -- the senatus populusque Romanus of our modern world -- not rise up
in rebellion when told the lies about weapons of mass destruction, about
Saddam**'**s links with Osama bin Laden and 11 September? How did we let it
happen? And how come we didn**'**t plan for the aftermath of war?*

Oh, the British tried to get the Americans to listen, Downing Street now
tells us. We really, honestly did try, before we absolutely and completely
knew it was right to embark on this illegal war. There is now a vast
literature on the Iraq debacle and there are precedents for post-war
planning -- of which more later -- but this is not the point. Our
predicament in Iraq is on an infinitely more terrible scale.

*As the Americans came storming up Iraq in 2003, their cruise missiles
hissing through the sandstorm towards a hundred Iraqi towns and cities, I
would sit in my filthy room in the Baghdad Palestine Hotel, unable to sleep
for the thunder of explosions, and root through the books I**'**d brought to
fill the dark, dangerous hours. Tolstoy**'**s War and Peace reminded me how
conflict can be described with sensitivity and grace and horror -- I
recommend the **Battle** of **Borodino** -- along with a file of newspaper
clippings. In this little folder, there was a long rant by Pat Buchanan,
written five months earlier; and still, today I feel its power and its
prescience and its absolute historical honesty: "With our MacArthur Regency
in **Baghdad**, Pax Americana will reach apogee. But then the tide recedes,
for the one endeavour at which Islamic people excel is expelling imperial
powers by terror or guerrilla war.*

*"They drove the Brits out of **Palestine** and **Aden**, the French out of
**Algeria**, the Russians out of **Afghanistan**, the Americans out of **
Somalia** and **Beirut**, the Israelis out of **Lebanon**. We have started
up the road to empire and over the next hill we will meet those who went
before. The only lesson we learn from history is that we do not learn from
history." How easily the little men took us into the inferno, with no
knowledge or, at least, interest in history. None of them read of the 1920
Iraqi insurgency against British occupation, nor of Churchill**'**s brusque
and brutal settlement of **Iraq** the following year.*

*On our historical radars, not even Crassus appeared, the wealthiest Roman
general of all, who demanded an emperorship after conquering Macedonia --
"Mission Accomplished" -- and vengefully set forth to destroy Mesopotamia.
At a spot in the desert near the **Euphrates** river, the Parthians --
ancestors of present day Iraqi insurgents -- annihilated the legions,
chopped off Crassus**'**s head and sent it back to **Rome** filled with
gold. Today, they would have videotaped his beheading.*

To their monumental hubris, these little men who took us to war five years
ago now prove that they have learnt nothing. Anthony Blair — as we should
always have called this small town lawyer — should be facing trial for his
mendacity. Why didn't Bush or Blair tell us this when the Iraqi insurgents
began to assault the Western occupation forces? Well, they were too busy
telling us that things were getting better, that the rebels were mere
"dead-enders".

*On **17 June 1940**, Churchill told the people of **Britain**: "The news
from **France** is very bad and I grieve for the gallant French people who
have fallen into this terrible misfortune." Why didn**'**t Blair or Bush
tell us that the news from **Iraq** was very bad and that they grieved --
even just a few tears for a minute or so -- for the Iraqis? For these were
the men who had the temerity, the sheer, unadulterated gall, to dress
themselves up as Churchill, heroes who would stage a rerun of the Second
World War, 

Bismillah [IslamCity] Marriage Fear Muslim Teenager 'Murdered' in UK

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Marriage Fear Teenager **'**Murdered**'***

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/7182887.stm*

* *
*A teenage girl who feared a marriage was being arranged by her parents was
the victim of a "vile murder", a coroner has said. The decomposed body of
Shafilea Ahmed, 17, was found on a riverbank in February 2004, six months
after she went missing from her **Warrington** home. **South
Cumbria**coroner Ian Smith ruled Shafilea had been unlawfully killed.
*
**

Shafilea's parents and five family members were arrested during the police
inquiry but no charges were brought. After the inquest, Supt Geraint Jones,
of Cheshire Police, said it "remains a live murder inquiry". "It will not be
closed until the killer or killers have been brought to justice," he said.

*Mr Smith said Shafilea was genuinely afraid, rightly or wrongly, that her
parents were planning to arrange her marriage. Delivering the verdict at the
inquest in Kendal, he said he was convinced Shafilea was murdered. The body
"had been hidden and she had been taken many miles away from home", he said.
Mr Smith said he believed the concept of an arranged marriage for the Muslim
teenager was "central" to the circumstances leading up to her death. *

*Earlier in the week-long hearing, community and homelessness workers said
the teenager had approached them for help to find accommodation or a place
in a refuge in order to escape from her parents. She had claimed they were
forcing her into an arranged marriage, the inquest heard. She also confided
to her friends that her parents had beaten her and taken £2,000 from her
bank account. *

*The inquest heard how the teenager had previously run away from home and
that on one occasion her father had turned up at her school and taken her
home, forcing a teacher to call the police. Shafilea went missing on 11
September 2003 shortly after returning from a trip to Pakistan, where it was
said she had drunk a quantity of bleach after meeting a possible suitor. *

*'**Active case**'*

*But it was a teacher at her school, **Great** **Sankey** **High School**,
who reported her missing seven days later. Summing up, the coroner said
Shafilea had died within a few hours of leaving work on the day she was last
seen alive. He added he was "very confident" she was already dead before her
body was dumped on the riverbank. *

"I do not believe she escaped and ran away. She was taken," Mr Smith said.
Her body was found in February 2004, but police had to use dental records
and jewellery to identify her. A medical expert told the inquest the
schoolgirl had either been smothered or strangled.

Police said the continuing investigation could take detectives to
Pakistanfor further enquires. Supt Jones said: "There is someone out
there who knows
what happened to Shafilea, and has not told us. "

Shafilea's parents, Iftikhar and Farzana, were arrested on suspicion of
kidnap and five relatives from Bradford were also arrested. In his summing
up at the inquest, Mr Smith said: "I sincerely hope in the future inquiries
will be carried out by the police and they will one day discover who did
it." The parents left the inquest without making a comment.

*Father Denies Forced Wedding Plot*

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/7180963.stm*

* *
*The father of a teenager whose body was found on a riverbank five months
after she disappeared has denied trying to force her into marriage.*

The decomposed body of Shafilea Ahmed, 17, of Liverpool Road, Warrington,
was found on a Cumbrian riverbank in 2004. At an inquest in Kendal, her
father, Ifitkar, said he had not sent her to Pakistan to marry nor had he
stolen her money or beaten her.


*While in **Pakistan** she drank bleach after meeting a possible suitor. **Mr
Ahmed admitted that before leaving for Pakistan his uncle had asked if Miss
Ahmed would marry his son, Rafaqat. But he claimed that when the same
question was put to his daughter when they arrived, he accepted her "no way"
answer. Taxi driver, Mr Ahmed, added: "I always ask to my kids: **'**Whatever
you decide to do with your lives I**'**m fully behind you**'**." *

The inquest has already heard how Miss Ahmed confided in community and
homelessness workers that she was being "beaten and robbed" by her father
and mother, Farzana. She also claimed that they were forcing her into
marriage.

Mr Ahmed, 48, said: "There's no question of her being married. There's no
potential suitor. I've never discussed the marriage question between me and
the daughter. "That discussion has never taken place. Where she's heard it
from I don't know." Mr Ahmed, a taxi driver, also denied claims made in
evidence at the hearing by Miss Ahmed's friends that he and his wife beat
her and stole her savings. Medical experts told the inquest the teenager was
either smothered or strangled.

The girl's father and mother are both being questioned as part of the
hearing by a solicitor representing Cumbria Coroner's Court and Chesh

Bismillah [IslamCity] Why is the Peace Movement Silent About AIPAC

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*April 17, 2007*
*Capuano and Kucinich Come Clean About the Lobby* *Why is the Peace Movement
Silent About AIPAC?***

*By JOHN WALSH*

*http://www.counterpunch.org/walsh04172007.html*

"AIPAC!" was the forceful one-word answer of Congressman Michael Capuano
when we asked him, "Why was the Iran clause forbidding war on Iran without
Congressional approval taken out of the recent supplemental for the Iraq war
funding?" I nearly fell out of my chair at his reply - not because this was
news but because of who had just said it. Capuano is a close ally of Nancy
Pelosi, her fixer and enforcer. That was last Friday morning when a small
delegation from Cambridge and Somerville, MA, were visiting the Congressman,
known for his bluntness, as part of the nationwide UFPJ (United For Peace
and Justice) home lobbying effort during the Congressional recess.

*Later that day, Dennis Kucinich made an appearance at Harvard, where he was
asked the same question, the reason for removing the **Iran** provision.
"AIPAC," I volunteered out loud. Kucinich looked my way and said, "Exactly."
Again my chair almost failed to contain me.*

*A few weeks earlier we had gone to the offices of Senators Kennedy and then
Kerry to discuss the war. (My intention was to call their attention to
www.FilibusterForPeace.org  to which the
Kennedy aide was sympathetic and the Kerry aide predictably hostile.) I
raised the question of AIPAC directly with Kerry**'**s aide, inquiring about
its hawkish influence on Kerry and other Senators. Suddenly the aide was
quite engaged. Leaning forward, he said: "That will never be discussed
publicly. That will never be discussed publicly." Clearly even Kerry**'**s
office is unhappy with the pressure that comes from AIPAC. *

It is widely acknowledged that the reps and senators are ticked at AIPAC,
and their hostility seems to be growing these days. With upwards of 60% of
their campaign contributions coming directly or indirectly from the Israel
Lobby, the Democratic congressmen are not free to respond to their antiwar
base. This opens them to an antiwar electoral challenge on the Left or Right
from forces not subservient to AIPAC. And that could cost them their next
election, a little thing which has them very worked up. Capuano's cry of
"AIPAC" was no simple outburst of candor but a *cri de coeur** *for his
career.

*So here we have even Congressmen and Senator**'**s aides complaining
publicly about AIPAC. AIPAC is being outed all over the mainstream media,
largely thanks to the door opening work of Mearsheimer and Walt. AIPAC is
skewered routinely by Justin Raimondo on Antiwar.com and by Alex Cockburn
and many others here on CounterPunch. But there remains no anti-AIPAC
campaign within the mainstream antiwar organizations, like UFPJ or Peace
Action. (Even one supposed Congressional ally of the peace movement was
announced as a celebrity guest at the recent colossal AIPAC meeting in
Washington, where half the Congress shows up and Dick Cheney is a regular
speaker. What gives?) *

*I have been told by leaders of the peace movement that AIPAC is a
distraction from the main thrust of the antiwar movement. And so we should
not engage it; AIPAC is to be immune. But with all due respect to the
sentiments of that leadership, immunity for AIPAC is a prescription for
disaster. To use a military analogy, which I do not especially like, suppose
that we were trying to take a hill in **Germany** in 1944. And suppose we
said that we would not attack one pillbox, which kept devastating our
forces. Leave just that one pillbox alone! The result would be devastating;
we would be cut down with every succeeding attempt at advance. So it is with
AIPAC which campaigns relentlessly for war on Iraq, war on Iran, war on
Syria, war on Lebanon and the slow genocide of the Palestinian people. AIPAC
constantly puts the peace movement on the defensive while it is free to be
on the offensive all the time. *

*AIPAC is not just an issue for Jewish Americans or the Jewish wing of the
peace movement like Jewish Voice for Peace; it is a major force, although
not the only one, driving the **U.S.** to wars in the **Middle East**. AIPAC
is no less a force for war than is the Republican National Committee. In
fact it is worse, because it sinks its teeth into the foreign policy
establishment of both parties, perhaps the Dems more so than the
Republicans. If the peace movement is to be worth its salt, then it must
take action against AIPAC. (It is marathon season here in **Boston** and my
friend, Israeli expatriate Joshua Ashenberg, tells me that the foregoing
thought harbors a logical error. As he says: "A **'**movement**'** that does
not work against AIPAC is NOT a peace movement by definition. It will not
help if I call myself a marathon runner, while I never ran a marathon.")*

*In the **Boston** area, AIPAC appears to be especially powerful, and so we
have a special responsibility to take it on. At the recent AIPA

Bismillah [IslamCity] Seeing the Prophet (saws) in a Dream

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Seeing the Holy Prophet in Dream*



*Adil Salahi, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=105516&d=11&m=1&y=2008*

We all see dreams during sleep. Some of us see many, and their dreams are
vivid and colorful. When they wake up they are able to recount their dreams
in full. Other people dream little and they are likely to forget their
dreams the moment they wake up. There is no particular significance in
either situation. It is all due to the make up of each person. *However,
when we see a dream concerning someone who is important to us, or when the
dream is related to something we hold dearly, we are likely to retain that
dream in our memory, even if we belong to the second type of people who
normally forget their dreams on waking up.*

*Since we have been talking in this series of articles about the Prophet
(peace be upon him) and his personality, it is pertinent to ask whether it
is possible to see the Prophet in our dreams. The answer is that this is
quite possible. In fact some of us see him several times in their lives.
They are delighted with the fact, and some of them are ready to report their
seeing the Prophet whenever an occasion arises.*

*A dream involving seeing the Prophet is likely to have a profound effect on
us. Even a person of the type who forgets their dreams on waking up will
remember this dream because of the special position of the Prophet. A friend
of mine once told me that he never remembers his dreams, even though he only
occasionally sees a dream. Nevertheless, he saw the Prophet in a dream once,
many years ago. Yet whenever he wants, he recalls this dream in all its
vividness.*

*This is not surprising, because the Prophet is held so dearly by all
Muslims. They love him and cherish him. Their ultimate wish is to be close
to him on the Day of Judgment. So, when he appears to them in a dream, they
feel such closeness to him to be real. The Prophet has made it clear that
such dreams in which he appears are true. Anas quotes the Prophet as saying:
"Whoever sees me in a dream has actually seen me. Satan cannot appear in my
guise." He also said: "Dreams by a believer count as one part of 46 parts of
prophethood." (Related by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawood, Al-Tirmidhi, Ibn
Majah).*

*In this Hadith, the Prophet makes two points, and he repeats them in other
ways. An authentic Hadith reported by Abu Qatadah quotes the Prophet as
saying: "Whoever sees me in a dream actually sees me in truth." (Related by
Al-Bukhari and Muslim.) A different Hadith reported by Abu Hurayrah quotes
the Prophet as saying: "Whoever sees me in a dream will see me when awake.
Satan cannot put on my appearance." (Related by Al-Bukhari, Muslim,
Al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah).*

The first point the Prophet makes in all these Hadiths is that a dream in
which he is seen by anyone is a true dream. This applies whether he is seen
in his real form, which has been described by a number of his companions, or
in a different form. There will always be a clear indication in the dream to
inform the dreaming person that he is seeing the Prophet. Therefore, it is
not necessary that the Prophet would appear to that person in his own figure
and form. Anyway, most people do not know how exactly the Prophet looked.

The Prophet's statement, 'whoever sees me in a dream will see me when
awake," may be interpreted in two ways. It either relates to his
contemporaries telling them that if they see the Prophet in their dreams,
then they would be sure to see him in reality. If any such person lived far
away from Madinah, he would be sure to visit it or see the Prophet in some
other place. Alternatively, it may mean that such a person will inevitably
see the Prophet on the Day of Judgment. This signifies that he or she will
have nothing to fear on that day. Both interpretations may be correct, with
the first one applying during the Prophet's lifetime and the second after he
has passed away. Both add to the meaning that a dream in which the Prophet
figures is a true dream and when any of us sees such a dream, he has truly
seen the Prophet, even though the Prophet appears in that dream in a form
and shape different from what he looked like in reality.

*The second point is that Satan cannot put on a guise that makes him look
like the Prophet, so that he could deceive people and divert them from the
right path. In fact it is God who has willed that Satan cannot look like the
Prophet, even in dreams. Otherwise, people would listen to Satan, thinking
that they were taking orders from the Prophet. This God will not allow.
Therefore, He has willed to deprive Satan of this ability so that he would
never look like the Prophet, not even in people's dreams. Again this is a
special blessing, because if we talk to the Prophet in a dream and he tells
us something, whatever he tells us is correct. It does not constitute any
new teachings, because the divine message he delivered is complete and
nothing can be added to it. Yet the Prophet may

Bismillah [IslamCity] People of Pakistan at a Critical Crossroads

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*People of **Pakistan** at a Critical Crossroads*


*Khaled Al Maeena*

*Editor-in-Chief Arab News. Senior columnist, Asharq Al-Awsat, Al Madina,
Urdu News, Gulf News *
*http://www.arabview.com/articles.asp?article=947*
**
The brutal assassination of Benazir Bhutto has dealt a serious blow to
Pakistan's very fabric of existence, which is now imperiled. Since its
founding in 1947, the country has been plagued much of the time by political
crises. An overview of its turbulent history gives an insight into the
torturous road it has traveled.

*The first political assassination took place in the same garden (Liaquat
Bagh) where Benazir Bhutto was killed. Then it was Prime Minister Liaquat
Ali Khan felled by an assassin's bullet. Prime ministers and other leaders
have come and gone, but neither those in power nor the opposition have been
able to agree on a viable system that would allow Pakistan to function as a
proper state — a state for which millions of people have sacrificed their
lives and property. *
**
Apologists for the country speak of external factors. Yes, all can agree
that Pakistan was caught in the Cold War crossfire between the United
Statesand the Soviet
Union. It had to choose sides and fast, and it did by allying itself with
Washington, receiving the first batch of F-86 Saber jets to strengthen its
nascent air force and provide some muscle for the fledgling country.

*Pakistan's foreign policymakers heeded the advice of then US Secretary of
State John Foster Dulles who believed in pacts that would enable countries
friendly to the US to have access to US foreign aid. Dulles suffered from
"pactitis." He initiated the **Baghdad** Pact, which quickly dissolved after
the revolution of 1958 in **Iraq**. It then became the Central Treaty
Organization (CENTO). The three main players, **Pakistan**, **Iran** and **
Turkey**, were viewed as the bulwark against Russian ambitions in the Gulf
and the **Indian Ocean**. Then **Pakistan** became a member of the **Southeast
Asia** Treaty Organization (SEATO) — another loose outfit designed to deter
Russian influence in that part of the world. *
**
*Firmly entrenched in the American camp and building up its armed forces,
the country lagged on the political front, and it was up to Gen. Ayub Khan
to come to the rescue and bring some semblance of "enforced order." Despite
being accused of dictatorship, the Ayub era was one of relative calm and
economic progress, and it enhanced the country's image abroad. However, he
left in 1968 and was followed by another general — Yahya Khan. During that
period, the nation's history became a political joke that ended with the
breakup of **Pakistan** in 1971. *
**
Since that time, the country has not seen any peace. A hanged prime
minister, the Afghan War and the influence of the Kalashnikov culture, prime
ministers in and out of office and then another general who came at a time
when an event of historic global proportions was to take place — Sept. 11,
2001.

To Pervez Musharraf's credit, he navigated Pakistan through very dangerous
waters. He calmed the hardliners in the US who wanted Pakistan to be judged
a "terrorist state." He made overtures to India and obtained both financial
and military support for the country.

However, the people thought otherwise. They wanted participation in the
political process, and they had to get it through the only two individuals
who could muster support — Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif.  Both returned
to the country. The political process restarted, and, after the withdrawal
of emergency rules, elections were slated for Jan. 8. After surviving an
earlier assassination attempt, now Benazir is dead, leaving behind a
genuinely grieving Sharif along with millions of Pakistanis across the
nation.

One might ask, "What now?"

Sanity should prevail after the initial shock and grief. The leaders of the
Pakistan People's Party (PPP) — one of the few political parties that cuts
across provincial lines — should appeal for calm and order. They should rise
above party politics and pettiness. Their own future is at stake.

Politics in Pakistan has become deadly and dull. The same faces come across
posters in every election. It is time for new, younger political leaders to
appear on the scene — to be tried and tested. It is also not conducive to
the changed political scene in Pakistan to cast blame on anyone else for the
killings. Conspiracy theories and rumors abound in Pakistan, and the saner
elements of society should see to it that such theories do not flourish, for
they will further divide an already fragmented nation.

Friends of Pakistan also should help. Pakistan is an important and strategic
ally in the fight against terror. The US views it as a bastion of American
policies in the Middle East. It thus becomes imperative to the US and the
GCC states that Pakistan improves its security and stability. Any bloody,
tumultuous upheaval will have far-reaching consequences; however, no
resolution is possib

Bismillah [IslamCity] OCCUPIER of Palestine - Biggest Single IRONY of Western History

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Israel**: Biggest Single Irony of Western History*


*Jonathan Power, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=105131&d=31&m=12&y=2007*

*Perhaps the biggest single irony of Western history is best understood by
standing in the town square of Bethlehem, allowing one's gaze to pass over
the roof top of the church that covers the stable where Jesus was supposedly
born, and let one's eye drift into the blue sky beyond and thinking: How on
earth could it be that the Christians, whose belief in the divine center
around Jesus' crucifixion carried out by Roman soldiers but done at the
behest of the Jewish populace, could turn round nearly two millennia later
and say to the Jews in effect: We buy the argument that you are God's chosen
people and this land is your land and we are going to turn it over to you as
your "national home", even though the Arabs or their forefathers have been
living here since the Romans kicked the Jews out of Babylon after
demolishing the Temple in AD 70. This is what British foreign secretary,
Arthur Balfour, did in his famous Declaration, strongly backed by Prime
Minister Lloyd George, a religious man who saw the Jewish cause as one that
must be supported by Christian charity.*

The British had taken Palestine following the breakup of the Ottoman
Empireduring World War 1. The Balfour Declaration of 1917 at best was
an emotional
cause, at worst a political adventure. The next generation of British
politicians and colonial administrators, faced with a bloody Arab revolt
that they had to mercilessly repress, felt that the British had made an
awful mistake.

*A more recent irony: How could it be that the Jews of today could elect as
prime minister in the year 2001 Ariel **Sharon**, when they had been voting
for a peace candidate barely two years before? Sharon's most successful
campaign trick was to walk with a muscular entourage across the courtyard of
Jerusalem's Dome of the Rock, the sacred Islamic territory from where
Muhammad ascended to heaven for a night, and claim this as Jewish territory
for ever because down below are the remains of the temple that the Romans
destroyed. In helping provoke the second intifada and thus undermining the
democratically elected government of **Palestine** to the great advantage of
the militant Hamas, he showed both his irresponsibility and his total
contempt for 1300 years of continuous Muslim presence. *

How would Christians have felt if he had strutted across the Piazza in front
of St. Peter's and made a speech that slighted Christian claims to that
piece of earth? How would the Jews have felt if the Palestinians had
suspended political banners from the Dome at the top of the hill down over
the sacred Wailing Wall below? Is there no sense of consistency or basic
justice in the Israeli body politic? What is the point of subscribing to a
religion of values if one can be so easily led by the nose by an
unscrupulous politician out for power and vainglory and careless of human
life that gets in his way? And aren't the Jews as a rather small religious
group the ones who have the most to lose if religious tolerance is
undermined?

Christians are meant to turn the other cheek. The Jews have long been
satisfied with an eye for an eye. But both religions have stressed the need
for justice and for consideration of how those one is dealing with might
feel. "Do unto others what you want them to do to you" is part of both Old
and New Testament teaching. Neither Balfour nor Sharon appears to have
possessed a profound notion of the core values of their religion.

*The Jewish notion that they can have this land and no one else can is so
wildly anachronistic by any Western standards or historical experience that
it is amazing that in 1917 it got the time of day. If every ethnic group in
the world asserted so vigorously ancient yearnings to exclusive possession,
the world would become totally chaotic in short time, and nowhere quicker
than North America itself. But why should **Israel** get a free pass today?
If the Jews want to believe that Temple Mount (on which the Dome of the Rock
is built) is "the focal point of creation" and that in the center of the
hill lies the "foundation stone" of the world and that here "Adam came into
being" they may be allowed to believe it. *

*But that the arbiters of the United Nations, including the US, Russia and
Europe could go along with this myth at the expense of traditional
Palestinian centuries-old occupancy rights is almost impossible to digest.
And the worst of it is that even the most liberal voices in the Western
political world calling today for Israel to compromise seem to accept that
even if the Palestinians recovered all of the pre-1967 territories on the
West Bank they would still only have barely 20 percent of the land that the
United Nations divided into Jewish and Arab states in 1948 when the British
withdrew.*
*Rice in **West Asia**: Rewarding Dictators and Oppressors***

By Thalif Deen at the united

Bismillah [IslamCity] Discrimination & Exploitative Forms of Labor in India - Part 2

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*VII. DISCRIMINATION AND EXPLOITATIVE FORMS OF LABOR*


*http://www.hrw.org/reports/1999/india/India994-09.htm#P1695_354939*
**
Human Rights Watch spoke to members of the Bhangi community in Gujarat's
Ahmedabad district. The Bhangis lived in a residential area called Bhangivas
separate from the Dharbars, Rajputs, and Vanniyas who constitute the caste
Hindus in the area. The Bhangis were primarily employed as manual
scavengers. They were also responsible for removing dead cats and dogs and
were given Rs. 5 (US$0.13) or small amounts of food for doing so.
Forty-year-old Manju, a manual scavenger employed by the urban municipality,
described her daily routine and wages:

*In the morning I work from **6:00 a.m.** to **11:00 a.m.** cleaning the dry
latrines. I collect the feces and carry it on my head to the river half a
kilometer away seven to ten times a day. In the afternoon I clean the
gutters. Another Bhangi collects the rubbish from the gutters and places it
outside. Then I come and pick it up and take it one kilometer away. My
husband died ten years ago since then I have been doing this. Today I earn
Rs. 30 a day (US$0.75). Nine years ago I earned Rs. 16 (US$0.40), then Rs.
22 (US$0.55), and for the last two years it has been Rs. 30. But the
payments are uncertain. For the last two months we have not received
anything. Every two months they pay, but there is no certainty. We are paid
by the Nagar Palika municipality chief
officer.188
*
**
Like many others, Manju's health had suffered as a result of her occupation:
"I have often gotten sick: fevers, headaches, breaking and spraining hands
and feet, fatigue, and dizziness. It is all dirty
work."189Several
other Bhangi women interviewed complained of similar ailments. Most
looked considerably older than their stated age. In addition to the
abovementioned diseases of the poor, manual scavengers also tend to suffer
from respiratory infections, gastrointestinal disorders, and trachoma, a
chronic contagious bacterial conjunctivitis commonly resulting in blindness.
Human Rights Watch spoke to several workers with vision problems and to
sixty-five-year-old Bachubhai Chaganbhai, who suffered from tuberculosis. He
claimed that the illness was due to "working as a cleaner. I used to clean
open latrines. Because of this work I am sick. I stopped working five years
ago and have been sick with TB ever
since."190

Because Bachubhai was a "permanent" worker, he received Rs. 1,500 (US$37.50)
pension per month. He used to earn Rs. 2,000 (US$50) a month, or
approximately Rs. 65 (US$1.63) a day. Activist Martin Macwan explained that

*Being permanent means that you have an appointment letter. You also get
health benefits but not much; you get to visit government dispensaries,
which are not in good shape. But the state government has to give grants to
the state municipalities depending on the number of permanents that are
employed, so the municipalities try to keep them as casual laborers instead.
But the number of hours they work is usually the
same.191
*
**
Despite the similarity in work and hours spent, casual laborers are paid
only Rs. 34 (US$0.85) a day while permanent laborers were paid Rs. 80
(US$2). Most casual laborers never achieve permanent status, even after
years of employment. Leelaben, another scavenger interviewed by Human Rights
Watch, had been cleaning the latrines in Birla High School for over twenty
years, "Still they have not made me permanent," she said. "I used to get
paid Rs. 15 (US$0.38) a month, now I get paid Rs. 200 (US$5) a
month."192

The situation of private workers, mostly women working in upper-caste
households, is even bleaker. In the Bhangivas residential area, in July
1998, there were a total of thirty private workers; the rest were employed
by the municipality. Many private workers were paid only Rs. 3 (US$0.08) a
day.193

An activist in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, who has been working
for the rehabilitation of cleaning workers for the past fourteen years,
described a similar pay scale in his state:

*Private cleaners receive Rs. 5 to 10 a month for each house they clean
[US$0.12 to $0.25]. They clean up to ten to fifteen houses a day, many of
which have six or more family members. Those employed by urban
municipalities are paid Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 2,500 [US$50 - $63] a month but are
only paid once every four to six months. Some are permanent, and some are
casual. There are no health benefits, no gloves, no masks, no utensils. The
majority are 
women.194

Bismillah [IslamCity] Muslim Women in the Modern World

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Questions about Muslim Women in the modern world: Here are a few questions
asked by a non-Muslim woman who wants to know more about the position of
women in Islam: *



*http://www.islamunveiled.org/eng/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=19
*
*Questions*

*1. What are the main changes taking place in the lives of modern Muslim
women in general? *

* *

*2. Do Muslim women adopt any Western values? *

* *

*3. Can a Muslim woman get a driving license in your country? If not is this
due to a certain Islamic legislation? *

* *

*4. Do Muslim girls attend the same schools with boys, share the same
classes, and same teachers, etc…? *

* *

*5. How do Muslim women act towards Muslim men when both are not married?
Can they look at each other, meet, date, etc…? *

* *

*6. Tell me about marriage customs in Islam? - What about divorce? *



*Answers*

*1. The main changes happening in the lives of Muslim women in my country as
in the rest of Muslim states are that they are rediscovering Islam after
being fed up with other ideologies and shaping their lives according to its
teachings. *

* *

*2. Muslim women try to replace Western customs by Islamic ones. They follow
in the footsteps of the Prophet (PBUH), his wives and companions. They do,
however, pick up the useful habits practiced by other people both east and
west. *

* *

*3. A Muslim woman is indeed entitled to get a driving license and to drive
her own car. She can go shopping, but she should have a close relative as a
companion on long distance trips. This is for her own safety. *

* *

*4. In our country of origin, Muslim boys have separate schools as Muslim
girls. We do not have co-education except under some secular regimes, which
is against the teachings of Islam. *

* *

*5. Muslim men and women should lower their gazes. They should not mix with
one another unless it is necessary to do so. There is no dating in Islam.
When a Muslim man wants to get married he can look at his future partner;
the two families start to socialize until this is culminated by marriage. *

* *

*6. Marriage customs: We have first the attempt of each partner to look for
the other. This is basically done by the male who tries to look for his
would-be wife. Then his family would approach the other family. If the
answer is in the affirmative, then a meeting is arranged in the would be
wife's family house where she would meet the other side in the presence of
other relatives. Once this occasion is over each side would form his/her
opinions about the other. *

* *

*More than one meeting can take place where the two can sit together, talk
and try to know each other. In Islam it is the girl who gives the green
light or refuses. The decision is hers. No one should force anything on her
although the parents would discuss things concerning the other party. Once
she says "Yes" then both families would arrange another occasion in the
house of the girl so that the boy, his family and selected friends would
come to make official asking of the girl's hand. Some relatives and friends
of both sides would also attend and sweets and refreshments would be
distributed. *

* *

*A prayer would also be recited on the occasion invoking God's blessings to
facilitate the fulfillment of this marriage. A talk will be given on the
rights and duties of each of the couple in Islam. The next step would be
that both sides would meet in the girl's house in the presence of her family
members; no dating is allowed, no outing are encouraged except in the
company of the girl's relatives. This is because Islam forbids sex before
marriage or anything leading to it. If everything goes well, then the two
parties agree on a day to make the marriage contract which should be
implemented by a licensed Muslim scholar who would make sure that the girl
has approved of this marriage and that she is going to receive her rightful
dowry which is an essential part of every marriage contract. *

* *

*It is the right of the bride to receive her dowry, no one is allowed to
take it or any part of it without her permission. Both sides then prepare
for the marriage ceremony which is, in fact, a big dinner party attended by
friends and relatives of both sides. This is usually given by the
bridegroom's family. Food is served preferably in two separate halls and
gifts are presented to the couple. Songs are played and female friends and
relatives would dance for the bride in the presence of women only. No men
are allowed in. The groom would have prepared future marriage house and the
couple would go on a honeymoon trip according to the groom's financial
standing. In Islam the wife does not have to change her family name to adopt
her husband's family name. She has full right to keep her independent
identity. *

* *

*7. The veil or Hijab in Islam: Islam believes in modesty, purity and
chastity. It takes every care that both sexes abide by these values. There
is no pre-marital sex in Islam. Dating, dancing and mixed social gathering

Bismillah [IslamCity] Indian Churches Come Under Attack from Hindu Hardliners

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Indian Churches Come Under Attack*

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7160164.stm*


*A curfew has been imposed in parts of the eastern Indian state of Orissa
after Hindu hardliners attacked up to a dozen Christian churches, police
say.*

One person was killed and more than 25 injured in the violence in the
Kandhamal area on Tuesday, police said. Christians said it was sparked by
Hindus objecting to a performance they were staging to celebrate Christmas.

But a Hindu group said it began when Christians tried to attack a local
Hindu leader on Monday, Christmas Eve. It said a group of people surrounded
the vehicle carrying Swami Laxamananda Saraswati as he was on his way to the
area. He was taken to hospital but was not seriously hurt.

*Now **'**under control**'*

However it started, the violence appeared to culminate in the attacks on
churches on Christmas Day. Christians were chased out of several churches -
in many case just mud huts with thatched roofs - before they were set
alight, officials said. One person was reported killed in the violence, but
it was unclear whether that was a Hindu or a Christian.

Hundreds of police were deployed following the violence, which had largely
died down by Wednesday, a local government official said. "The situation is
tense but under control," said BB Mishra, a state inspector-general of
police.


*Orissa, which is mainly Hindu and has a tiny Christian minority, has seen
violence between the two communities in the past. The state has a law
obliging people to ask for police permission before changing religion -
thought to be a measure aimed at Christian missionaries. Hindus have accused
Christian groups of forcing low-caste people to convert. Christians say they
often convert willingly because of their treatment as outcasts. *

*Missionary Killer**'**s Sentence Cut*

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4561281.stm*


*An Indian court has commuted a death sentence handed down to a man
convicted of murdering an Australian missionary and his two young sons.*

The man, Dara Singh, has now been sentenced to life imprisonment. The court
also released 11 out of 12 others who had received life sentences for the
killings. Graham Staines and his two sons - Philip, who was 10, and Timothy,
eight - were burned alive in 1999 in a remote village in eastern India.

*'**Individual act**'*

The killings were widely condemned in India and across the world. After a
lengthy trial, 13 people were convicted of their murder in September 2003.
But in a ruling on Thursday, the court said there was no evidence to suggest
that it was the individual act of Dara Singh which was responsible for the
death of Mr Staines and his sons. The court said that the charges against 11
out of 12 other people who were found guilty with Mr Singh have not been
proven beyond doubt, and ordered their release.

*Mr Staines had spent 30 years working with leprosy patients in Orissa. His
widow, Gladys, remained in **India** until July 2004. She returned to the
country earlier this year to receive a Padma Shri, an Indian national honour
for her work with leprosy patients. Mrs **Staines** refused to comment on
the latest ruling, but said earlier that she had forgiven the killers of her
husband and children. *
**
*"I feel sorry for them in a sense - that they should actually do something
like this," she told the BBC. John Staines - the brother of Graham - told
the Reuters news agency in **Brisbane** on Thursday that he had opposed the
death penalty for Singh. "I didn**'**t want to see Dara Singh executed. As
far as the others being acquitted, there is one true judge and that is God.
"No matter what we do in this life if we don**'**t fulfil the things that
God wants us to fulfil, or if we go against his word, then the punishment
comes at the end." *
**

Right-wing Hindus who complained that Hindus were being pressured to convert
to Christianity were blamed at the time of the attack. However, an official
inquiry into the attack said there was no evidence organised Hindu groups
were behind it.

*Missionary Widow**'**s Emotional Return*

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4555355.stm*

* *
*Gladys Staines, the Australian missionary recently awarded **India**'**s
second-highest civilian honour, has been speaking about her return to the
country in which her husband and children were killed in 1999 by religious
extremists.*

Mrs Staines was given the Padma Shri in recognition of her work with leprosy
patients in Orissa, where she stayed to continue helping after her husband
Graham and their two sons - Philip, 10, and Timothy, eight - were burned
alive as they slept by an extremist Hindu mob.

Gladys stayed in India to oversee completion of the 40-bed Graham Staines
Memorial Hospital, but left in July 2004 saying she was tired and needed a
rest. However, she returned for a month to collect award.

*Calling from God*


*"I knew again that I have a huge family in **India**," she told BBC World
Service**

Bismillah [IslamCity] Women's LIBERATION & Hijab

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*A Letter to the Culture That Raised Me***

*by Yasmin Mogahed*

*"With my veil I put my faith on display-rather than my beauty. My value as
a human is defined by my relationship with God, not by my looks. So I cover
the irrelevant. And when you look at me, you don**'**t see a body. You view
me only for what I am: a servant of my Creator."*

*Growing up, you read me the Ugly Duckling. And for years I believed that
was me. I am a woman-that ugly duckling among men. For so long you taught me
I was nothing more than a bad copy of the standard. I couldn**'**t run as
fast or lift as much. I didn**'**t make the same money and I cried too
often. I grew up in a man**'**s world where I didn**'**t belong.*
**
*And when I couldn**'**t be him, I wanted only to please him. I put on your
make-up and wore your short skirts. I gave my life, my body, my dignity, for
the cause of being pretty. I knew that no matter what I did, I was worthy
only to the degree that I could please and be beautiful for my master. And
so I spent my life on the cover of Cosmo and gave my body for you to sell.*
**
*I was a slave, but you taught me I was free. I was your object, but you
swore it was success. You taught me that my purpose in life was to be on
display, to attract, and be beautiful for men. You had me believe that my
body was created to market your cars. And you raised me to think I was an
ugly duckling.*
**
*But you lied. Islam tells me, I**'**m a swan. I**'**m different-it**'**s
meant to be that way. And my body, my soul, was created for something more.
God says in the Quran: "O mankind, We created you from a single (pair) of a
male and a female and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know
one another (not that you may despise each other). Verily, the most honored
of you in the sight of God is the one who is most righteous" (Quran 49:13).*
**
*So I am honored. But it is not by my relationship to men. My value as a
woman is not measured by the size of my waist or the number of men who like
me. My worth as a human being is measured on a higher scale: a scale of
righteousness and piety. And my purpose in life-despite what the fashion
magazines say-is something more sublime than just looking good for men.*
**
*And so God tells me to cover myself, to hide my beauty and to tell the
world that I**'**m not here to please men with my body; I**'**m here to
please God. God elevates the dignity of a woman**'**s body by commanding
that it be respected and covered, shown only to the deserving-only to the
man I marry.*
**
*So to those who wish to **'**liberate**'** me, I have only one thing to
say: Thanks, but no thanks. I**'**m not here to be on display. And my body
is not for public consumption. I will not be reduced to an object, or a pair
of legs to sell shoes. I**'**m a soul, a mind, a servant of God. My worth is
defined by the beauty of my soul, my heart, my moral character. So, I won**'
**t worship your beauty standards, and I don**'**t submit to your fashion
sense. My submission is to something higher.*
**
*With my veil I put my faith on display-rather than my beauty. My value as a
human is defined by my relationship with God, not by my looks. So I cover
the irrelevant. And when you look at me, you don**'**t see a body. You view
me only for what I am: a servant of my Creator. So you see, as a Muslim
woman, I**'**ve been liberated from a silent kind of bondage. I don**'**t
answer to the slaves of God on earth. I answer to their King. *
**

*Jamiatul Ulama (KZN) ***

*Council of Muslim Theologians***

*Tel : +27 (0) 31 3067786 - Fax : +27(0) 31 3064786***
*Email : [EMAIL PROTECTED]
** - Website : **www.jamiat.org.za*
**

Women in Islamic Society — 12: Insisting on Propriety, Decency


*Dr. Abd Al-Haleem Abu Shuqqah*

*http://www.arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=93138&d=5&m=3&y=2007*

*It is often thought that Muslim society segregates men and women, not
allowing them to mix even in a small measure. This is not true. Muslim
society is a mixed one, but it has values of decency and propriety that need
to be observed. It also provides simple measures that allow these values to
be easily and smoothly maintained. It is important, for example, to allow
men and women to move separately in congested areas, but there is nothing to
prevent them from being together in ample space. Thus, they attend together
in the mosque, but their exit should be organized to avoid congestion.*

Umm Salamah, one of the wives of the Prophet (peace be upon him),
reports: *"When
God's Messenger finished his prayers with Salam, the women would leave
straightaway but he stayed a little while longer before he left."* (Related
by Al-Bukhari.) Ibn Shihab, an early scholar of high standing, comments: *"I
think that he stayed on to allow women to leave before men who also wished
to leave early caught up with them."* This is, then, a matter of
organization when exiting the mosque. It is well known that exits at publi

Bismillah [IslamCity] Narendra Modi Begins New Term in Gujarat

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Modi Begins New Term in **Gujarat***

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7159756.stm*


*Narendra Modi has been sworn in as the chief minister of the western Indian
state of **Gujarat** for a third consecutive term. Mr Modi was sworn in at a
ceremony in the state capital, Ahmedabad. *
**
*His Hindu nationalist BJP won 117 of 182 seats in the state assembly - its
fourth consecutive victory. Its main rival, the Congress party, won 59. Mr
Modi has been accused of failing to protect Muslims in the riots in **
Gujarat** during which 1,000 people died. *
**

*Referendum*
Correspondents say the BJP's victory in Gujarat will boost the party ahead
of a general election due in 18 months. Mr Modi took his oath from the state
governor at a stadium in Ahmedabad. He joined other leaders attending to
take a "victory lap" around the stadium - in a jeep.


On Monday, state party leaders elected Mr Modi as the leader of the
legislative party, paving the way for him to continue as the chief minister.
Analysts say Mr Modi, who is credited with pursuing successful economic
policies, turned the election into a referendum over himself - defying local
party chiefs.

At a meeting of party workers on Monday, however, he refused this. "It is a
perverted thought to say I am bigger than the party," he said. "If you
[media] widen your focus, you would see thousands of BJP workers who have
lifted me up on their shoulders."

Indian newspapers have variously described Mr Modi's victory as "historic"
and "triumphant". The Times of India said: "He has led the BJP to its fourth
consecutive win in Gujarat defying anti-incumbency factors and a rebellion
within the party."

*The Congress party campaigned hard to defeat him, with major rallies by its
top leaders including Sonia Gandhi and her son, Rahul, the latest member of
the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty in Indian politics. But their defeat means that it
is back to the drawing board and a major setback ahead of the more important
national poll, the BBC**'**s Sanjoy Majumder in **Delhi** says. *

*Fury Over **Gujarat** Leader Speech*

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7130150.stm*

* *
*A number of political parties in **India** have protested against alleged
remarks made by a politician during an election meeting in western **Gujarat
** state.*

*Gujarat** chief minister Narendra Modi**'**s alleged comments were over a
man killed by the police in the state in 2005. In April, three top policemen
were charged with the murder of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, a Muslim civilian. They
are alleged to have attempted to cover up the killing by claiming he
belonged to an Islamic militant group. Mr Modi**'**s Hindu nationalist
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government then admitted that the missing wife
of Mr Sheikh, Kausar Bi, was also killed and her body was burnt. *
**
Indian media has been reporting that Mr Modi during a election meeting in
the state on Tuesday appeared to have "justified" the killing of the couple.



*'**Nothing wrong**'*
A BJP spokesman VK Malhotra has denied this, telling The Hindu newspaper
that Mr Modi had only said that "if a terrorist is killed in an encounter
[with the police] there was nothing wrong". India's Election Commission has
sought a report from local authorities on what Mr Modi exactly said at the
meeting to determine whether he violated the poll code of conduct.


*Gujarat** goes to elections next week. The Congress party has condemned Mr
Modi**'**s alleged remarks. "The chief minister has virtually owed up to a
murder and he has declared that he has a licence to kill," party spokesman
Abhishek Singhvi has said. Communist Party of **India** (Marxist) leader
Sitaram Yechury has been quoted saying that Mr Modi**'**s remarks were
"shameful". **Gujarat** government lawyer KTS Tulsi has said Mr Modi "will
have to apologise for his remarks". *

*Mr Sheikh and his wife had been travelling by bus when they were taken away
by the **Gujarat** police in November 2005. At the time, police claimed Mr
Sheikh belonged to the banned Kashmiri militant group, Lashkar-e-Toiba, and
was plotting to assassinate Mr Modi. *

*Gujarat** has been heavily criticised for the treatment of its religious
minorities. According to official figures, more than 1,000 people, mostly
Muslims, were killed during the riots that broke out after nearly 60 Hindus
were killed when a train was set on fire in Godhra town, allegedly by a
Muslim mob, five years ago. The state administration was accused of not
doing enough to stop the riots. *

*Security forces in **India** have on occasion admitted to extra-judicial
killings - described by the local media as "fake encounters" - in which they
had at first said they had killed militants after coming under gunfire. *

*Gujarat** Police Face Murder Charge*

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6589605.stm*
*Police in the Indian state of **Gujarat** say they have charged three
senior police officers with murdering a Muslim civilian and trying to cover
it up.*

Th

Bismillah [IslamCity] Do We Need a LEGAL GUARDIAN to Watch Over Us

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Do We Need Someone to Watch Over Us?*


*Abeer Mishkhas*

*http://www.arabview.com/articles.asp?article=942*

*In a recent case reported in Arab News, two girls, aged 13 and 11, are said
to have been sexually assaulted by their brother. They were taken to
hospital where they remained for 11 days without being checked by the
doctors to confirm the assault. The story goes on to say that one of the
reasons the doctors did not check was because permission was required from
either a judge or the legal guardian of the two girls who, in this case, is
an alcoholic father. So what happened next? Nothing as it seems the girls
were not examined so the case could not be established and we might well
hear in a few days time that the two girls have been returned to the custody
of their legal guardian. As frustrating as this case is, it provides us with
a good look at a bigger problem which is the "legal guardian" one. *

*So many cases have been reported to the police in which the legal guardian
is the abuser, and yet in most of these cases, nothing happens to the
so-called guardian. In the case of Fatima and Mansour, when she was forcibly
divorced from her husband, she was automatically moved to another guardian's
custody. After all as a woman, she cannot be trusted without some male
hovering over her head and affording her legality. Some man has to be
responsible for every single female in **Saudi Arabia**. So, **Fatima** was
told she had to return to the care of her legal guardian who is her brother.
This brother, by the way, happens to be the source of all the trouble and he
is also the reason she is now divorced from a man she was happily married
to. But because **Fatima** is a woman of strong character, she refuses to go
back to her legal guardian, thus leaving her with only one court-approved
alternative -- to remain in a prison-like shelter away from her daughter and
husband. *

*Few months ago, the Arabic press carried the rather disturbing story of a
man who was serving a sentence in jail and decided to marry his 16-year-old
daughter to another prisoner who is awaiting a death sentence. The official
who registered the marriage asked the prison authorities to provide a
private place where the prisoner could meet his bride and it was all
arranged, easily and smoothly. *

*But is that legal? Is the guardian in this case who is a convicted
imprisoned criminal still allowed perform a guardian's duty? This shows how
this principle can be both unfair and degrading. Apparently, being in prison
is no reason for a man to relinquish the power he has over his daughter. And
the papers quoted several famous Saudi scholars who said the fact the father
is in prison does not mean he cannot continue as the girl's legal guardian.
The story continues; it is the wedding day and the father of the bride,
along with the groom, are ready to sign the marriage contract. The sheikh
who is the marriage registrar asks both men to provide the medical
certificate that is now a legal requirement for registering marriages. The
father refuses to provide the paper, saying that such a thing is counter to
his traditions. The groom attempts to persuade him to provide the paper but
he fails and the marriage is therefore canceled. I will leave it to you
readers to draw your own conclusion about responsible guardians. *

*What I really want to know is why every woman in **Saudi Arabia** need to
have a legal guardian? I understand the necessity to have some sort of a
guardian for underaged girls and boys, although this right must be subject
to some kind of control and certainly should not be absolute. The way things
are in the Kingdom, the legal guardian owns his ward; his ward can do
nothing without his approval or permission. If we leave childhood and move
on to adulthood, the system remains the same. The guardian is able to
exercise the same absolute rights and powers and no matter how old or
educated the woman is, she has to have a man who is responsible for her.
After all, according to Saudi thought, a woman with no guardian is a problem
just waiting to happen. *

To say that all guardians abuse their rights is unfair and wrong. There are
many who do their best to take care of their female relatives and who treat
them properly and correctly. That does not mean, however, that the system is
working as it should. The system needs to be changed and the guardian's
absolute power should be curbed. It is time to allow women to be normal
human beings who make their own choices, make their decisions and are
responsible for themselves.

*Violence Against Women Is Still a Problem*


*Abeer Mishkhas*

*http://www.arabview.com/articles.asp?article=938*

Last Sunday, along with the rest of the world, Saudi Arabia celebrated a day
dedicated to Eliminating Violence Against Women. Newspapers carried articles
and editorials on the importance of the day and TV naturally gave the day a
lot of coverage. Aside from celebrations, speeches and good intentions, we
need t

Bismillah [IslamCity] A Husbandْs Authority in Islam

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*A Husband's Authority in Islam*


*Adil Salahi, Arab News*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=100481&d=27&m=8&y=2007*

*Question*

*My husband insists that I should obey him whatever he tells me, and he
imposes on me a very strict code, requiring me to wear hijab in front of
other women who are even related to me. He speaks ill of my mother, which I
find very hard. If I am ill and need to see a doctor, he says that only when
he feels that I should see a doctor, he will take me to see one. He says
that my parents have nothing to do with me any more, because, now that I am
married, everything is deferred to him. No one else has any business with
me. If he wants to beat me up, he could do so because he is the man. If he
comes home and finds me reading the Qur'an, he interrupts me and says that
nothing of my prayers or reading is acceptable unless he is happy with me,
and he never says that he is happy with me. Please comment.*

*Answer*

*Some people give themselves much more than their due, hoping that in this
way they can gain an unfair advantage over those with whom they deal. When
this takes place between man and wife, it leads to a very unhappy home. It
is bad for the man, wife and children. If the lady reader's complaint is
true in all its details — and she has given me more details than I have
reproduced — then she has a very hard time with him. Unfortunately, some men
are like that. They take one or two Hadiths out of context to give
themselves an authority that does not belong to them. They not only
misinterpret these Hadiths, but their actions are in stark contrast with
Qur'anic teachings.*

*Let us take one or two examples: God says in the Qur'an: "Consort with them
in a goodly manner." (**4: 19**) This statement by God should be the
foundation of marital relations. The phrase "goodly manner" is inadequate to
express all the meaning of the Arabic term used by God. It indicates all
that is good in personal treatment. How can a man who listens to this order
by God say to his wife that he could beat her up at will? Would he have
considered this a "goodly manner" if, as a child, he had a cruel father who
beat him up without justification? The Prophet says: "Take good care of
women." This man says that he decides when his wife needs to see a doctor.
He prefers to save the doctor's fee, leaving his wife enduring pain and ill
health, simply because he is the man. Is he acting on the Prophet's order
when he acts in this way? Is he taking good care of her?*

Moreover, God describes marriage as a solemn pledge given by men to women.
This is clearly stated in Verse 21 of Surah 4. He uses the same words in
describing the pledge He takes from His senior messengers: Noah, Abraham,
Moses, Jesus and Muhammad (peace be upon them all). The pledge in the case
of marriage requires men to take good care of women and to look after them
well, ensuring their wellbeing. The husband of this lady reader fails
miserably in honoring his pledge, if what she describes is true. The way he
treats her seems to disregard her feelings and to negate her personality
altogether.

*Not only so, but this man wants to make God's pleasure with his wife
subject to his own satisfaction. What an enormity he is saying? He decides
for God whether her prayer or worship is acceptable! That can only be said
by a fool or a conceited person who shows no proper respect of God.*

My advice to this lady reader is to explain her situation to her parents.
Let her father try to do something about it, perhaps with the help of
someone respectable in her husband's family. They should explain to this man
that he is failing badly in his responsibility. They should also make it
clear to him that unless he begins to mend his ways, treating his wife with
all the respect and fairness Islam requires, then he risks the collapse of
his marriage.

*If this does not work, then she has to decide what course she should take.
>From the Islamic point of view, she may apply to a court of law to dissolve
her marriage on grounds of abuse and ill treatment. If she proves her case,
judgment will be granted in her favor and she gets a divorce with all her
rights maintained.*

*Women in Islamic Society - Participation in Social Life*


*Dr. Abd Al-Haleem Abu Shuqqah*

*http://arabnews.com/?page=5§ion=0&article=96755&d=28&m=5&y=2007*

When we look at life in Islamic society during the lifetime of the Prophet
(peace be upon him), trying to determine the attitude adopted by men and
women in public life, we find numerous reports giving us a clear picture of
social life at the time. Over the next few months, we will be giving some of
these, but we will limit ourselves to Qur'anic texts and authentic Hadiths
related only by Al-Bukhari and Muslim, since their two anthologies are
universally agreed to be the most authentic. We will comment on these only
when necessary. Before we do so, however, we need to make the following
observations, defining our approach:

*1. There is hard

Bismillah [IslamCity] The Mother of All Scandals - Prince Bandar of Saudi Arabia.

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*The Mother of All Scandals*

*by Eric Margolis <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>*

*http://www.lewrockwell.com/margolis/margolis79.html*

Anyone who wants to understand what really goes on in the Mideast should
have a look at the scandal that erupted earlier this month over the outsized
character of Prince Bandar of Saudi Arabia.

*Bandar has long been a renowned mover, shaker, and charmer. As Saudi
ambassador to the **US**, the influential Bandar schmoozed official **
Washington** for two decades. He became an intimate of the Bush family. He
invested a least $60 million in Saudi funds in the Carlyle Corp., in which
the Bush family has important interests. Equally significant, Prince Bandar
was a particular favorite at the CIA, where he was long considered one of
its prime **Mideast** "assets." *

*Bandar flew in his own personal Airbus A-340 painted in the colors of his
favorite US football team, and threw lavish parties in his $135 million
Aspen house and in Washington. He was Mr. SaudiAmerica. Congress, the media,
and the rest of official **Washington** hailed Bandar as the kind of "good
Arab" with whom the **US** was happy to do business. *

*After leaving **Washington**, Bandar returned home to become the highly
influential head of national security and chief foreign policy advisor
to **Saudi
Arabia**'s King Abdullah. Bandar's father, Crown Prince Sultan, is the
nation's powerful defense minister and next in line to the throne. Many
Saudi observers believed Bandar was being positioned to sit one day on the
throne of **Saudi Arabia**.*

On top of all this, Bandar is also a marketing genius.

*The **UK** Guardian newspaper and BBC recently revealed that Bandar
personally received over US $2 billion in "marketing fees" from the British
defense firm BAE as part of the huge, 1985 al-Yamamah arms deal. Al-Yamamah
means dove in Arabic. Charges of massive corruption over the Al-Yamamah deal
have swirled for years. But even for the rich Saudis, $2 billion is a lot of
money. That's twice what **Washington**'s most important Arab ally, **Egypt*
*, was given.*

*For the Saudi royals, **Britain**'s outgoing PM Tony Blair, and Washington,
the "dove" and Bandar's $2 billion worth of payola have become one big
albatross. *

*During the 1980's, **Saudi Arabia** sought to buy modern **US** warplanes.
But the **US** pro-Israel lobby blocked the sale, costing the loss of
billions in sales by **US** industry and 100,000 American jobs. The Reagan
Administration advised the Saudis to go buy their warplanes from **Britain**
.*

*Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was only too happy have the British
defense firm, known today as BAE, sell the Saudis 120 Tornado strike
aircraft, Hawk trainers, military equipment, and lucrative training and
maintenance programs worth some $90–100 billion and the 100,000 jobs **
America** lost. Over their operational lives of 20 or so years, warplanes
consume six times their original cost in spare parts. These supply contract
also went to BAE and other British industrial firms.*

The Saudis could barely operate the modern military equipment they bought
from the US, Britain, and France. Their military forces were a big zero.
Most of it stayed in storage, or was operated by foreign mercenaries. The
Saudi arms deals were really about buying military protection from the
western powers.

*All arms sales to the west's **Mideast** clients routinely include 10–15%
"commissions" to heads of state, generals, and their cronies. These funds
are traditionally channeled through middlemen, the flamboyant Adnan Kashoggi
being the most notorious. *

*Kickbacks, rechristened "marketing fees," were of course expected in the
Al-Yamamah deal. But Bandar's $2 billion set a record for size and venality.
Thatcher ordered Bandar's payments carefully hidden from public gaze. They
remained so until recent years when British and American government
investigators began questioning secret, multi-million dollar payments to
Prince Bandar routed from the **UK** to the shady Riggs Bank in **Washington
**. Before it was shut down after a series of scandals, Riggs had become one
of the favorite handlers of "black" money for pro-US autocratic regimes. *

When Britain's Serious Fraud Office began probing BAE's secret payoffs to
Bandar, Tony Blair sanctimoniously ordered the investigation shut down for
"national security" reasons. The Saudis threatened to cancel their arms
deals with Britain if payoff charges were made public by HM's government.
Blair was trying to sell the Saudis BAE's new, high-tech Eurofighter. He
blocked similar investigations by OECD, the international anti-bribery
watchdog agency which was also closing in on the Saudi money trail.

Bandar denies any wrongdoing, claiming the "marketing" funds all went into a
legitimate Defense Ministry account and were properly accounted for and
audited.

*Few believe him. The only "marketing" effort in the arms deal was payola to
high Saudi officials. If the funds were legit, why all the secre

Bismillah [IslamCity] A Dialogue Between a Flower & a Pearl

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*A Dialogue Between a Flower and a **Pearl**...** ***

*One day, a brilliantly beautiful and fragrant flower with ** **
attractive colors met a pearl that lives far in the bottom of the
sea and has none of these characteristics. *

*Both got acquainted with each other.** *

*The flower said: "Our family is large; roses and daisies are  **
members of the family. And there are many other species that are
various and countless, each has a distinctive scent, appearance
.etc." *

*Suddenly, a tinge of distress appeared on the **
flower. *

*"Nothing accounts for sorrow in your talk; so why are depressed?"  **
The pearl asked. *

*"Human beings deal with us carelessly; they slight us. They don't  **
grow us for our sake but to get pleasure from our fragrance and
beautiful appearance. They throw us on the street or in the garbage
can after we are dispossessed of the most valuable properties;
brilliance and fragrance" The flower sighed. *

*And then the flower said to the pearl: "Speak to me about your ** **
life! How do you live? How do you feel it? You are buried in the
bottom of the sea. " *

*The pearl answered: "Although I have none of your distinctive  **
colors and sweet scents, humans think I am precious. They do the
impossible to procure me. They go on long journeys, dive deep in
the seas searching for me. You might be astounded to know that the
further I lay, the more beautiful and brilliant I become. That's
what upraises my value in their thought. I live in a thick shell
isolated in the dark seas. However, I'm happy and proud to be in a
safe zone far from wanton and mischievous hands and still the
humans consider me highly valuable" *

*Do you know what the flower and the pearl symbolize? *

*The Flower is the UnHijabed Woman**
and the **Pearl** is the Hijabed Woman***

Bismillah [IslamCity] The West Losing the 'Other War' in Afghanistan

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Losing the **'**Other War**'** in **Afghanistan**?*

* *

*By Karl F. 
Inderfurth
*

*Published: **May 29, 2007***

*http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/05/29/opinion/edinderfurth.php?page=1*

Controversy rages over the war in Iraq, but what about the so-called other
war in Afghanistan, for which there is strong bipartisan support in the United
States and in the international community? Is there a danger of losing in
Afghanistan? The answer is yes.

*Almost six years after U.S.- led military forces removed the Taliban and
its Qaeda support network from power, major challenges are seriously
undermining popular support and trust in the government of Afghan President
Hamid Karzai: A resurgent Taliban and a growing sense of insecurity
throughout the country, including Kabul; rampant corruption, ineffective law
enforcement and a weak judicial system; a failure to provide social
services, lagging reconstruction and high unemployment; a booming drug trade
and too many warlords.*

Now another challenge is rising to the top of that list - the increasing
civilian death toll. Last year more than a thousand Afghans died. Three
quarters were killed in Taliban attacks, many deliberately aimed at
civilians. But some 230 innocent Afghans also died as a result of air
strikes and ground operations by U.S. military and NATO forces. This year
those numbers are on the rise.

Since March there have been at least six incidents in which Western troops,
mainly those under American command, have been accused of killing Afghan
civilians, with more than 135 deaths reported and many more wounded.
According to Red Cross, bombing by U.S. forces in western Afghanistan last
month destroyed or badly damaged some 170 houses and left almost 2,000
people in four villages homeless. Mounting civilian casualties are turning
Afghans against the nearly 45,000 U.S. and NATO troops in their country,
provoking demonstrations and a motion in the upper house of Parliament to
set a date for their withdrawal. These incidents also provide a propaganda
windfall and new recruits for the Taliban.

Karzai has told U.S. and NATO commanders that the patience of the Afghan
people is wearing thin. He said civilian deaths and aggressive, arbitrary
searches of people's houses have reached an unacceptable level, adding
"Afghans cannot put up with it any longer."

*Several actions are needed to address this problem. First, the **United
States** and NATO should publicly adopt the goal of "zero innocent civilian
casualties," as recommended a year ago by retired General Barry McCaffrey
after a trip to **Afghanistan**. To accomplish this, military tactics must
change to limit casualties even where this means, in McCaffrey**'**s words,
"Taliban units escape destruction by hiding among the people."*

*Second, more must be done to put "an Afghan face on operations," as called
for by the former NATO commander in **Afghanistan**, General David Richards
of **Britain**. This means closer coordination on military operations with
the Afghan Ministry of Defense and the Afghan National Army. Afghan soldiers
should also be included in U.S. and NATO military actions to act as a
buffer, a longstanding demand of Karzai. It is also imperative to work more
closely with the local authorities and do more to respect Afghan
sensibilities. **U.S.** and NATO policies regarding house searches and
detentions of residents should be reconsidered.*

*Third, the **United States** should conclude a Status of Forces Agreement
with **Afghanistan**. Such an agreement is intended to clarify the legal
terms under which a foreign military is allowed to operate in a country,
including locations of bases and access to facilities as well as matters
affecting the relations between a military force and civilians. Nearly six
years into the **U.S.** military campaign, a formal, binding understanding
with the Afghan government is needed, in part to underscore the political
message that the **U.S.** military is there at the invitation of the Afghan
people, not as an "occupier" (which some Afghans are beginning to feel that
it is).*

*Finally, NATO should set up a compensation fund for civilian deaths,
injuries or property damage resulting from its military operations in **
Afghanistan**. Since 2002 the **United States** has appropriated more than
$12 million to help Afghan civilians harmed by **U.S.** operations. The
funds are used for medical, rehabilitation and reconstruction aid. But NATO,
as a whole, does not have an equivalent program.*

On May 8, a U.S. Army brigade commander issued a formal apology to families
of 19 Afghan civilians who were killed by U.S. marines after they were
ambushed by a suicide bomber. "I stand before you today," he said, "deeply,
deeply ashamed and terribly sorry that Americans have killed and wounded
innocent Afghan people." But military actions in the coming weeks by
U.S.and NA

Bismillah [IslamCity] OCCUPIER of Palestine's Army 'Crimes' UNPUNISHED

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Israeli Army **'**Crimes**'** Unpunished*

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7150604.stm*


*An Israeli human rights group says the overwhelming majority of Israeli
troops suspected of criminal offences against Palestinians are never
indicted. The small number of investigations and even fewer indictments
showed **Israel**'**s army was ignoring its duty to protect Palestinian
civilians, Yesh Din says. It said soldiers felt they had immunity from
investigation and prosecution, which inevitably led to more offences. *
**
An Israeli foreign ministry spokesman said no-one was above the law. The
spokesman, Mark Regev, added that any complaints would be taken seriously by
the Israeli legal authorities.

*Yesh Din**'**s report said offences included "illegal shooting causing the
death and injury of civilians, violence and abuse, intentional damage to
property, looting, taking bribes". Between 2000 and 2007, it says, 239
investigations into the killing and wounding of non-combatant Palestinian
civilians by Israeli forces had led to just 16 convictions. *
**

*Occupying power*
"The low number of investigations opened and the minute number of
indictments served reveal the [Israeli Defence Force's] de facto derogation
of its duty to protect the Palestinian population against offences committed
by soldiers," said Yesh Din legal adviser Michael Sfard.

A recent survey commissioned by the Israeli army said one-in-four soldiers
who had served at checkpoints in the West Bank had witnessed or taken part
in abuse of Palestinians. Soldiers quoted anonymously admitted humiliating
Palestinians, delaying them without good reason and accepting bribes.

*Under international law, the Israeli army is considered an occupying power
the **West Bank** and **Gaza** Strip, with a duty to protect the civilian
population. **Israel** captured the territories - home to about four million
Palestinians - during the 1967 war. It pulled troops out of **Gaza** in 2005
but still keeps a tight grip on its borders and air space. *
**

*Israel** Considers New Settlement*

* *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7151845.stm*

* *
*Israel says it is examining plans for a new settlement in East Jerusalem,
after facing heavy criticism for expanding an existing Jewish settlement
there. Housing minister Zeev Boim said it was a preliminary look at possible
housing development in the Atarot area. He played down its significance,
saying such checks were done year round on areas with building potential. *
**
Palestinians say the Har Homa expansion announced this month threatened to
derail re-launched peace negotiations. "This is a preliminary examination of
an initial construction plan. Such feasibility checks are done all year
round on all areas with building potential in Jerusalem," Mr Boim said in a
statement.

"The ministry has to offer a solution to the housing problem in Jerusalem."
Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said such plans would destroy the
peace process and must be stopped. "We consider these steps as threatening
the beginning of the final negotiations between the two sides."

*The Haaretz newspaper said the Atarot plan - south of Qalandia checkpoint
which controls access to **East Jerusalem** from Ramallah - envisaged
construction of 10,000 flats, making it the largest housing project for
Jews. The status of the area, occupied by Israeli forces along with the **West
Bank** and **Gaza** Strip, the Golan and Sinai, during the 1967 war, is
meant to be determined in bilateral talks. *
**
*But **Israel** considers **East Jerusalem** outside the debate, as it
annexed the area soon after the war, although the move has not been
recognised internationally. The Palestinians want it as the capital of their
future state, whose formation is the goal of the nascent peace talks. *
**
Separately, the Israeli transport minister suggested that Israel might be
willing to talk to the Palestinian militant group which controls Gaza,
Hamas, through a third party. Shaul Mofaz said such mediation would be aimed
at halting Palestinian rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.

Israel says the move is in response to an offer made on Israeli TV by Hamas
leader Ismail Haniya, although Hamas has since denied that it intends
opening negotiations with the Israelis. Hamas refuses to recognise Israel,
and the Israelis have sealed off the Gaza Strip since it seized control
there in June.


*Analysis: Palestinian Aid and politics*

* *

*By Jeremy Bowen *

*Middle East editor, BBC News *

*If delegates to the Palestinian donors**'** conference in Paris felt like a
little light shopping after their work was done it was a mere step from
their meeting hall to the Champs Elysees.*

*If they had worked up an appetite, there are restaurants where a modest
piece of grilled fish can cost more than 60 Euros (US $86). The trees that
run along either side of the Champs Elysees were dripping with Christmas
lights, and down in the Place de la Concorde an elegantly lit Ferris w

Bismillah [IslamCity] Tips for a Better Husband and Wife Relationship

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Tips for a Better Husband and Wife Relationship*



Although many Muslims may right now be in failing marriages and on a fast
track to divorce and its terrible consequences, there are many ways to put
their marriage back on the right track if the husband and wife are sincere
in their desire to reconcile. The following principles can be used by
Muslims whose marriages are already in trouble or by Muslims who would like
to avoid trouble in their marriage.



*Examples of Negative relationship of Husband & Wife*

Many Muslim husbands and wives treat each other like adversaries rather than
partners. The husband feels that he is the boss, and whatever he says goes.
The wife feels that she must squeeze everything she can out of her husband.
Some wives never show their husband that they are satisfied with anything he
does or buys for them in order to trick him into doing and buying more. They
make him feel like a failure if he does not give them the lifestyle that
their friends and families enjoy. Some husbands speak very harshly to their
wives, humiliate them, and even physically abuse them. Their wives have no
voice or opinion in the family.



*Marriage In the eyes of Allah*

It is very sad that this relationship which Allah has established for the
good has been made a source of contention, deception, trickery, tyranny,
humiliation, and abuse. This is not the way marriage is supposed to be.

Allah described marriage very differently in the Holy Quran: '. . . He
created for you mates from among yourselves, that ye may dwell in
tranquility with them, and He has put love and mercy between your (hearts) .
. . " (Holy Quran 30:21)



*Do not be a Tyrant*

Regardless of whether or not Islam has made the husband the head of the
household, Muslims are not supposed to be dictators and tyrants. We are
taught to treat our wives well. The Prophet Muhammad was reported to have
said: 'The most perfect Muslim in the matter of faith is one who has
excellent behavior; and the best among you are those who behave best towards
their wives" (From Mishkat al-Masabih, No. 0278(R) Transmitted by Tirmidhi)



*Be Partners in the Decision Making Process*.



Follow the principle of 'Shura," and make decisions as a family. There will
be much more harmony in the family when decisions are not imposed and
everyone feels that they had some part in making them.



*Never Be Emotionally*

Never be emotionally, mentally, or physically abusive to your spouse. The
Prophet  never mistreated his wives. He is reported to have said: 'How could
they beat their women in daytime as slaves and then sleep with them in the
night?"



*Be Careful of Your Words*

Be very careful what you say when you are upset. Sometimes you will say
things that you would never say when you were not angry. If you are angry,
wait until you calm down before continuing the conversation.



*Show Affection*

Show affection for your mate. Be kind, gentle, and loving.



*Be Your Spouse**'**s Friend*

Show interest in your mate's life. Too often, we live in the same house but
know nothing about each other's lives. It would be great if the husband and
wife could work together for the same cause or on the same project. They
could perhaps establish a husband / wife prison ministry, take care of
orphans in their home, or lead an Islamic weekend class.



*Show Appreciation*

Show appreciation for what your spouse does for the family. Never make your
husband feel that he is not doing good enough for the family or that you are
not satisfied with his work or his efforts, unless, of course, he is truly
lazy and not even trying to provide for the family. The Prophet  was
reported to have said: 'On the Day of Judgment, God will not look upon the
woman who has been ungrateful to her husband." Show your wife that you
appreciate her. If she takes care of the house and the children, don't take
it for granted. It is hard work, and no one likes to feel unappreciated.



*Work Together in the House*

The Prophet is known to have helped his wives in the house. And if the
Prophet was not above doing housework, modern Muslim husbands shouldn't feel
that they are.



*Communication is Important*

Communication, Communication, Communication! This is the big word in
counseling. And it should be. Husbands and wives need to talk to each other.
It is better to deal with problems early and honestly than to let them pile
up until an explosion occurs.



*Forget Past Problems*

Don't bring up past problems once they have been solved.



*Live Simply*

Don't be jealous of those who seem to be living a more luxurious life than
your family. The 'rizq" is from Allah. In order to develop the quality of
contentment, look at those people who have less than you, not those who have
more. Thank Allah for the many blessings in your life.



*Give Your Spouse Time Alone*

If your mate doesn't want to be with you all the time, it doesn't mean he or
she doesn't love you. People need to be alone for various reasons. Somet

Bismillah [IslamCity] More Muslim Girls Wear Scarf in Games

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*More Muslim Girls Wear Scarf in Games*



*By JEFF KAROUB, Associated Press Writer Sat Dec 15, **1:57 PM ET** *

*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071215/ap_on_re_us/hijab_on_the_hardcourt*

DEARBORN, Mich. - *Dewnya Bakri loves her faith — and the feeling of sinking
a three-pointer. For much of her life, the 20-year-old Muslim has found a
way to balance practicing Islam and playing basketball, including wearing a
head scarf and long pants on the hardcourt, even if it**'**s meant taunts as
she blazed trails on her middle school, high school and college teams.*

Now a college senior at University of Michigan-Dearborn preparing for law
school, she spends free time coaching Muslim girls and sharing what she
experienced in Dearborn, home of at least 40 mosques, to help give them the
confidence to follow in her footsteps.

As more covered Muslim girls take up competitive sports, Bakri and others
say it's time to get beyond merely allowing the hijab — the traditional
Muslim head scarf worn for modesty — and help those wearing them feel
welcome.

*"It**'**s not like accommodating for one person anymore, it**'**s a group,"
Bakri says.*

Experts and advocates say the number of Muslim girls wearing the hijab on
the court, track or field is rising because girls are growing more
comfortable pursuing mainstream activities while maintaining religious
traditions.

"They don't see the barriers," said Edina Lekovic, spokeswoman for the Los
Angeles-based Muslim Public Affairs Council. "They take it for granted they
can play in competitive sports ... and work out the clothing issues at the
same time."

*Even so, Bakri and current players at her former school, Fordson High,
players say they**'**ve heard trash-talk that goes beyond the usual on-court
chatter — calling them terrorists, telling them to go back to their own
country. Bakri said some coaches and referees have questioned whether she
could play in a scarf and sweat pants, relenting only when her coach
produced a letter from the Michigan High School Athletic
Associationallowing the uniform modification.
*

More recently, she said referees wouldn't let her play in one out-of-state
college tournament. The coach told her later that it was because of her
uniform modification. That was reminiscent of a case in February when an
11-year-old Muslim girl was pulled off the field in a soccer tournament in
Quebec because she refused to remove her head scarf. The Quebec Soccer
Federation backed the decision, saying rules forbid wearing anything that
could cause harm during a game.

In the U.S., the National Federation of State High School
Associations'rules say state associations may allow a player to
participate while wearing
a head covering for religious reasons as long as it isn't dangerous to
another player and unlikely to come off during play. The rule-making
federation also allows pants, shorts or skirts.

School districts in Michigan must ask state high school athletic officials
for permission to modify uniform requirements. They always grant the
district's requests, said Mark Shooshanian, Fordson High School's athletic
director, but he'd like to see it become enshrined in the rules.

"The hardest part for me is within our league there are 27 teams and still
some of the coaches question the uniform," said Shooshanian, who has been
sending the requests for 15 years. "Why do I have to keep doing it?" State
athletic association spokesman John Johnson said the system "almost rubber
stamps" requests, but requiring the case-by-case letter provides a safeguard
against misunderstandings.

At Bakri's middle school, Lowrey Middle School, she was the first athlete of
the year to wear the scarf and earned letters in basketball, volleyball,
track and swimming. Swimming required the most creativity. She couldn't wear
a swimsuit in front of men, so she worked out a deal with her coach and
athletic director to practice daily with the team but not compete in meets.
The coach timed her during practice and awarded her the letter based on
performance.

Now, Lowrey students hug and thank Bakri when she visits. "It made me feel
so good about what I'm doing," said Bakri, who coaches summer leagues and
teaches physical education part-time at a private school. "I never really
realized how hard it was, especially at the middle school level. I figured I
'm going to play basketball. ... I never thought people might have a problem
with it."

Her 17-year-old sister, Hyatt Bakri, is a starting shooting guard at Fordson
High, and wears pants and long sleeves on the court.

"Some schools are used to seeing girls in the hijab, but other schools find
it different, odd," Hyatt Bakri said during a break from a recent practice.
"After Sept. 11, they feel like we're a threat to them even though we didn't
have anything to do with it. So they look at us differently."

Teammate Fatima Kobeissi, a senior reserve guard, said she's worn the hijab
since she was nine. "Nothing in our religion says we can't go out and do
o

Bismillah [IslamCity] Abu Dhabi Lifeline for Citigroup Bank

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Abu Dhabi** Lifeline for Citigroup*



*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7114388.stm*


*US** bank Citigroup has agreed to sell shares worth $7.5bn (£3.6bn) to an
Abu Dhabi-owned investment company. The **Abu Dhabi** Investment Authority
will become the largest shareholder in Citigroup with a stake of up to 4.9%.
Citigroup has been hit hard by US mortgage-market problems and needs a fresh
injection of capital to expand its business, the bank explained. *
**

The problems led to the resignation of Citigroup's chief executive this
month, and a slump in the bank's share price. Citigroup's cash reserve has
suffered after it had to write down the value of its loans made in the
USsub-prime market by $7bn, and the potential for between $8bn and
$11bn of
further losses.

"This investment, from one of the world's leading and most sophisticated
equity investors, provides further capital to allow Citigroup to pursue
attractive opportunities to grow its business," said Win Bischoff, Citigroup
's acting chief executive officer.

*The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) has agreed not to own more than a
4.9% stake, and will have no special rights of ownership and no role in the
management or governance of the bank, Citigroup said. *

*Worst affected *

Citigroup is one of the financial companies that have been worst affected by
a crisis in global credit markets, which stemmed from a meltdown in
the USsub-prime mortgage market. The sub-prime sector lends money to
people on low
incomes or with poor credit ratings, and has suffered record defaults as a
result of successive interest rate rises.

*Banks had been heavily issuing these loans over the past few years when
interest rates in many of the world**'**s main economies were at historic
lows. But the current higher borrowing costs and increased loan defaults
have brought this lending to a sudden halt, and banks have been left with
billions of dollars of debt that has lost most of its value. *

Citigroup's boss Charles Prince was forced to quit his post shortly after
the bank revealed a 57% drop in profits during its third quarter because of
massive write-downs. The company's share price dropped below $30 in
New Yorkon Monday, almost half the value of their 12-month peak of $57
set on 28
December last year.

*Gulf saviour*

*ADIA will buy securities in Citigroup, which will offer an annual yield of
11%. The bonds will eventually be converted into shares between March 2010
to September 2011, at a price of between $31.83 and $37.24 each. This
suggests **Abu Dhabi** is enthusiastic about the bank**'**s long-term future
prospects, expecting the share price to climb back to its previous heights,
analysts said. *

ADIA's managing director Sheikh Ahmed Bin Zayed Al Nahayan said: "This
investment reflects our confidence in Citigroup's potential to build
shareholder value."

*Abu Dhabi**'**s move is the latest example of the financial muscle of the
oil-rich **Gulf states**, which have benefited enormously from booming
energy prices and are now looking for new homes for their wealth. Earlier
this week, **Dubai**'**s investment arm took a "substantial stake" in
Japanese electrical giant Sony, which is nearing the end of a three-year
restructuring process. *

*Afghans Primed for Mortgage Revolution*

* *

*By Soutik Biswas **
BBC News, **Kabul** *

*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6226962.stm*

*Some 20km north-east of **Kabul**, a unique experiment in housing and city
planning in **Afghanistan**'**s history is under way. The government is
building 20,000 homes - a mixture of apartments, row houses and commercial
property - which it plans to mortgage to people. The 2,500-acre township
will be called New **Kabul**. *

For a country which lost 33% of its homes during a quarter of a century of
war, housing millions of local and returnee Afghans from the refugee camps
of Pakistan and Iran is one of the biggest challenges facing the government
in Kabul.

New Kabul is an ambitious experiment in mortgaging homes - the first time
ever in Afghanistan - in a country where an annual $380 per capita income
makes it virtually impossible for most people to afford homes. Banks will
buy these homes from the government and then mortgage them to buyers who,
officials reckon, will have to pay $100 to $150 every month for 16 years
before becoming owners.

The government is pumping in some $200m for these homes, and hopes the
country's 14-odd banks will be enthusiastic in picking them up, and offering
them to buyers. "Mortgage is the only way we can make homes affordable to
our middle class. New Kabul will prove whether it works," says Urban
Development Minister Mohammad Yousaf Pashthun, a trained city planner.

*If successful, New **Kabul** will be still a small step towards solving **
Afghanistan**'**s chronic housing problem which, in turn, has sent rents
spiralling and forced people to encroach and build illegal homes.
**Kabul**is the worst affected - the capital
**'**s population has sky

Bismillah [IslamCity] War on HIJAB in Tunisia - By Yvonne Ridley

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*By - Yvonne Ridley*
*Date: 2007-05-29*

*http://www.yvonneridley.org/article.php?id=139*



*I have a bee in my bonnet – or hijab to be more precise. On an almost daily
basis there are horrific stories pouring out of **Tunisia** about how the
state police are ripping off the hijabs of women living there. Some of these
women, who are merely fulfilling their religious obligation to wear a hijab,
have been assaulted, sexually abused and even locked up in prison by the
authorities. Unbelievable when you consider western tourists are topless
sunbathing on the coastal resorts, soaking up the Tunisian sun.*


*So it is okay to get your kit off if you are a western tourist who pays
handsomely for sun, sand, sex and sangria …but try wearing a hijab and see
what happens in this so-called liberal, Muslim country.*


At the moment I am in Tehran where Iranian police are occasionally stopping
women in the streets to remind them of their religious obligations by
wearing a full hijab. There's been an outcry in the We stern media about how
the Iranian authorities are fining women who fail to wear their hijabs
correctly in public.


*I call these women the half-jabis – you know the ones, they balance their
designer scarfs precariously on the back of their heads and spend the rest
of the day adjusting and picking their scarfs from the nape of their necks.
It might have endeared Princess Diana to half the Muslim world when she **'*
*covered**'** in Muslim countries, but most women who try and emulate the Di
style just look plain stupid.*


But what a pity those same journalists don't travel to Tunisia and write
about a real story like the human rights abuses against women in down town
Tunis instead of focusing on Tehran. Why do journalists choose to ignore the
Amnesty International report which outlines in clinical detail how the
Tunisian authorities have increased their "harassment of women who wear the
hijab"?



*Is it because the Tunisian government is a craven devotee of the Bush
Administration whereas **Iran** was identified as the now infamous Axis of
Evil? Surely the media is not that fickle? (Rhetorical question merely for
the benefit of the mentally challenged).*


*The actions of the Tunisian regime make Iranian President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad and his government look like a group of Tupperware party
planners. For instance, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and the Interior
and the Secretary-General of Tunisia**'**s ruling political party, the
Constitutional Democratic Rally, have stated they are so concerned about
rise in the use of the hijab by women and girls and beards and the qamis
(knee-level shirts) by men, that they have called for a strict
implementation of decree 108 of 1985 of the Ministry of Education banning
the hijab at educational institutions and when working in government.

*

*Police have ordered women to remove the head scarfs before being allowed
into schools, universities or work places and others have been made to
remove them in the street.According to Amnesty**'**s report, some women were
arrested and taken to police stations where they were forced to sign written
commitment to stop wearing the hijab.*

Amnesty International states quite clearly it believes that individuals have
the right to choose whether or not to wear a headscarf or other religious
covering, consistent with their right to freedom of expression.


They have called on the Tunisian government to "respect the country's
obligations under both national law and international human rights law and
standards, and to end the severe restrictions which continue to be used to
prevent exercise of fundamental rights to freedom of expression, association
and peaceful assembly".
They have even kindly asked President Ben Ali's government to "end the
harassment and attempted intimidation of human rights defenders".
I would like to be more forthright with Mr Ben Ali and remind him of his
Islamic obligations as a Muslim.



*I doubt if Zine Alabidin Ben Ali would take much notice. The man is clearly
an arrogant fool and somewhere in **Tunisia** there is a village which is
missing its idiot (Hamman-Sousse in the **Sahel**, actually). This is the
man who once said the hijab was something foreign and not part of Tunisian
culture. Hmm, he obviously has not seen pictures taken before he came to
power, clearly show Tunisian women going about their business fully covered.
He has a history of despising the French colonialists who occupied his
country, but at least under the French, the Tunisian people had more freedom
than they do now.*



And since I have no family, friends or connections in Tunisia I write this
without fear or favour. Also, there is no rank in Islam so I care nothing
for his title nor do I have any respect for him as a man. I would certainly
never doff my cap to this particular President of Tunisia and would happily
spit in his face if he told me to remove my hijab.


Perhaps those Muslim women in Tehran might like to consider the plig

Bismillah [IslamCity] Women Are the BOSS at Home

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Study: Women Are in Charge at Home*



*Jeanna Bryner*

*LiveScience Staff Writer*

*LiveScience.com *

*
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20070711/sc_livescience/studywomenareinchargeathome
*



*Men might throw their weight around at the office, but at home, women are
the bosses. A study, which was just released, finds that wives have more
power than their husbands in making decisions and dominating discussions. *



*"The study at least suggests that the marriage is a place where women can
exert some power," said lead author David Vogel, a psychologist at **Iowa**
**State** **University** (ISU). "Whether or not it**'**s because of changing
societal roles, we don**'**t know." *



The results counter past research.  "Most of the research literature in
psychology has suggested that women have less power," Vogel told
LiveScience. "They have largely based that on the fact that traditionally
men earn more money and so therefore would have the ability to make big
decisions in the relationship." That wasn't the case in this study.



Spouse survey says



*Vogel, Megan Murphy, also of ISU, and their colleagues surveyed 72 married
couples in which the spouses were an average of 33 years old and had been
married for about seven years. Most of the participants (66 percent) were
Caucasian, followed by Asian (22 percent), Hispanic (5 percent) and African
American (4 percent). The final 3 percent represented "other" nationalities.
*

* *

*Each spouse answered questions about relationship satisfaction and overall
decision-making ability. Then, each spouse noted a relationship problem that
could not be resolved without the spouse's cooperation. While money and
housework were popular picks, sex didn't come up much as a marital issue. *



Topics chosen by husbands/wives included:



   - *Money—18 percent (husbands) / 13 percent (wives) *
   - *Housework—15 percent / 15 percent *
   - *Friends and family—10 percent / 19 percent *
   - *Feelings and emotions—10 percent / 13 percent *
   - *Time together—13 percent / 10 percent *
   - *Making decisions—18 percent / 4 percent *
   - *Sex—4 percent / 1percent *
   - *Intimacy—1 percent / 1 percent *
   - *Communication—3 percent / 4 percent *
   - *Children—husbands never chose this topic; 3 percent of wives *
   - *Other relationship changes—4 percent / 17 percent *



The scientists videotaped the couples while they discussed each of the
issues for 10 minutes.





*Women power *

Trained volunteers coded the videotapes using a scale that rated couples'
interactions based on words and behaviors associated with blame (blames,
accuses and criticizes the partner); demand (nags, pressures for change,
requests); withdrawal and avoidance (avoids discussion the problem by
hesitating, changing topics, diverting attention or looking away); and
discussion.



*Wives were more demanding—asking for changes in the relationship or in
their partner—and were more likely to get their way than the husbands. This
held regardless of who had chosen the issue. *



The women were not just talking more than their husbands.



*"It wasn**'**t just that the women were bringing up issues that weren**'**t
being responded to, but that the men were actually going along with what
they said," Vogel explained. "[Women] were communicating more powerful
messages, and men were responding to those messages by agreeing or giving
in." *



*One reason for in-charge wives could be that they carry the weight of
making sure the family farm is running smoothly. *

* *

*"Women are responsible for overseeing the relationship, making sure the
relationship runs, that everything gets done, and that everybody**'**s
happy," Murphy said. *

* *

*Wife power could signal a harmonious couple. "There**'**s been research
that suggests that**'**s a marker of a healthy marriage—that men accept
influence from their wives," Murphy said. *



The study, published in the April issue of the Journal of Counseling
Psychology, was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health along with
ISU.



*Motherhood Versus Career -- No Tradeoff for Me*

* *

*Posted by Nikki
Gemmellon
**Wed, Apr 05, 2006**, **3:12 pm PDT** *

*
http://blogs.health.yahoo.com/intlwomen/intlwomen/936/motherhood-versus-careerno-tradeoff-for-me;_ylt=Av9TC5OXocWfN1HeaQ4YNOJVgc0F
*



One of the longstanding and great
debatesamong
women is over whether or not it is possible to be both a mother and a
career woman. For me, my decision to be a mother actually helped me to
follow my heart and finally pursue my dream of being a novelist.

*When I had children I had to rethink my career. I was a full-time radio
journalist for the BBC world service in its **London** newsroom which is a
24-hour global news service.  Working there was very demanding as it
operates 24-7. One week in three were overnight shifts and they were over
eleven

Bismillah [IslamCity] Muslim Law DICTATES New Investment Practices

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Muslim Law Dictates New Investment Practices*

* *

*Apr 19, 2007 04:30 AM *

*James Daw** * **

*http://www.thestar.com/article/204759*
Members of Canada's growing Muslim community are working with secular
financial institutions to develop new insurance products. They intend to
rally community support and the endorsement of local religious leaders to
ensure success after a major bank stumbled with an Islamic or
Shariah-compliant investment product in 2004.

Strict adherents of Islam oppose interest charges, centuries after most Jews
and Christians began to interpret similar strictures in their scriptures to
refer only to excessive interest charges. Muslims are also taught to avoid
investments in companies that issue loans and debt securities, or make
armaments, tobacco products, alcohol, gambling or pornography.

*For insurance, modern-day Islamic scholars have come to endorse a mutual or
co-operative structure for sharing risk and dividing profits called takaful,
the Arabic word for joint guarantee. Takaful developed as a commercial
product in Muslim countries in the 1980s, and is now making inroads in **
Europe** and the **Americas**. *
**
Not all Muslims are enthusiastic purchasers of *takaful* or the expanding
array of other Sharia-complaint financial products. Even where they
represent the majority of the population, only a minority buys them. These
specially engineered products, such as home purchase plans that substitute
rent-to-own payments for interest charges, have tended to be costly.

But international accounting firm KPMG said in a 2006 report that acceptance
of higher charges is fading: "No longer is there a perception that you
should be prepared to pay extra."

*Muslims make up a quarter of the world**'**s population. But even a
minority can make for a viable business proposition. It**'**s estimated
there are now about 300 Islamic financial institutions in 75 countries,
holding assets of more than $300 billion (**U.S.**) and another $400 million
in financial investments. In **Canada**, the Muslim population has surpassed
780,000 and could reach 1.2 million within a decade, according to Statistics
**Canada**.*
**
A spokesperson for the Royal Bank of Canada found there was insufficient
market interest for an investment note linked to an index of shares in
Shariah-compliant companies. A 31-year-old Toronto entrepreneur, Omar Kalair
of UM Financial Services, says the bank's mistake was to rely on the
endorsement of international Islamic scholars who were unfamiliar to
Canadian residents.

*Kalair says he has found rising demand for his company**'**s "usary-free"
home-purchase plan. With the backing of credit unions and an investor of
Jewish origin, his eight **Ontario** offices have placed close to $200
million (Canadian) to help Muslims purchase homes. Now he says he is meeting
weekly with a major bank, and with two other entities, to discuss new
products, including bank accounts, payment cards, mutual funds and
insurance. He notes it has been possible since 1999 to invest in Islamic
market indices developed by Dow Jones of **New York** to exclude company
shares that could offend Islamic ethics.*
**
Kalair was unable to interest any of the country's mutual property insurers
in discussing a *takaful* product, but he is optimistic a major bank will
take up the opportunity, and anticipates distribution of a
Shariah-compliant, *takaful* insurance product in a year. Meanwhile, the
president of a Muslim housing co-operative with an associated company
offering an automobile purchase product, says that Co-operators General
Insurance Co. of Guelph is about to announce a national pilot project in
home insurance.

Former Ontario bureaucrat Pervez Nasim, president of Ansar Co-operative
Housing Corp., says he expects Co-operators president Kathy Bardswick to
announce details in May. Bardswick, who was unavailable for comment, will be
a panelist at an Islamic banking, finance and insurance conference in Ottawa
.

Nasim said organizers hope to draw politicians and delegates from the
financial services industry, and that more will come out of the meetings
than a similar conference a decade ago. "When we came to Canada, these
things were not on the top of our agenda," said Nasim. "The first thing was
to find shelter, a place to worship, schools for our kids. Financial matters
came much later. This is a natural progression for any community."

*James Daw, CFP, appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. He can be reached
at Business, **1 Yonge St.**, **Toronto** **M5E 1E6**; at 416-945-8633;
416-865-3630 by fax; or by email at [EMAIL PROTECTED]
**
*Aviation Body Elects First Arab in Two Decades*
**

*  by **Rob Morris<[EMAIL 
PROTECTED]:%20Aviation%20body%20elects%20first%20Arab%20in%20two%20decades>on
**Wednesday, 13 June 2007***

*
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=14320:aviation-body-elects-first-arab-in-two-decades&Itemi

Bismillah [IslamCity] British Muslim Chief Warns Over Nazi Germany Parallels

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*British Muslim Chief Warns Over Nazi **Germany** Parallels*
**
*Tuesday ,13 November 2007**( Posted : **06:11**:06GMT) *
**
*The head of a major body representing British Muslims said the country must
beware of fostering a culture like Nazi Germany and warned of "suspicion and
unease" about Muslims in an interview.*
**
*Muhammad Abdul **Bari** of the Muslim Council of **Britain** (MCB) said
there was "a disproportionate amount of discussion surrounding us" and
criticised the head of MI5 for "creating a scare" by saying Al-Qaeda was
"grooming" children here. *
**
*"The air is thick with suspicion and unease. It is not good for the Muslim
community, it is not good for society," he told the Daily Telegraph
newspaper and the BBC in a joint interview. "Every society has to be really
careful so the situation doesn't lead us to a time when people's minds can
be poisoned as they were in the 1930s. *
**
*"If your community is perceived in a very negative manner, and poll after
poll says that we are alienated, then Muslims begin to feel very vulnerable.
"We are seen as creating problems, not as bringing anything and that is not
good for any society." *
**
There are about 1.6 million Muslims in Britain, which is home to some 60
million people, according to the latest census in 2001.

The MCB's assistant general secretary, Inayat Bungalawala, later told BBC
radio that there was a danger of the threat from extremists being magnified
"out of all proportion".

*"What you had in the 1930s was all sorts of popular fictions were spread
about the Jewish community that they were responsible for all ills that were
occurring to **Germany**," he said. "They were made into folk-devils and I
think there is a danger that the word Muslim in the **UK** is becoming
synonymous with bad news." *
**
Bari, a special needs teacher, also said it was wrong to describe someone as
an Islamic terrorist, adding: "We never called the IRA (Irish Republican
Army) Catholic terrorists."

He also said comments by Jonathan Evans -- head of British domestic security
agency MI5 -- that Al-Qaeda was targeting young people and Britain was
facing "the most immediate and acute peacetime threat" his agency had ever
seen, could help rather than hinder terrorists.

*"I think it is creating a scare in the community and wider society," he
said. "It probably helps some people who try to recruit the young to
terrorism. "Muslim young people are as vulnerable as any others. Under this
climate of fear they will begin to feel victimised." He also said he
believed that suicide bombers were often emotionally damaged young people. *
**
*Courtesy: AFP*
**

*To access the news directly / URL of this news :*
*
http://www.muslimguardian.com/pls/portal/mpnews.mp_gl_sum.set_newsid?p_news_id=7417
*
**

*Neocon Sufis (SMC) Meet at the Heritage Foundation!!*



*The way that "Sufis" are being co-opted by the Neo-cons is becoming ever
more apparent.*



*http://forum.mpacuk.org/showthread.php?p=383287#post383287
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.a...20070713a.html
*
*Muslim Figures Condemn Violent Tactics of Islamists*


*By Matt Purple
CNSNews.com Correspondent
**July 13, 2007***


(CNSNews.com) - A panel of Muslims leaders and filmmakers gathered at
the *Heritage
Foundation* Thursday to speak out against violent extremists whom they
believe are corrupting Islam.


*Muhammed Hisham Kabbani - chairman of the Islamic Supreme Council of
America and the Sufi Muslim Council of Britain - and Hedieh Mirahmadi - a
political advisor to the Sufi Muslim Council of Britain - condemned Islamic
violence and warned of the consequences of allowing Islam and government to
be intertwined.*


"The Muslims today are mixing religion with politics," Kabbani said. "They
are using religion for their own political advancement."


Contrary to many who advocate for separation of church and state, he
contended that politics corrupts religion and not vice versa. He said Islam
and politics were fundamentally incompatible and called on Muslim leaders to
advise politicians rather than seeking to obtain power themselves.


"The real connection between God and [individuals] has to be complete and
continuous," Kabbani said. "And politicians don't say the truth sometimes.
Instead they use religion to get their agendas enacted."


Kabbani and Mirahmadi subscribe to the Sufism tradition of Islam. Adherents
say the tradition holds that knowledge and reason are necessary to achieve
meaning and faith, although some scholars of Islam dispute the notion that
Sufism is inherently moderate, citing the rhetoric of revered Sufi thinkers.


Kabbani disputed the notion that Muslims were called upon by their prophet,
Mohammed, to engage in violent acts of jihad against non-Muslims, saying
that true jihad was a personal and internal struggle for faith.


After the "war against the aggressors in Medina" was finished, he said,
"Mohammed declared

Bismillah [IslamCity] When Was The TRINITY Invented

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*When Was The Trinity Invented?*
**

*Cliff Walker*
*http://www.positiveatheism.org/mail/eml8962.htm*
**
*The Trinity is late-fourth century, having been passed into law during the
Nicene Council in C.E. 381. But the idea predates this and even predates
Christianity, though in various forms. In other words, the Christians didn**
'**t invent it, they glommed it. And some say they butchered it, as well.*
**
*The concept of a Trinitarian godhead harkens from **Egypt**, and is also
part of the Hindu godhead. Both cultures had heavily influenced Roman
thought by the time the Trinitarian disputes came about, but by then, **
Egypt** was an important center of Christian power. To try to develop a
Trinitarian concept of deity from Hebrew Scripture is a stretch, at best,
and even to develop it from Christian scripture is sketchy. When Erasmus
published his New Testament, people objected that it did not have any
passages which teach the Trinity, so he introduced, on very flimsy evidence,
I John 5:7:*
**
*"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and
the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."*
**
*Only the King James versions retain this passage without comment: the rest
relegate it to footnotes.*
**

Another passage that is used to bolster the Scriptural basis for the
doctrine of the Trinity is Matthew 28:20:
*"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost"*
**
This really says nothing about a Trinity, but merely mentions three names.
Like the other New Testament writers, Matthew was not very precise in this
or any other concept. This precision came later. Other baptismal formulae
instruct Christians to baptize in the name of Jesus, and some sects use this
parallel to teach that Jesus is the Father and the Holy Ghost, that there is
no Trinity.

*Consult any Christian primer on the doctrine of the Trinity (like you**'**d
get when you first become saved and take classes to find out what you
believe) and you will see just how tough it is to justify deriving this idea
from Christian Scripture, which was written by people who were not as
sophisticated in self-consistency or as obsessively detailed in their dogma
as later scholars became. Before the Nicene Councils consolidated The Dogma
Of The One True Faith, Christian ideas along these lines were extremely
varied. Many Christian sects, most notably the Jehovah**'**s Witnesses,
reject the Trinity. In fact, their materials are as good as any when trying
to balance the pro-Trinity arguments of the so-called orthodox Christians.
But contrary to what they say (and the Trinitarians, as well), there was no
real consensus and nothing resembling precision on this or any other matter
during the first few centuries of the Church.*
**
Nevertheless, the doctrine of the Trinity is very much a litmus test in
modern Christian circles. In the Introduction to Robert M. Price's
book *Deconstructing
Jesus,* Price warns: *when an evangelist or an apologist invites you to have
faith "in Christ," he is in fact smuggling in a great number of other
issues. For example, Chalcedonian Christology, the doctrine of the Trinity,
the Protestant idea of faith and grace, a particular nineteenth-century
theory of biblical inspiration and literalism, habits of church attendance,
and so on, are all distinct and open questions, or should be. And yet no
evangelist ever invites people to accept Christ by faith and then to start
examining all these other associated issues for themselves. Not one! The
Trinity, biblical inerrantism, for some even anti-Darwinism, are
nonnegotiable. *
**
*They say you cannot be genuinely "saved" if you do not toe the party line
on these points. Thus for them, to "accept Christ" means to accept
Trinitarianism, biblicism, inerrantism, creationism, and so on. All this, in
turn, means that "Christ" has become a shorthand designation for this whole
raft of doctrines and opinions, all of which one is to accept "by faith," on
someone else**'**s say-so. Christ has become an umbrella for an
unquestioning acceptance of what some preacher or institution tells you to
believe. Once the believer begins to "deconstruct" what "Jesus Christ" has
come to denote in his particular religious community, he may discover that
his primary religious allegiance has been utilized to manipulate him into
transferring the same diehard loyalty to other secondary or tertiary issues,
political and cultural.-- pp. 11-12*
**
Early Evangelical Christian "cults" books, particularly those modeled after
Walter Martin's classic Evangelical work *Kingdom of the
Cults
,* use the doctrine of the Trinity as the primary test of orthodoxy (as well
as various degrees of biblical inerrancy and other key issues which
distinguish a "true" Christian from a "false" Christian). *Many, for
example, accept Missouri-based Mormons as Brethren because they are
Trinitarian, even though they accept

Bismillah [IslamCity] Saudi Arabia - Lashing Out at the Media Over the Qatif Girl RAPE Case

[Yusuf Ibrahim]

*Lashing Out at the Media Over the Qatif Girl Case*


*Abeer Mishkhas*
*http://www.arabview.com/articles.asp?article=935*
**
The case of what has come to be called the Qatif girl is the talk of the
media in Saudi and abroad; it is full of issues that we need to examine
closely. To begin with, it raises questions about the country's legal
system, the fear of the power of the media and the secrecy that courts
prefer to shroud cases in. There is also the social ruling against the girl,
which is another important issue that has to be thoroughly looked into.

*To put it bluntly, the picture that emerges is that justice is absent from
so many court cases in our country. This girl's case and the way it has gone
shows us that the verdict was reached from day one. With no regard for
evidence. The verdict was a given and that was that; any proceedings
happening afterwards seem to have been only a formality. Otherwise, what
possible explanation is there for the increased sentences after the first
ruling? And how can we come to grips with the possibility that yet another
increase in the sentence is just around the corner merely because she
refuses to accept the second one? *
**
The Minister of Justice has commented that people who have a problem with
any ruling should appeal, instead of "stirring up agitation through the
media that may not be objective and cannot grant anyone any right as much as
it can negatively affect the other parties involved in the case."

I beg to differ with the minister here, because as citizens in this country,
we have the right to voice concerns about a case that could apply to any
Saudi woman. Not everyone can go to the court and appeal. Add to this that
these trials are not accessible to the public which makes it the role of the
press to discuss the issues — and if the ministry finds the coverage
"emotional" and "not objective," then there is enough space in the same
papers for official statements explaining the misunderstood implications of
such rulings.

The ruling in this case, and the minister's statement, obviously say much
about the relationship between official bodies and the media. According to
those bodies, the media people are ignorant of the facts, inciters of public
anger, and naturally emotional. So the solution in this instance is that the
media stop covering such cases, and let society enjoy its peaceful — and
ignorant — sleep. Unreported or hidden facts do not hurt anyone or so they
like to think.

*The media, according to the judges, were also to blame. The girl was
actually sentenced to extra lashes for going to the media with her story,
and her lawyer got his share of blame and actual punishment for talking to
newspapers about the case. The girl was also punished for something that is
not actually a crime. She was out with a male friend in front of a shopping
center so it was in a public space — not a secluded private one — and there
were passers-by and shoppers all around. The mere implication that she
brought this on herself by being out with a stranger only rubs salt into the
wound. Basically, what those judges are saying to the girl is "You deserve
what happened to you!" which is a very cruel and unjust way to think. *
**
*To say that for being in a public street with a man she deserved to be
raped 14 times is simply beyond belief. But even if, for the sake of
argument, we allow this comment to pass, how could it apply to other cases
of rape in the Kingdom? We have simple questions to put to those judges:
Were all the rape victims in other cases out with strange men? What about
boys who are raped in similar circumstances? Boys do not have to stay at
home nor do they need a chaperone. If they are raped, will those judges say
to them "You deserved this"? And what about the girl's companion in this
case who was also raped? *
**
To add to all of the above, we know that the girl's husband has supported
her throughout her ordeal and this says volumes about who has the right to
be upset about her meeting another man. Does anybody care to respond to what
I have asked? Maybe because I am from the media my comments will be taken as
the "emotional stirring of agitation."


*A Slap in the Face of Justice*


*Lubna Hussain*

*Lubna Hussain is a Saudi Writer. She is based in **Riyadh**. *
*http://www.arabview.com/articles.asp?article=933*
**
It is a tale that is more reminiscent of the cruel callous punishments meted
out to women in medieval times. And yet sadly it is a case that is making
headlines in the 21st century.

*For those of you who are not aware of the story, an 18-year-old girl from
Qatif went to meet a man she had had a prior relationship with to reclaim
photos that he threatened to blackmail her with. While they were standing
outside a shopping mall, they were abducted at knifepoint. She was gang
raped 14 times by seven men. The man accompanying her was also raped. In an
extraordinary ruling, she was sentenced by the courts to 90 lashes for
having been with a man wh