[IslamCity] ...What exactly is the difference between Tahajjaud and Taraweeh??????
Had a query...What exactly is the difference between Tahajjaud and Taraweeh?? Are these two arabic words? what exactly is the word which was used by our prophet (saws ) for the night prayers in ramadan and other days??? could anyone share some valuable knowledge Jazakallah Khair From: islamcity@yahoogroups.com [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of syed-mohsin naquviSent: Wednesday, October 05, 2005 9:51 AMTo: islamcity@yahoogroups.comSubject: Re: [IslamCity] Taraweeh Salaat and ramadhan What are you talking about? TAraveeh is 8 raka't every evening according to Imam Ahmad bin Hnabal, and twenty Rak'at according to Imam Abu Haneefa. That eleven rak'at you are talking about is the TAHAJJUD. Get your facts right. You are confused yourself and confusing others. Thank you. Sincerely, Syed-Mohsin Naquvi[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Number of rakahs of qiyaam The number of rakahs is eleven, and it is preferable in our opinion not to exceed this number, following the practice of the Messenger of Allaah (Sal) because he never did more than that in his life. Aaishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) was asked about how he prayed in Ramadaan. She said, "The Messenger of Allaah never prayed more than eleven rakahs (of qiyaam), whether during Ramadaan or any other time. He would pray four, and dont ask me how beautiful or how long they were. Then he would pray four, and dont ask me how beautiful or how long they were. Then he would pray three." (Reported by al-Bukhaari, Muslim and others). Women can pray qiyaam in congregation Women can attend the prayers too, as is stated in the hadeeth of Abu Dharr referred to above. Indeed, it is permissible to appoint an imaam just for them, apart from the imaam of the men. It was proven that when Umar (Ral) gathered the people to pray qiyaam, he appointed Ubayy ibn Kab to lead the men and Sulaymaan ibn Abi Hathmah to lead the women. Arfajah al-Thaqafi said: " Ali ibn Abi Taalib (Ral) used to command the people to pray during the night in Ramadaan, and he would appoint an imaam for the men and an imaam for the women. I was the imaam for the women." I say: this is fine in my view so long as the mosque is big enough so that they will not disturb one another. However, is a person is praying qiyaam by himself, he can make it as long as he wishes; if others agree with the imaam, he may also make it as long as he wishes. The longer it is, the better, but a person should not go to extremes and spend the whole night in qiyaam, except on rare occasions, following the example of the Prophet (Sal) who said: "The best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad." If a person is praying as an imaam, he should make it only as long as is easy for the people behind him, because the Prophet (Sal) said: "If any of you leads the people in prayer, let him make it short, because among them are the young and the old, the weak, and those who have pressing needs. But if he is praying alone, let him make it as long as he likes."abdeen ---Original Message--- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: 09/26/05 23:59:35 To: islamcity@yahoogroups.com Subject: [Norton AntiSpam] [IslamCity] Taraweeh Salaat and ramadhan JAMIATUL ULAMA (KZN) ISLAMIC WEBSITECouncil of Muslim Theologians Taraweeh Salaat In this belated day and age, every morn heralds a new fitna that strikes at the very root of Imaan and amal. For the past fourteen hundred years, the Ummah has been performing twenty rakaats of Taraweeh without question. However a sect now claims that Taraweeh is ONLY eight rakaats, which implies that for fourteen hundred years the Ummah had deviated from the Sunnah of Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) and had performed twenty rakaats without any Shari proof. The Virtue of Taraweeh Abdullah Bin Ammar (R.A.) states that Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) said: The fast and the Quraan will both plead on behalf of the bondsmen who keeps fast in the day and
RE: [IslamCity] Re: Do bsome thing about this FITNA ,woman friendly mosque, it is liber
Salaam Abdeenand jazakallah
khair!
Thats what we call a complete
response.
Well said.
Bro in
Islam,
Shahid
From: islamcity@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of AbdeenSent:
Wednesday, December 07, 2005 11:27 PMTo:
islamcity@yahoogroups.comSubject: Re: [IslamCity] Re: Do bsome thing
about this FITNA ,woman friendly mosque, it is liber
Fiqh-us-SunnahFiqh 2.131a
Upon whom salatul Jumu'ah is
obligatory
Salatul Jumu'ah is an
obligation upon every free, (male) adult, sane, resident Muslim who has
the ability to attend the salah and does not have a valid excuse to miss
it. Salatul Jumu'ah, however, is not
obligatory on the following:
1.
Women and children. Concerning this
category there is no difference of opinion.
If they do attend:
The
positioning
of the young
and the women
The Messenger of Allah placed the men in front of the young
boys
and the women
behind the young boys.
This
is related by Ahmad and Abu Dawud.
However, the
Forces
of disruption are more numerous than the forces of
unity.
FOR
WHOM THE PERFORMANCE OF SALAATUL EID IS VALID:
The
Eid prayer is valid for men, women, children, travellers, residents,
people in
congregation,
and people praying individually. It is also valid if performed in a
house,
mosque,
or a distant place designated for the salah, and so on.
2:
Women and children going out to attend Eid prayer
Shari'ah
requires women and children to go out and attend the salaatul Eidayn.
This includes
married,
single, young, old, or menstruating women. Umm
'Ateeyah reports: "We were ordered to go out
with the single and menstruating women
to the two Eids in order to witness the good and the supplications of the
Muslims. The
menstruating women would be separate from the others."
[This is related by Sahih al-Bukhari: vol.
2, p. 48, no. 91.]
The
above hadeeth clears it that the menstruating women will not prayer and
will keep away
from
the Musallaa, Sahih Al-Bukhari: vol. 2, p. 52, no. 97.
Ibn
'Abbas further reports: "I went out with the
Prophet on the day of breaking the fast or of
the sacrifice, and he prayed and gave a khutbah, and then he went to the
women and admonished
them, reminded them of Allâh, and ordered them to give
charity."
[This is
related
by Sahih al-Bukhari: vol. 2, p. 48, no. 92.]
brother_farrukh - You said this:
Prophet Muhammad must have been a
liberal
It is ProphetMuhammad (sallallahu
alaihiwasallam_)abdeen
---Original Message---
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: 12/06/05
19:08:43
To: islamcity@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [IslamCity]
Re: Do bsome thing about this FITNA ,woman friendly mosque, it is
liber
Prophet Muhammad must have been a liberal as he
prohibited men fromdenying their wives the right to attend the
mosque.And every mosque which seperates men from women must also
be the causeof fitnah, as there was never a divisionbetween men and
women in themosques at the time of Prophet Muhammad.Shame on
the misguided, ignorant Muslims who do not even kow thehistory of
Islam, yet corrupt something as simple as allowing andsupporting women
attending the mosques - a practice of all of thewives of the Prophet
and many of the female companions.Shame indeed, and may Allah
protect us all from such filthy ignorance,ameen.--- In
islamcity@yahoogroups.com, hussa1 wrote:
Asslamualykum wa reh. wa brk.
Unfortunately CAIR has taken up this liberal,s
agenda ! Is no other worthy cause to fight
for ?Is CAIR TIRED OF DEFENDING
MUSLIMS,S CAUSES , IT IS SPEDING MUSLIM
FUNDS IN AN ISSUE OR NON-ISSUE
WHICH IS BOUND TO DEVIDE MUSLIMS.
IS BIG BROTHER FINALLY SUCCEEDED, IN
MANUPLATING CAIR,S NOVICE NEW LEADERSHIP !
PLEASE DO WHATEVER YOU CAN TO
SAVE US FORM LATEST FITNA !
AGITATED: AMRULLA
HUSSAINI,EML,ADDRESS:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
***
{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way t
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Morocco moves to drop headscarf
Morocco moves to drop headscarf Headscarves are more popular with older Moroccan women Morocco is making major changes to religious education, in particular regarding whether young girls should wear headscarves. A picture of a mother and her daughter wearing headscarves is being removed from the latest editions of a text book. A verse from the Koran that says girls should don veils has already been taken out of the books. Other Arab countries have made similar changes, worrying that the veil could be used as a symbol of extremism. Trust There are few things that have become such obvious and controversial symbols of Islamic identity as the headscarf. But until now it has not been a controversial issue in Morocco. This issue isn't really about religion, its about politics Aboulkacem Samir On Avenue Mohammed V, the main avenue in central Rabat, older women in particular can be seen wearing traditional long robes with full headscarves. But younger women wear everything from that to more modern clothes such as trainers, jeans and T-shirts, with nothing on their heads - except perhaps some expensive designer sunglasses. The variety of clothes and head dresses seems to reflect the fact that Morocco is seen as a liberal country with some pro-western leanings. But for some more conservative people this latest move is an underhand way of undermining Morocco's Islamic roots. Abdelkarim El Houichre from the Association of Teachers of Islamic Education does not trust the government's motives: I think there is pressure coming from the United States, which believes that teaching about traditional Islam and teaching girls to wear headscarves will somehow encourage extremism and terrorism, he says. But I think Islamic education has to be kept within mainstream teaching in our schools because that way we can control it. If we deny it to them in school then they will only go and find out more outside of school and they are more likely to fall into the wrong hands. Dilemma In the current climate, the Moroccan government is worried about anything that might fan the flames of Islamic fundamentalism and says it does not want the headscarf to become a rallying cry for extreme organisations. This image is being removed from text books Education ministry official Aboulkacem Samir says the headscarf has political overtones: This issue isn't really about religion, its about politics, he says. The headscarf for women is a political symbol, in the same way as the beard is for men. But we in the ministry must be very careful that the books are fair to all Moroccans and do not represent just one political faction. Across the Arab world the headscarf issue seems to be gathering momentum. In Tunisia for example, young women who wear veils say they have been harassed by the authorities who are forcing the girls to remove their veils at schools and universities. The veil is perhaps a microcosm of a much broader dilemma - should Arab countries in north Africa turn towards secular democracies or to more traditional Islamist countries for their guidance and inspiration? Morocco is treading a fine line between these competing influences and the headscarf might just be something that trips it up. Source: BBC News http://www.prohijab.net/english/morocco-hijab-news2.htm attachment: morocco-img1.jpg attachment: morocco-img2.jpg
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] article: The People of Innovations are Worse than the People of Sins
The People of Innovations are Worse than the People of Sins AUTHOR: Jamaal bin Fareehaan Al-Haarithee SOURCE: His book: Lam ad-Durr al-Manthoor (pg. 47-49) PRODUCED BY: Al-Ibaanah.com Chapter 15: The People of Innovations are worse than the People of Sins [134] Abu Moosaa said: That I live next to a Jew and a Christian, and monkeys and pigs, is more beloved to me than that if I were to live next to a follower of desires (i.e. deviant), who will spread disease to my heart. [1] [135] Yoonus bin 'Ubaid said to his son: I forbid you from fornicating, stealing and drinking alcohol. But if you were to meet Allaah having committed these (sins), that would be more beloved (to me) than if you were to meet Him with the views of 'Amr bin 'Ubaid or the followers of 'Amr. [2] [136] Abul-Jawzaa said: If the apes and the swine were to live with me in a house, that would be more beloved to me than if a person from Ahlul-Ahwaa (deviants) were to live with me. They have entered into the ayah: 'And when they meet you they say: We believe. But when they are alone, they bite the tips of their fingers at you in rage. Say: Perish in your rage. Allaah knows what is in the hearts.' [Surah Aali 'Imraan: 119] [3] [137] Al-'Awwaam bin Hawshab said about his son 'Eesaa: By Allaah, if I saw 'Eesaa gathering with the people of musical instruments, alcohol and falsehood, that would be more beloved to me than if I were to see him sitting with the people of argumentation - the innovators. [4] [138] Yahyaa bin 'Ubaid said: A man from the Mu'atazilah encountered me (one day), so I got up and said: Either you pass on or I will pass on, for indeed if I were to walk with a Christian, that would be more loved to me than if I were to walk with you. [5] [139] Arta' Ibn al-Mundir said: If my son were one of the sinful wicked people, that would be more beloved to me than if he were a Follower of Desires (i.e. a deviant). [6] [140] Sa'eed bin Jubair said: If my son were to keep the company of a sinning scoundrel upon the Sunnah that would be more beloved to me than if he were to accompany a worshipping innovator. [7] [141] It was once said to Maalik bin Mughawal: We saw your son playing with the birds. So he responded: How wonderful that it preoccupies him from accompanying an innovator. [8] [142] Al-Barbahaaree said: If you see a person whose manner and opinion is despicable, he is wicked, sinful, and oppressive, yet he is a person of the Sunnah, accompany him and sit with him, since his sin will not harm you. And if you see a man who strives hard and long in worship, is abstemious, being continual in worship, except that he is a person of innovation, do not sit with him, do not listen to his words, and do not walk along with him, since I do not feel safe that you will not eventually come to be pleased with his way and go to destruction along with him. [9] [143] Abu Haatim said: I heard Ahmad bin Sinaan said: That a Tanboor player were to live next to me is more beloved to me than if an innovator were to live next to me. This is since I can forbid the Tanboor player and I can break the tanboor (a mandolin-like instrument). But as for the innovator, he corrupts the people, the neighbors and the youth. [10] [144] Imam ash-Shaafi'ee, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: If the servant were to meet Allaah having committed every sin except Shirk, that would be better for him than if he were to meet Allaah with some deviant belief. [11] [145] Imaam Ahmad, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: The graves of sinners from People of Sunnah is a garden, while the graves of the pious ascetics from the People of Innovation is a barren pit. The sinners among Ahlus-Sunnah are the Friends of Allaah, while the pious among Ahlul-Bid'ah are the Enemies of Allaah. [12] Footnotes: [1] Al-Ibaanah (2/468, no. 469) [2] Al-Ibaanah (2/466, no. 464) [3] Al-Ibaanah (2/467, no. 466-467) [4] Al-Bid'a wan-Nahee 'anhaa (56) [5] Al-Bid'a wan-Nahee 'anhaa (59) [6] Ash-Sharh wal-Ibaanah of Ibn Battah (132, no. 87) [7] Ash-Sharh wal-Ibaanah (132, no. 89) [8] Ash-Sharh wal-Ibaanah (133, no. 90) [9] Sharh as-Sunnah (124, no. 149) [Translator's Note: Refer to Explanation of the Creed] [10] Al-Ibaanah (2/469, no. 473) [11] The checker of the book Sharh as-Sunnah of al-Barbahaaree mentioned it (124) and attributed it to al-Bayhaqee in Al-'Itiqaad (158) [12] Tabaqaat al-Hanaabilah (1/184) http://al-ibaanah.com/articles.php?ArtID=94
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] ruling: The virtue of Friday
12309 Question #12309: The virtue of Friday Question: Which day of the week do you consider most holy and your sabboth? Answer: Praise be to Allaah. It should be noted that the entire life of a Muslim is worship of Allaah; there is no special day for worship, for the Muslim is worshipping Allaah all the time. But there is a day which Allaah has made special for this ummah (nation), the nation of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and which Allaah has favored above all the other days of the week. That day is Friday. There are a number of ahadeeth which speak of the virtue of this day, including the following: It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: We (Muslims) are the last (of the nations) but (we will be) the foremost on the Day of Resurrection, although the former nations were given their scriptures before us and we were given our after them. And this (Friday) is the day concerning which they disputed. So Allaah guided us (to it), tomorrow (i.e., Saturday) is for the Jews and the day after (i.e., Sunday) is for the Christians. (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, al-Jumu'ah, 847). It was also narrated (by al-Bukhaari) that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: The best day on which the sun rises is Friday. On this day Adam was created, on this day he entered Paradise and on this day he was expelled from it. (Narrated by Muslim, al-Jumu'ah, 1410) It was narrated that Taariq ibn Shihaab said: A Jewish man said to 'Umar, 'O Commander of the faithful, if this aayah - 'This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion' [al-Maa'idah 5:3 - interpretation of the meaning] - had been revealed to us, we would have taken that day as an 'Eid (festival). 'Umar said, I know on which day this aayah was revealed; it was revealed on the Day of 'Arafaah, which was a Friday. (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, Al-I'tisaam bi'l-Kitaab wa'l-Sunnah, 6726). Among the hadeeth which explain the reward for this day is that which was narrated by Abu Hurayrah, which says that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Each of the five daily prayers and from one Jumu'ah prayer to the next is an expiation for the time in between, so long as one does not commit any major sin. (al-Tahaarah, 342). It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: 'When Friday comes, at each door of the mosque there are angels who write down the first ones to come to the mosque. Then when the imaam sits down they close their books and come to listen to the sermon. The one who comes early (for Friday prayer) is like who sacrificed a camel, then those who come after him (in order of their coming) are like one who sacrificed a cow, then one who sacrificed a horned ram, then one who sacrificed a chicken, then like one who offered an egg. (narrated by al-Bukhaari, al-Jumu'ah, 1416). It was also narrated in a hadeeth that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: One of the best of your days is Friday. On it Adam was created and on it he died. On it the Trumpet will be blown and on it all creatures will perish (prior to the Resurrection on the Last Day). So send many blessings upon me on that day, for your blessings will be shown to me. They said, How will our blessings be shown to you when your body will have become dust? He said, Allaah has forbidden the earth to consume our [Prophets'] bodies. (Narrated by Abu Dawood and al-Nasaa'i; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Targheeb wa'l-Tarheeb, no. 695). It was narrated in a hadeeth that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Whoever makes his wife do ghusl and does ghusl himself [i.e., has intercourse] on Friday and goes out early, walking not riding, and comes close to the imaam and listens [to the sermon] without interrupting, will have for each step he takes a reward equal to that of fasting and praying at night for one year. (Narrated by Ahmad and al-Tirmidhi; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Targheeb wa'l-Tarheeb, no. 687) It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) mentioned Friday and said: On this day there is an hour when no Muslim slave stands and prays and asks Allaah for something, but Allaah will give it to him, and he gestured with his hand to indicate that whatever he asks for is as nothing to Allaah. (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, al-Jumu'ah, 883) It was narrated from Anas ibn Maalik that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Seek the hour in which there is hope that prayers will be answered, on Friday after 'Asr (mid-afternoon) prayer, until the sun goes down.
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Makkah has booze, drugs, pimps prostitutes!
Vice Cops Arrest Drug Dealer and Pimps in Makkah Raids Badea Abu Al-Naja, Arab News http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1section=0article=94427d=1m=4y=2007 MAKKAH, April 2007 - A drug dealer and a gang of pimps were arrested by members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice in two separate incidents that took place in the city recently. Following a tip-off about a Saudi drug dealer in his 40s, who would all sell alcohol and bring prostitutes to his home, commission members covertly maintained a surveillance operation of the man's home documenting cars belonging to customers, who would come to buy drugs. The tip-off proved true and, although the drug-dealer had set up cameras at his home to inform him of potential police raids, commission members successfully raided the man's house, where he was found drunk. We managed to confiscate around one and a half kilos of hashish, five bottles of alcohol, SR7,530 of drug money and an abundance of pornography movies, said a commission member, who preferred to remain anonymous. Commission members arrested a woman, thought to be a prostitute, at the man's home. Following investigations, we learned that the man has been dealing in drugs for quite some time. He has been operating with a Pakistani man and a local Saudi man. The three have been handed over to the Anti-Drugs Department for further questioning, said the commission member. In a separate incident, commission members raided two brothels in the city and arrested a number of expatriate prostitutes and their Pakistani pimps. The commission received a tip-off that there are two brothels operating in the Al-Haj Street and Al-Mansour Street. The pimps running the brothels were all Pakistanis. They would provide the women with accommodation to sell themselves, said the commission spokesman. The women would charge SR200 for a short time with them. For an entire night they would charge SR500 to SR600. A commission member asked a Pakistani pimp to arrange a date for him. He told him to arrive at a certain place at a certain time. Commission members raided the location and found a number of drunken men, alcohol and prostitutes. The pimps and prostitutes were all arrested and have been transferred to the police for further questioning, said the commission member. Meanwhile, the Madinah branch of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice has begun a new training program to improve the performance of commission members. Some of the courses teach members different topics related to the job of promoting virtue and preventing vice. The courses, taught by religious experts, teach commission members about work ethics and commission's rules and regulations. Attendees are also being provided training in how to interact with the public, how to use computers, and details of how to implement new administrative rules. The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice also offers members opportunities to pursue further study by offering scholarships at the Umm Al-Qura University, Naif University, as well as other Saudi universities. The Madinah branch of the commission is now implementing its yearly plan. We ran nine courses last year and more than 375 members have benefited from them. More members are now being sent to the Promotion for Virtue and the Prevention of Vice Faculty at the Umm Al-Qura University for further training, said Sulaiman Al-Tuwijri, general manager of the commission's Madinah branch.
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Police gaffe makes Muslims pray in wrong direction
Police gaffe makes Muslims pray in wrong direction A Dutch police station trying to help Muslim detainees face Mecca for their prayers painted arrows in cells pointing in the wrong direction. The Segbroek police station in The Hague borrowed the idea of putting compass marks on ceilings from an Amsterdam hotel, the Dutch daily De Telegraaf reported on Friday. Muslims pray five times a day, facing east in the direction of Mecca. But the arrows in Segbroek pointed west. This is a really gigantic, stupid blunder, a police spokesman told the De Telegraaf. The faulty compass marks have been immediately corrected. It is a mystery for us how this could have possibly happened. All other police cells in the Dutch capital will soon get similar compass marks, the in-house newspaper of The Hague police said. The Netherlands is home to 1 million Muslims out of a population of more than 16 million. Immigration and the integration of newcomers have been hot topics since the rise and murder of populist politician Pim Fortuyn in 2002, who said the country could not absorb any more foreigners. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070413/od_nm/dutch_compasses_dc_1
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Rise and Fall of Muslims in Science
Rise and Fall of Muslims in Science By Sheikh Mohammed Shihabuddin Nadvi Preface Rise and Fall of Muslims in the Realm of Science Effect of Fall of Muslims on Human Society Role of Muslims in Development of Science Historic Role of the Glorious Qur'an Qur'anic Exhortation for Reflection and Proofs of Divine Sustenance Subjugating Materials and Divine Blessings Comprehensiveness of Islam Similarities Between Nature and Shariah A Shortcoming of Muslim Scholars Fall of Muslim Rule and its Consequences Vicegerency of Earth and Material Sciences Certain Historical Facts Golden Era of Muslim Ummah No Clash Between Nature and Shariah Confessions of Researchers Science and Society A New Wave of Apostasy Imposterous Culture and its Vanity Some Signs of Imposterous Mischief Greatest Striving of the Times Purposeful Striving is Essential for Islamic Renaissance Philosophy of Vicegerency Predominance of Divine Faith References -- 1001 Inventions by Muslims From the 8th Century, Muslim tradition and culture set trends in eating, music and style that still influence us today. Their experiments, discoveries and inventions with liquids, light and time opened the door to myriad new chemical compounds, measurements of time in precise and minute detail and devices used in space observation and deep sea exploration. http://www.1001inventions.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=main.viewSectionintSectionID=309 attachment: image001.jpg image002.gif Description: GIF image
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] re: SHOULD I TELL MY FUTURE HUSBAND OF MY PAST WRONG DOINGS
It really is pathetic when dumb people started thinking they are islamic or have islamic enough to give fatwas. We should do our part to make sure the person giving the fatwa is even knowledgable. It is not allowed to disclose your past (sins) to anyone. This is islam not christianity. The prophet (sallallahu alyahi wassalam) told people that the dirty filthy things that people do, they should conceal it with the concealment of Allah. Allah knows what you do and it is HE who concealed for you so that no one found out. To reveal that is a big sin because then you're saying to Allah that you don't want HIS concealment. Read the fatwa below from real scholars...especially the text in red and blue color. Effect of a wife telling her husband about her bad past, and the effect of that on her life Question: Kindly dont ignore this question. May Allah bless all for bringing light in the life of people in difficulties. I am a married and working woman who needs help and advice desperately. I got married a few months back. Problems began soon after that.I was not very religious during my college years and was studying away from my parents. Shaytan took me over and I found a non- Muslim guy very helpful and friendly. I was over confident about myself and I some times used to travel with him to my home town (By Road). On a cursed occasion, he started advancing physically towards me. I fell in the clusters of Shaytan and continued to be in the cursed situation a few times. Once I did the gravest mistake of being alone with him in a house. He tried to do the worst though the utmost did not happen. I realized the depth of my mistake only then. Although I never went back to such actions, after this evil incident, he has twice seen me formally. Although the relationship came to an end, he used to try me over phone and I used to attend it rarely. But nothing beyond that ever happened. I regret a lot for all these actions .Allah Subhantawla made me realize my mistakes and I have repented to him and prayed for his forgiveness. I am still praying. Later I became much regular in prayers, fasted and found time and interest to learn and adhere to the religion which gave me hopes. My parents started inviting proposals for me and for a long time I had the feeling that I shouldn't marry and spoil an innocent man's life. But as my passion for religion increased, I realized that I should not stay unmarried. Then my marriage got fixed with my husband. The thought haunted me, if I should disclose my past to him. I took the path of religion and kept quiet as I have repented deeply for my mistakes. My sense of insecurity made me feel that I should inform the non-Muslim ever not to try to disturb me by any means and I did inform him. Please tell me if this action was correct. My fiancé started calling me over telephone. In the beginning itself I found him very much suspicious by nature. He did not trust on anyone. He was not much inclined to religion although he wanted me to practice .I hoped that I could bring improvement in him. Once I was forced to speak out that I had an infatuation at my younger age, but not the details. I got married and life began with difficulties. Though, as a wife I have been ever sincere to him, suspicion grew. He started mentally harassing and pestering me all the time digging about my past and he assured me that if anything had happened itself, he would forgive me If I disclosed it. I tried my maximum to avoid questions. He brought the Quran and asked me to make promises. I did the greatest mistake of lying even then. I feel bad about it. Will I be forgiven? I couldn't stand for long. I disclosed him my past. Life became more difficult for me. He forced me to write to my beloved father and brother in detail about my past. He informed my mother also. They all became speechless. I was degraded to all extent. (Not in public). I know he loves me, but he uses every opportunity to hurt me mentioning about my past and he always accuses there might me more than what has been disclosed. He does not let me mingle much with my family and even closest relatives. He does not give me peace of mind while at office and has mood swings frequently. Worst of all he is/ was inclined to Shirk, evil eye, black magic like things and seldom goes to Friday mosque even. He says he does not practice it anymore. When I speak about it he points out about my past though he sometimes feels bad about it later. I am so desperate. I need advice. But I know that my love for him is sincere. (He also does !) and I also don't want to bring any more agonies to my family .How can I improve this situation? Please advice. Please help. May Allah bless all. Answer Praise be to Allaah. Firstly: We ask Allaah to accept her repentance and to forgive her for her sins, and to turn her bad deeds into
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Br. Waleed Shaalan: Victim of Virginia Tech Tragedy - Please donate to support the family
Muslim Students Association National Press Release Br. Waleed Shaalan passes away in Virginia Tech shootings (Washington, D.C.) - Assalamu Alaikum, On behalf of the Virginia Tech Muslim Students Association we would like to express our sincere gratitude to all of the MSAs and Muslims that have contacted us here in Blacksburg, VA in the midst of this tragedy. Alhumdulillah we have a national Muslim community that is supportive of each other, like you all have been to us these past few days. Unfortunately we lost a brother from our MSA here in Blacksburg. His name is Br. Waleed Shaalan and he was a graduate student here at Virginia Tech. Waleed left behind his wife of three years, Amira, and his one-year-old son, Khaled. With the help of MSA National, we have set up a fund to support his family during these difficult times. The link in which individuals and MSAs all over the US and Canada can donate is below. Please keep the brother (may Allah have mercy upon his soul), his family, and all of us here at Virginia Tech in your duas. Jazakumu Allahu Khairan for all of your duas and support. Wa'alaikumu Assalam waRahmatu Allah, Nassiba Adjerid Virginia Tech MSA President Please donate to support the family of Br. Waleed Shaalan http://www.msanational.org/finance/vt07donate.html Narration by a student in the classroom with Waleed: The student mentions that Waleed saved his life and wants to convey this to Waleed's family. Apparently, the murderer came into Norris 206 and shot Dr. Loganathan and a number of students injuring Waleed. Waleed was sitting in the front row where he always sat. Everyone jumped to the floor after hearing the gun shots including the person narrating the story. The murderer then left Norris 206 to go to another classroom. The student that narrates the story was not shot but pretended to be dead and lay on the ground beside Waleed who at that time was only injured. The murderer then re-entered the classroom and was checking for alive victims. He had approached the person narrating the story who mentions that his heart was pounding out of fear. Waleed at that instant made a movement to distract the murderer's attention and was shot for the second time. At that time Waleed died and the murderer left the narrator to search for other victims. Ina Lillahi wa ina Ilayhi rajeoon. We ask Allah to forgive Waleed all his sins and grant him paradise. Be sure we shall test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods or lives or the fruits (of your toil), but give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere, Who say, when afflicted with calamity: To Allah We belong, and to Him is our return:- They are those on whom (Descend) blessings from Allah, and Mercy, and they are the ones that receive guidance. [Quran 2:155-157] The Muslim Students Association National, headquartered near Washington D.C., has been serving Muslim students on colleges and university campuses across the United States and Canada since 1963. There are an estimated 150,000 Muslim students and over 600 MSA chapters on university and college campuses throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, please contact us at 1-703-820-7900 or visit the MSA National website at www.msanational.org MSA National Asad Saqib East Zone Rep USA, '06-'07 Forward email This email was sent to [EMAIL PROTECTED], by [EMAIL PROTECTED] Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribeT | Privacy Policy. Email Marketing by Muslim Students Association Florida Council | PO Box 1096 | Falls Church | VA | 22041
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] TV Turn Off Week April 23-29 2007
5 Things You Can Do to Promote Things Better than TV Yes, we know, not all TV is bad. There's the Learning Channel and Discovery Channel, for instance. Great! That just leaves about 90 to 95 percent of programming which qualifies more or less as trash. Don't believe us? Check out some statistics and if you've got kids or younger brothers or sisters, just watch how they become like Zombies in the face of this glowing box of charms. So, if you are convinced of the dangers of television, here are some things you can do to convince family, friends and your local Muslim community to do the same. 1. Stop yourself No anti-TV campaign will work if it's focused on others but not yourself. Make sure you aren't watching TV or that you are at least trying to cut back. Practice what you preach. 2. Have a family discussion on TV If you're family has been passively gathered around the TV for years and considers this family time try something different. Turn the TV OFF and discuss your relationship with television. Who knows, maybe this discussion will be so much more interesting, you'll end up replacing family TV time with family talk time once a week? 3. Talk to younger brothers and sisters If bringing your whole family on board is a bit difficult, try younger siblings. Work on curbing TV watching together. Make it fun for your younger brother or sister. Offer a reward, or draw up a chart together to help both of you keep track of your TV habits. Spend time together and bond instead of watching TV. 4. Encourage your Imam to talk about it in the Khutbah Talking about the fundamentals of faith and prevailing politics are good topics for Friday Khutbah, but TV, the menace right in your home is also pressing. Convince the Imam that talking about the harms of TV and how to avoid it is a beneficial Khutbah topic. 5. Have a TV free get-together with friends Make the following rule here: no one will watch TV, movies or anything related to the box in the living room. Also, if you want to really go further, make it a rule that the topics of conversation cannot revolve around the latest twist in a soap opera or the most recent plot on a sci-fi show. Play basketball in your backyard, go for a walk, do ANYTHING HALAL but watch TV. http://www.soundvision.com/Info/parenting/againstTV.asp Some statistics on television in America Whether you love it, hate it or are indifferent to it, television is a fixture in most American homes today. Ninety-eight percent of households in the United States have at least one television set and 34 percent have two. Forty-nine percent of Americans say they watch too much television. Television isn't just about the number of television sets people own though. It is also about its practical effects on viewers and the content it presents. Below are some statistics to consider about television. All of them were taken from the TV Turnoff Network. THE TIME COST OF TELEVISION WATCHING -According to the A.C. Nielsen Co. the average American watches 3 hours and 46 minutes of TV each day (that's more than 52 days of nonstop TV-watching per year). -By the age of 65 the average American will have spent nearly nine years glued to the tube. -Parents spend 38.5 minutes per week in meaningful conversation with their children is 38.5. THE EFFECT OF TELEVISION ON DAILY LIFE -The number of videos rented daily in the United States is six million while the number of public library items checked out daily is three million. -Forty percent of Americans always or often watch television while eating dinner. HOW MUCH VIOLENCE IS THERE REALLY ON T.V.? -The average American child sees 200,000 violent acts on television by the time he or she reaches the age of 18. -Eighty percent of Hollywood executives believe there is a link between TV violence and real-life violence. TELEVISION: IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT SHOWS -An average child sees 30,000 TV commercials in a year. -By the time s/he reaches the age of 65, the average American will have seen two million TV commercials TELEVISION: THE KNOWLEDGE BUILDER? -While 59 percent of Americans can name The Three Stooges, only 17 percent can name three Supreme Court Justices. http://www.soundvision.com/Info/misc/tvturnoff.asp
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Turks protest Islamic-rooted government
Turks protest Islamic-rooted government At least 300,000 Turks waving the red national flag flooded central Istanbul on Sunday to demand the resignation of the government, saying the Islamic roots of Turkey's leaders threatened to destroy the country's modern foundations. Like the protesters - who gathered for the second large anti-government demonstration in two weeks - Turkey's powerful secular military has accused Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of tolerating radical Islamic circles. They want to drag Turkey to the dark ages, said 63-year-old Ahmet Yurdakul, a retired government employee who attended the protest. More than 300,000 people took part in a similar rally in Ankara two weeks ago. Sunday's demonstration was organized more than a week ago, but it came a day after Erdogan's government rejected the military's warning about the disputed presidential election and called it interference that is unacceptable in a democracy. The ruling party candidate, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, failed to win a first-round victory Friday in a parliamentary presidential vote marked by tensions between secularists and the pro-Islamic government. Most opposition legislators boycotted the vote and challenged its validity in the Constitutional Court. The military said Friday night that it was gravely concerned and indicated it was willing to become more openly involved in the process - a statement some interpreted as an ultimatum to the government to rein in officials who promote Islamic initiatives. Sunday's crowd chanted that the presidential palace was closed to imams. Some said Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc was an enemy of the secular system, because he said the next president should be pious. In the 1920s, with the Ottoman Empire in ruins, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk imposed Western laws, replaced Arabic script with the Latin alphabet, banned Islamic dress and granted women the right to vote. The ruling party, however, has supported religious schools and tried to lift the ban on Islamic head scarves in public offices and schools. Secularists are also uncomfortable with the idea of Gul's wife, Hayrunisa, being in the presidential palace because she wears the traditional Muslim head scarf. We don't want a covered woman in Ataturk's presidential palace, said Ayse Bari, a 67-year-old housewife. We want civilized, modern people there. The military, one of the most respected institutions in Turkey, regards itself as the guardian of the secular system and has staged three coups since 1960. Neither Sharia, nor coup but fully democratic Turkey, read a banner carried by a demonstrator on Sunday. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070429/ap_on_re_mi_ea/turkey_demonstration_7
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Pakistan bans satire about burqas
Pakistan bans satire about burqas ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (Reuters) -- Irate Islamist lawmakers have persuaded the Pakistan government to stop a theatre group staging a satirical play about the burqa, the all-covering head-to-toe garment worn by conservative Muslim women. Burqavaganza played earlier this month during an arts festival in Lahore, the eastern city regarded as Pakistan's cultural capital, and home to some of the most liberal and most puritanical parts of the Muslim nation's society. The burqa is part of our culture. We can't allow anyone to ridicule our culture, Culture Minister Sayed Ghazi Gulab Jamal told the National Assembly. The minister announced Thursday that the government had barred the play, which had already ended its run in Lahore, from being performed in other Pakistani cities. Veiled female parliamentarians and Islamist lawmakers cheered Jamal and thumped desks in approval, while trading barbs with women from both the ruling party and liberal opposition parties. Described by critics as a romp, the play sought to highlight the impact of the veil on society, by showing how wearers use it as a way to hide what they want to keep private. In the play, young men and women wore the burqa to go out on secret dates, and it featured a character called Burqa bin Badin. The play also showed a burqa-clad married couple put to death for making love in public. Predictably, religious conservative Pakistanis did not find it funny, going as far as to describe the play as blasphemous, a crime in Pakistan that can carry a death sentence. They have committed blasphemy against the Prophet (Mohammad), Razia Aziz, a female lawmaker from the Islamist opposition alliance, told the National Assembly. She demanded the government take action against people responsible for staging Burqavaganza. Mehnaz Rafi, a lawmaker for the ruling Pakistan Muslim League from Lahore, opposed the government giving in to the Islamists. A few people cannot dictate affairs of the state. Every person has the right to lead his life his own way. A few people cannot snatch freedom from society, Rafi said. Shahid Nadeem, the director of the play, told the weekly Friday Times that the play aimed to raise awareness about a trend to force women to wear the veil. Progressive Pakistanis have become increasingly shocked by how bold religious radicals have become in spreading their Taliban-style values in society. Last month, burqa-clad female students from an Islamic school, or madrasa, raided a brothel in the capital, Islamabad, and abducted three women. The women were released only after they were made to repent before the media. Students from Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, and its adjoining madrasa have also pressured music and video shop owners to wind up their businesses as part of their anti-vice campaign. Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Anger at Pakistan burka play ban The head of a Pakistani theatre company whose play about burkas was banned by the government has said that she is hurt and astonished by the decision. The government banned the play because it said that it made unacceptable fun out of Pakistani culture. Madeeha Gauhar, head of the Ajoka Theatre group, said that there was nothing offensive in the production against Islam or any other religion. She said that she was being pulled up for promoting moderation. Parody Complaints about the issue came to light after Islamist MPs raised the issue in parliament on Thursday. They complained that the play was against Koranic injunctions on the veil. The veil has long been part of local culture and nobody is allowed to make fun of these values, Minister for Culture Ghazi Gulab Jamal said. The satirical play Burqavaganza was staged this month by Ajoka Theatre group in the eastern city of Lahore, known as the country's cultural capital. The government announced an immediate ban, and stopped it from being staged in other cities following the end of its run in Lahore. The BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan in Karachi says that the play is a parody on the burka - the enclosing garment worn by conservative Muslim women. Pakistan has stringent laws for blasphemy against Islam or the Prophet Mohammed with a maximum penalty of death. They have committed blasphemy against the Holy Prophet, Razia Aziz, a conservative female parliamentarian told the assembly. But the Ajoka Theatre group has said that it has not received any official notification of the ban. Censorship We have just heard the news from the press... the government has not contacted us so far, Ms Gauhar said. She said told the BBC that while she was not surprised that hardline Islamists had raised the issue, she was astonished at how the government has reacted. Ms Gauhar said that the Ajoka
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Pakistan gov't attacking Allah's house
click on the link in the end to see pictures Operation Silence Introduction Operation Silence lead by Lt. Col Haroon-ul-Islam Number of security and army personal take part = 13000 Number of Lal Masjid Mujahidin -= 300 aprox Number of Students (Male + Female ) = 3000 Number of Army men killed = 200 Number of Lal Masjid Mujahidin Martyred = 300 Number of Lal Masjid Students Martyred = More then 2000 Number of citizens Martyred = aprox 100 Ammunition Used by Pakistan Army = All kinds of ammunition except the atom bomb Ammunition Used by the Mujahidin = Pistols and Kalashnikov's Reason for the battle : The Scholars and students of Lal Masjid wanted to establish a Sharia Law and end the numerous brothels in Islamabad, they wanted to end corruption in Islamabad. Also they wanted Sharia courts in Islamabad. Pakistan Govt doesnt want Islamic law they want to give full freedom to prostitutes and allow corruption to spread.. These are the reasons so many people in Lal Masjid have been martyred for. On 3rd July Rangers wanted to seal off the gate of Lal Masjid when the students tried to stop them the rangers opened fire on them. In the firing a lot of innocent people were killed. In reply to this the students of Lal Masjid had no choice but to return fire. Environment Ministry building was set on fire also. On 4th July the students and mujahideen were sieged inside for the first time the capital was under military curfew. Orders were given by the government to even shoot any reporters spotted in the area. Mualana Abdul Aziz was lured out by the secret agencies in a burka, telling they will fully support him. As a result Maulana Abdul Aziz was arrested in a burka. On PTV all scholars and Islam was Insulted openely. The secret agencies thought by arresting Maulana abdul aziz in this way they can persuade the students and mujahideen to surrender. It was proven this tactic didn't work and the students and mujahideen were besieged inside Lal Masjid for 8 days. Approximately 1700 students surrendered willingly from Lal Masjid but they were arrested and are still in custody. So called Operation silence leader Lt Col Haroon was killed by the mujahideen. Also another 100 soldiers were killed. Last day of the operation. Ghazi Abdul Rasheed agreed to surrender but Musharaf ordered that Ghazi Abdul Rasheed and all the students be killed. On 10 th July the Army Commandos martyred over a 1000 Students ( Male + Female ), and 300 Mujahidin were martyred in the cross fire. Lal Masjid's militants commander Ghazi Abdul Rasheed was martyred the same day. Pakistan Government claimed that there are foreign terrorists inside Lal Masjid. After the operation was over the government was unable to prove this claim of foreigners. Lal Masjid and Madrasa Hafsa have both suffered a lot of damage. Now the government is planning to build a shopping complex or a restaurant in its place. They are in the middle of deciding yet. All this raises the following questions... 1. Were the mujahideen of Lal masjid wrong? What was wrong if they were trying to establish an Islamic way of life in Pakistan? 2. They were trying to liberate the government from being a puppet to the USA, was this wrong? 3. Lal Masjid is only half a kilometer away from the headquarters of ISI. How was ammunition delivered there? 4. Government claimed there are major terrorists inside...where are those terrorists now? 5. The latest ammunition that the Pakistani govt claimed the militants have.Where is such latest weaponry now? 6. Why are they hiding the bodies of the martyrs from Lal masjid.? Even if we agree that the mujahideen of Lal Masjid were wrong, there still remains the following questions. 1. Why were the students martyred for? Why did the government issue a shoot to kill order upon anyone leaving the Masjid? 2. If they were planning to martyr the students of the Masjid then why the charade, why not do it from day one? 3. When negotiations were taking why did the President still order the murder of the students? 4. Do Pakistani parents have to go through the process of enrollment, just to provide their children with an Islamic education? These are such questions that our terrorist government can never answer. In all this the loss is of people who want to elevate the status of Islam. The government controlled media is trying very hard to prove to the world these are terrorists not mujahideen, the public isnt stupid to fall for their lies. Even today Ghazi Abdul Rasheed is a Hero in the eyes of the nation.. Pakistani nation really hate the Army and govt openely. In reaction to all this in Swat and malakand soldiers are being murdered daily. President Musharaf was hated by a minority before.. but after this operation the entire nation, politicians, religious parties, scholars
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Arabic spoken? Plane grounded - Woman's gripe delays flight to Chicago overnight
Arabic spoken? Plane grounded SAN DIEGO | Woman's gripe delays flight to Chicago overnight August 30, 2007 BY NORMAN PARISH Staff Reporter/[EMAIL PROTECTED] A woman who complained that some fellow passengers spoke Arabic and had odd behavior prevented a Chicago-bound American Airlines flight from departing San Diego, police said Wednesday. Flight 590, scheduled to depart at 11 p.m. Tuesday, left its gate about 11:15 but returned to the boarding area after the woman, who was traveling with at least one child, indicated she wanted to get off the airplane. The flight then was unable to make Lindbergh Field's 11:30 p.m. curfew for departures, said Irene McCormack, a spokeswoman for the San Diego Harbor Police. The flight, carrying 126 passengers, was rescheduled for midmorning Wednesday and arrived in Chicago in the afternoon, an American Airlines spokesman said. McCormack said it is unusual for planes to return to the gate. She said it's usually for medical and mechanical problems or a disturbance. The woman first complained to the flight crew that four to seven men were possibly speaking Arabic in the boarding area. The woman added that they had odd behavior. The crew decided to return to the boarding area because the woman indicated she wanted off the plane. The American Airlines spokesman indicated the plane returned to its gates because of a dispute between passengers. The spokesman didn't provide details on the dispute. A Transportation Security Administration spokeswoman said it returned because of suspicious activity on board the plane. Ahmed Rehab, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Chicago, was upset about the airline's actions. He said television reporters told him that six Iraqi Americans were detained after a passenger became uncomfortable with the men speaking Arabic. It is one thing to flag suspicious behavior, but to flag a global language? We are deplaning people for who they are, not what they do, Rehab said. The Associated Press reported Defense Training Systems had hired the men to train U.S. Marines at Camp Pendleton in California. McCormack said no one was detained in the incident. http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/534860,CST-NWS-air30.article
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Passenger Arrested After Trying to Open Door During Flight
Imagine if it was a muslim, or even a middle eastern looking man. Then the head news everywhere would have been A terrorist tries... or Heroic crew and passengers subdue a terrorist on plane. Passenger Arrested After Trying to Open Door During Flight Sunday , August 26, 2007 DENVER - A passenger tried to open a plane door during a Frontier Airlines flight on Saturday morning but was subdued by airline staff and passengers, an airline spokesman said. Police and Transportation Security Administration staff met Flight 514 after the plane landed in New York City and took the man into custody, said Frontier spokesman Joe Hodas. Hodas said the man, whose name was not released, would not have been able to open the door even if he had not been subdued. You need special training to open the door, he said. There were 128 passengers and five crew members on the plane, Hodas said. Passenger Bobby Vigil of Estes Park told KUSA-TV in Denver that the man had been acting strangely. Vigil said he and other passengers helped a flight attendant tie the man to his seat with duct tape. The whole rest of the flight, all the way in, he was yelling and trying to bite the tape, and they ended up restraining him with an extra lap belt, said Vigil. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,294632,00.html service_ap_36.gif
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] South Koreans turn anger at MISSIONARY hostages
South Koreans turn anger at hostages By JAE-SOON CHANG, Associated Press WriterFri Aug 31, 2:40 PM ET South Korea's relief at the release of 19 countrymen held hostage by the Taliban gave way Friday to anger at the victims themselves, members of a Christian church who are being criticized for ignoring warnings against travel to Afghanistan. Critics said the group's actions forced their government into negotiations with the Islamic militants that damaged the nation's international reputation. A day after the last hostages were let go, some of the church workers apologized for the trouble caused by their captivity, and a few collapsed when told the militants had slain two male colleagues. One said she secretly kept a diary on the lining of her pants. With the crisis over, South Koreans turned their focus to what went wrong, who is to blame and what lessons can be drawn from the six-week ordeal. Public anger toward the hostages had been expressed in one form or another from the beginning, and it was rising on Friday. Scathing comments, written with the cloak of anonymity, flooded Internet message boards. Newspapers published critical editorials. Most noticeable was the feeling the hostages themselves and the church that sent them to Afghanistan were to blame because they did not heed repeated government warnings to stay away from the volatile Central Asian country. One advisory cited an intelligence report that insurgents were targeting Koreans. They were told not to go, said Kim Young-soo, 42, a travel agency employee in Seoul. They shouldn't have gone there in the first place. The apparent ignoring of the warning levied a high price on the government, critics argued, forcing it to deal directly with the Taliban in violation of the international principle of not negotiating with terrorists. Seoul is also alleged to have made a secret ransom payment to the insurgent group, although the government denied it. The U.S., a South Korean ally, welcomed the hostages' release, but it also alluded to the talks with the Taliban. Asked Thursday if meeting with the militants set a dangerous precedent, State Department spokesman Tom Casey said: I'd simply reiterate that the long-standing U.S. policy is ... not to make concessions to terrorists. The hostage crisis has hurt the pride of many South Koreans, who have sought international recognition for their homeland's rise from the rubble of the 1950-53 Korean War to become one of the world's richest nations. Of course, the country has a duty to protect its people, but I'm worried that the status of South Korea will slip a lot in the international community, said Kim Kwang-ho, 32, an employee at a consulting firm. Local media also raised concerns about the ramifications of any ransom being paid. A senior Afghan official close to the negotiations alleged Friday the South Koreans had paid money to win their release. Speculation has been rife over a ransom payment. And we are concerned that other kidnapping incidents targeting our nationals might occur, the newspaper Dong-a Ilbo said in an editorial. Officials have hinted at the possibility of seeking compensation from the former hostages for expenses incurred by the government in winning their release - at least airfare and medical fees - an unprecedented move seen as reflecting public anger over the crisis. Still, there were some calls for sympathy. Two of them have already died in the crisis. They are also victims, said Kim Kwang-il, an activist with an anti-war group that has argued Seoul's dispatch of some 200 soldiers to Afghanistan caused the hostage crisis. The Taliban freed the hostages after South Korea's government repeated a pledge to withdraw those troops before year's end. The two male hostages were slain soon after the Taliban seized 23 South Koreans on July 19. The militants freed two female captives last week, and the remaining 19 hostages this week. Yonhap news agency reported that some of the former captives fell to the ground in shock when they were told that the two members of their group had been slain. Television showed the former hostages tearfully reuniting and hugging at a hotel in the Afghan capital. It was too early to tell if emerging accounts of the hostages' ordeal and profuse apologies could cause more widespread sympathy. I can't sleep due to concerns that we caused so much trouble, Yoo Kyung-sik, 55, one of the hostages, said in an interview shown Friday evening on South Korean television. He said the captives had been separated into groups of three or four and were repeatedly moved, mostly by motorbike or on foot. Suh Myung-hwa, another freed hostage, also apologized. We caused so much anxiety to the people and our government was hit hard, the 29-year-old said in a televised interview. Suh showed reporters a pair of white pants on the inside of which she had written detailed records about when the kidnappers
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] US Islamic Groups Named in Hamas Funding Case
US Islamic Groups Named in Hamas Funding Case By JOSH GERSTEIN The New York SUN http://www.nysun.com/article/55778 Federal prosecutors have named three prominent Islamic organizations in America as participants in an alleged criminal conspiracy to support a Palestinian Arab terrorist group, Hamas. Prosecutors applied the label of unindicted co-conspirator to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Islamic Society of North America, and the North American Islamic Trust in connection with a trial planned in Texas next month for five officials of a defunct charity, the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development. While the foundation was charged in the case, which was filed in 2004, none of the other groups was. However, the co-conspirator designation could be a blow to the credibility of the national Islamic organizations, which often work hand-in-hand with government officials engaged in outreach to the Muslim community. A court filing by the government last week listed the three prominent groups among about 300 individuals or entities named as co-conspirators. The document gave scant details, but prosecutors described CAIR as a present or past member of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood's Palestine Committee and/or its organizations. The government listed the Islamic Society of North America and the North American Islamic Trust as entities who are and/or were members of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood. The secretary-general of the Islamic Society of North America, Muneer Fareed, said his group was surprised to be named in the Texas case. I can tell you categorically that the current administration of ISNA, as well as its stakeholders, they have no connection to my knowledge with any Holy Land foundations, he said. Mr. Fareed denied his group has any ties to Hamas, though he said it is difficult to police all 300 mosques under his umbrella. We might have a kid whose dad was president of Hamas for all I know, he said. How do you verify these things? The Islamic official expressed frustration at the lack of detail in the prosecution's filing. Perhaps there's some evidence. I just don't really know what it is, he said. Spokesmen for CAIR did not respond to messages seeking comment yesterday. Efforts to contact the North American Islamic Trust were unsuccessful. The identification of the alleged co-conspirators could aid prosecutors when the Holy Land Foundation and five of its officials, Shukri Abu-Baker, Mohammad El-Mezain, Ghassan Elashi, Mufid Abdulqader, and Abdulraham Odeh, go to trial on July 16 in Dallas. Statements by and about co-conspirators are exempt from rules barring hearsay. Judge A. Joe Fish will have to decide whether to accept the government's description of the alleged conspiracy. The practice of publicly naming unindicted co-conspirators is frowned on by some in the legal community, chiefly because there is no trial or other mechanism for those named to challenge their designation. Justice Department guidelines discourage the public identification of unindicted co-conspirators by the government. In all public filings and proceedings, federal prosecutors should remain sensitive to the privacy and reputation interests of uncharged third-parties, the Justice Department's manual for prosecutors says. When co-conspirator lists have to be filed in court, prosecutors should seek to file them under seal, the guidelines say. In practice, the lists are often made public. A list of co-conspirators was released in connection with the federal trial in 2005 of a former college professor, Sami Al-Arian, on terrorism support charges. However, when Enron executives went on trial last year, the list of alleged co-conspirators was kept under seal. Prosecutors on the Holy Land Foundation case could not be reached yesterday and did not respond to an e-mail. The inclusion of the Islamic groups on the list of alleged conspirators could give ammunition to critics of the organizations. CAIR, in particular, has faced persistent claims that it is soft on terrorism. Critics note that several former CAIR officials have been convicted or deported after being charged with fraud, embargo violations, or aiding terrorist training. Spokesmen for the group have also raised eyebrows for offering generic denunciations of terrorism but refusing to condemn by name specific Islamic terrorist groups such as Hamas or Hezbollah. In addition, one of the Holy Land Foundation defendants, Ghassan Elashi, founded CAIR's Texas chapter. CAIR's Washington office was also set up in 1994 with $5,000 in seed money from the foundation, according to congressional testimony by a researcher into Islamic extremism, Steven Emerson. Last year, Senator Boxer of California, a Democrat, withdrew an award she gave to an official at a local CAIR chapter. She said she had concerns about statements by some CAIR officials and about claims of financial links to terrorism. Many FBI
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] TSA Changes Rules for Headdress Searches at U.S.Airports
Assalamualaikum, This is to inform the community of a disappointing change in Transportation Security Administration(TSA) policy that adds another layer of inconvenience to travel plans, especially for sisters who observe the hijab/head scarf. Remember to always exercise your right to ask for a private screening/check (by female person), so that you are not put through the awkwardness of hijab/body checks in full view of other passengers. Please read the e-mail below. Please also report any instances of overly-intrusive searches to www.cairseattle.org click on report an incident or our voice mail 206.367.4081. Religious Profiling: New TSA Policy on Head Covering Civil rights and community organizations are urging their constituents to take note of revised screening procedures at airports for all head coverings and to know their rights as travelers. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) released a statement http://www.sikhcoalition.org/advisories/documents/ECDReligiousAdvisory82007FINAL.doc today confirming reports of new head covering screening procedures as of August 4, 2007. The Sikh Coalition, the largest civil rights organization of American Sikhs, was the first to learn of the new policy and to seek its clarification. The Council on American- Islamic Relations has joined the Sikh Coalition as a signatory to a petition asking the current Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to address concerns about the new policy. The new Standard Operating Procedure includes a guidance recommending that America's 43,000 airport screeners pull aside travelers for secondary screening if their head wear is suspected to conceal a threat item, regardless of whether they pass the metal detector. The secondary screening will include a pat-down search and possibly a request to remove the head wear. The TSA has not made copies of the new screening procedure or guidelines on its implementation available to the public. According to the Sikh Coalition, the turban is the only form of religious garb specifically identified by the TSA as an example of head wear that could lead to secondary screening at security checkpoints. Failing to distinguish between religious head coverings and fashion wear, the TSA provides cowboy hats and berets as other notable examples of head wear. The new procedure's recommendation of physical pat-downs fails to acknowledge the religious sensitivities involved and does not include any guidance on how to perform these manual checks. Earlier Standards Reversed The new policy is a reversal of standard procedures created in November 2001 to address Americans' national security concerns while safeguarding religious freedom. The previous policy required TSA screeners to search head coverings such as the turban only if the metal detector was not cleared. Screeners were required to do as much as possible to avoid physically touching the head covering. Religious Profiling The specific singling of the turban and the apparent disregard for religious practice has sparked concern over religious profiling. The policy allows screeners to single out travelers on the basis of their religion, said Amardeep Singh, Executive Director of the Sikh Coalition. ..That attitude challenges the spirit of religious pluralism on which our country was built. The policy has led Sikhs to feel that the one of their most precious articles of faith has become part of a government-mandated profile of a person who is a terrorist threat. According to Sikh Coalition officials, since September 11, 2001, hundreds of Sikhs have been harassed, beaten, and even killed because of the association of their turbans and beards with terrorism. A number of civil rights organizations and community groups led by the Sikh Coalition seek to resolve concerns raised by the new policy with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, including charges that the practical implementation of the policy will lead to rampant religious profiling. They are urging the TSA to implement a policy that is both respectful of religious pluralism and meets America's safety needs Know Your Rights The Council on American-Islamic Relations encourages Muslims to to respond in the following manner: 1. Please remain calm and courteous during the process. 2. Request that the screener check the headdress with a wand rather than with a pat-down process, explaining that the hijab (head covering) is a religious article of great importance. 3. If the screener cannot oblige ask that the second screening take place in a private room with guards of the same gender. Travelers have the right to request such accommodation. 4. Report any incidences you believe may be ethnic, religious, or racial profiling to [EMAIL PROTECTED] or call 714-776 -1847. The Sikh Coalition also provides a
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] All Expenses Paid Imam Training Program
All Expenses Paid Imam Training Program The Government of the United Arab Emirates, UAE is sponsoring a first of its kind unique training program for American Imams and those aspiring to become Imams. Program participant will receive a certificate from the UAE Ministry of Awqaf Islamic Affairs. The courses will consist of a six-week program. Program curiculam will focus on the following: 1 Moderation in Islam 2 Fiqh for Muslim Minorities 3 Islamic Family Law 4 Principles of Islamic Banking and Finance Selected individuals will be guest of the UAE government. All expenses associated with the program will be paid for including Hajj. A modest stipend will be provided. Program Dates: * Arrival in the Dubai on Oct 30th * Classes commence on Nov 1 * Closing Ceremony- Dec 14th * Depart for Hajj -Dec 12-25 Contact Information Khalid A. Ahmed Tel: 202-261- Fax: 202-261-6668 [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] hadith: Better than slaves...when you go to bed
Narrated 'Ali: Fatima complained of what she suffered from the hand mill and from grinding, when she got the news that some slave girls of the booty had been brought to Allah's Apostle. She went to him to ask for a maid-servant, but she could not find him, and told 'Aisha of her need. When the Prophet came, Aisha informed him of that. The Prophet came to our house when we had gone to our beds. (On seeing the Prophet) we were going to get up, but he said, 'Keep at your places,' I felt the coolness of the Prophet's feet on my chest. Then he said, Shall I tell you a thing which is better than what you asked me for? When you go to your beds, say: 'Allahu Akbar (i.e. Allah is Greater)' for 34 times, and 'Alhamdu Lillah (i.e. all the praises are for Allah)' for 33 times, and Subhan Allah (i.e. Glorified be Allah) for 33 times. This is better for you than what you have requested. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 53, Number 344
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Spreading the Good News of Ramadaan
Spreading the Good News of Ramadaan AUTHOR: 'Abdullaah bin Saalih Al-Fawzaan SOURCE: Ahaadeeth As-Siyaam: Ahkaam wa Adaab (pg. 13-15) PRODUCED BY: Al-Ibaanah.com Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allaah (sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) said: Ramadaan has come to you - a blessed month. Allaah has made it obligatory on you to fast in it. During this month, the gates of heaven are open, the gates of the Hellfire are closed and the evil devils are chained. To Allaah belongs a night in it, which is better than a thousand months. Whosoever is prevented from its good, then he has been deprived. [1] The hadeeth is a glad tiding to the righteous servants of Allaah, of the coming of the blessed month of Ramadaan. The Prophet (sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) informed his Companions of its coming and it was not just a simple relaying of news. Rather, his intent was to give them the glad tidings of a magnificent time of the year, so that the righteous people who are quick to do deeds can give it its due estimate. This is because the Prophet (sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) explained in it (the hadeeth) what Allaah has prepared for His servants from the ways towards gaining forgiveness and His contentment - and they are many. So whoever has forgiveness escape him during the month of Ramadaan, then he has been deprived with the utmost deprivation. From the great favors and bounties that Allaah has bestowed upon His servants is that He has prepared for them meritous occasions so that they may be of profit to those who obey Him and a race for those who rush to compete (for good deeds). These meritous occasions are times for fulfilling hopes by exerting in obedience and uplifting flaws and deficiencies through self-rectification and repentance. There is not a single occasion from these virtuous times, except that Allaah has assigned in it works of obedience, by which one may draw close to Him. And Allaah possesses the most beautiful things as gifts, which He bestows upon whomsoever He wills by His Grace and Mercy. So the one who achieves true happiness is he who takes advantage of these virtuous months, days and hours and draws closer to His Guardian in them, by doing what is prescribed in them from acts of worship. Thus perhaps he will be showered with one of the many blessings of those occasions and be helped by it, with an assistance that is enough to save him from the Fire and what it contains, such as its blazing heat. [2] Being able to reach Ramadaan is itself a magnificent bounty that is bestowed on the one who reaches it and rises to its occasion, by standing in prayer during its night and fasting during its day. In it, he returns to his Protector -- from disobeying Him to obeying Him, from neglecting Him to remembering Him, from remaining distant from Him to turning towards Him in submissive repentance. A Muslim must be conscious of this bounty and acknowledge its magnitude. For indeed, many people are prevented from fasting, either because they die before they reach it, or because they are not capable of observing it or because they oppose and turn away from it. Thus, the one who fasts must give praise to his Lord for this bounty and should welcome this month with joy and delight that a magnificent time of the year out of all the occasions for performing obedience is welcomed. He should exert himself deeply in doing good deeds. And he should invoke Allaah to grant him the ability to fast and stand in night prayer, and that He provide him with seriousness, enthusiasm, strength, and energy in that month. And that He awaken him from heedless oversleeping so that he may take advantage of these virtuous times of good. It is unfortunate to find that many people do not know the value of this virtuous occasion, nor do they consider it to be sacred. So the month of Ramadaan no longer becomes a significant time for obedience, worship, reciting the Qur'aan, giving in charity and making remembrance of Allaah. Rather, to some people, it becomes a signifcant time to diversify their foods and drinks and to prepare different types of meals before the month begins. Some other people do not know Ramadaan except as a month of sleeplessness and constant recurring gatherings, while sleeping by day. This is to the point that some among them sleep past the time of the obligatory prayers, thus not praying them in congregation or in their proper times. Other people do not know Ramadaan except as a signifcant time for conducting worldly affairs, not as a significant time for conducting affairs for the Hereafter. Thus, they work busily in it, buying and selling, and they stay in the market areas, consequently abandoning the masaajid. And when they do pray with the people, they do so in such a hurried manner. This is because they find their pleasure in the market places. This is the extent that the notions and views (of Ramadaan) have
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] fatwa: One Intention for the Whole Month?
One Intention for the Whole Month? Question: Does every day on which the fast is performed in Ramadan require an intention, or is it sufficient to make one intention for the whole month? Answer: It is sufficient in Ramadan to make one intention at the beginning of it, because even if the fasting person did not make an intention for every day the night before, that was has intention at the start of the month. But if the fasting is broken during the month due to a journey, or illness or the like, he must make the fresh intention, because he has broken it by abandoning the fast due to travel, illness or the like. Shaykh Muhammad bin Saalih al-`Uthaymeen Islamic Verdicts on The Pillars of Islaam, vol.2, page.644 http://www.fatwaislam.com/fis/index.cfm?scn=fdID=692
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] IDF blocks West Bank Palestinians trying to reach Al-Aqsa Mosque
IDF blocks West Bank Palestinians trying to reach Al-Aqsa Mosque ref: http://haaretz.com/hasen/spages/903722.html By The Associated Press Palestinian worshipers waiting to cross the checkpoint near Bethlehem in order to pray at the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday. (AP) Hundreds of Palestinians thronged two major West Bank checkpoints, trying to reach Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque on the first Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, despite tight Israeli restrictions. Israel Defense Forces troops turned back many of the West Bank faithful. Only men above the age of 45 and women above the age of 35, who had also obtained special permits, were allowed to enter Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque - the third holiest shrine of Islam - said police spokesman Shmuel Ben-Ruby. This year, the start of Ramadan, a month of fasting and religious observance, coincided with the Jewish New Year. As customary, Israel imposed a blanket closure on the West Bank during the Jewish holiday, barring virtually all Palestinians from entering Israel. Hundreds of Israeli police were deployed in streets and alleys in and around Jerusalem's walled Old City, where the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound is located. Troops also took up positions at two major West Bank checkpoints, one to the south of Jerusalem and one to the north. The checkpoints are built into Israel's West Bank separation fence, which rings most of Jerusalem to control Palestinian movement into Israel. At the southern checkpoint, near Bethlehem, hundreds of Palestinians, many of them elderly, pushed up against police lines set up near the separation barrier. At one point, the crowd pushed through the police line. One woman crawled on her hands and knees, another fell to the ground as people behind her surged forward. IDF troops shouted at people to get back. At the northern Qalandiyah crossing, near the city of Ramallah, hundreds of people waited to pass. Hamdi Abu Fadi, 44, was turned back because he didn't meet the age requirement. Abu Fadi said he'd try to sneak into Jerusalem in another area, in hopes of reaching Al-Aqsa. Prayers performed at the shrine are considered more powerful than worship in another mosque. Palestinians have long complained that Israel is violating their right to freedom of worship by restricting access to a major shrine. It's a crime against us all year long, whether during Ramadan or any other month, said Abu Fadi. Israel says it imposes the restrictions to prevent possible attacks by Palestinian militants. Ramadan is a time of heightened religious fervor, which security officials fear could increase the motivation for carrying out attacks. ramadan.jpg0.gif
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] MUSLIM BIZ GAL BEATEN
MUSLIM BIZ GAL BEATEN By JAMES FANELLI ZOHREH ASSEMI L.I. bias-attack victim. September 16, 2007 -- The Muslim owner of a high-end nail and facial salon that caters to the likes of Jennifer Lopez was beaten and robbed yesterday in what Long Island cops called a bias attack. The attack followed two weeks of phone calls in which Iranian-American Zohreh Assemi was called a terrorist and told to get out of town, friends and family said. She was opening her store in Locust Valley at around 6:30 a.m. when two men came out of a public bathroom and forced her inside the salon. They smashed her hand with a hammer, sliced her with a boxcutter and kicked her before taking about $2,000 in cash and scrawling anti-Muslim slurs on her mirrors, sources said. She was treated at North Shore University Hospital at Manhasset. I'm in pain. I can't talk, sobbed a shaken Assemi, 52, as she left her store late yesterday afternoon. They said, 'Your kind isn't welcomed here. You don't belong here,' said Ginny Russo, a friend and customer. You don't do that to people. That's so wrong. http://www.nypost.com/seven/09162007/news/regionalnews/muslim_biz_gal_beaten.htm news017a.jpg
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Muslim woman protests rough treatment at RIC
Muslim woman protests rough treatment at RIC By Diane Walker, NBC12 News Travel security measures six years after 9/11 have Muslims facing extra searches at airports everywhere. A Richmond woman says she was pulled for additional screening because of the religious head scarf she wears. Zainab Nasser, originally from West Africa, works as a librarian and has lived here 10 years. While she believes she was racially profiled, unfairly scrutinized, the Transportation Security Administration calls it a necessary layer to ensure safe air travel. I was just so shocked, and everybody there - I could feel everyone's eyes were on me, she said. The hijab is a prominent and controversial symbol of her identity as a Muslim. Zainab Nasser removed her head scarf for TSA officials, away from public view in a private room at Richmond International Airport. She goes like this banging on my head on my bun, Zainab said of the TSA agent. She said, 'I'm just going to give you a hard bump to make sure you are not hiding anything in there.' She cleared the inspection. Zainab's key objection is that she never set off the security scan. No alarms sounded when she walked through the scanner, so why was she selected for the extra check? Screeners are permitted to conduct secondary checks, says the TSA, in a post 9/11 society. Officers receive cultural sensitivity training, but their primary mission is to make sure threats don't get on board planes. In Zainab's case, TSA says officers will receive more cultural awareness training, and it will continue dialogue with affected groups to ensure a workable solution that does not compromise security. Zainab believes the dragnet is snagging innocent people. Under the new travel crackdown, you may have to remove a cowboy hat, a skull cap, a hijab - anything that could conceal explosives. http://www.nbc12.com/news/state/9721587.html
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Airport - Smile . Or Else
Smile . Or Else 'Behavior Detection Officers' are now watching passengers' facial expressions for signs of danger. It's a new level of absurdity for America. WEB-EXCLUSIVE COMMENTARY By Patti Davis Special to Newsweek Aug. 16, 2007 - It was bound to happen. Now even a frown or grimace can get you into trouble with The Man. Specially trained security personnel will be watching passengers for micro-expressions that will reveal treacherous agendas and insidious intentions at airports around the country. These agents, who may literally hold your fate in their hands have been given a lofty, Orwellian name: Behavior Detection Officers. Did anyone ever doubt that George Orwell's prophecies in 1984 would arrive? In that novel, he wrote, You had to live-did live, from habit that became instinct-in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized. In the study of micro-expressions-yes, it is actually a field of study and there are some who are arrogant enough to call it a science-it has been decided that when people wish to conceal emotions, the truth of their feelings is revealed in facial flashes. These experts have determined that fear and disgust are the key things to look for because they can hint of deception. Let's see, fear and disgust in an airport? I'm frightened and disgusted weeks before I have to show up at an airport. In fact, I've pretty much sworn off the whole idea of going anywhere by airplane. It's bad enough that I might be trapped in a crowded plane with no food or water and nonworking toilets for hours; now there are security agents interpreting our facial expressions. The face police, in place at more than a dozen U.S. airports already, aren't identified as such. But the watcher could be at curbside baggage, the ticket counter or near the metal detectors and X-ray machines. The Transportation Security Administration hopes to have as many as 500 Behavior Detection Officers on the job by the end of 2008. But what about the woman who is getting on a plane to see a dying relative? Or the man who is traveling to another state to see a cancer specialist in a last bid for extending his life? What about the guy who just had a fight with his spouse and now worries that a plane crash would mean their last words were in anger? We've all had the experience of having a bad day, being in a rotten mood-especially at the airport, which has become a modern-day chamber or horrors. On those days, doesn't it seem like everyone we meet looks sour and unpleasant? The opposite is also true. When we're happy and joyful, we look at others and see happiness in them. Or even if we don't, we look at them kindly and with compassion. It's human nature to look at others through the lens of our own reality. Here's where it gets really absurd. Apparently, these Behavior Detection Officers work in pairs. One scenario is that an officer might move in to help a passenger retrieve their belongings after they've been screened. And then the officer will ask where the passenger is headed. If the passenger's reaction sets off alarm bells in the officer's well-trained mind, another officer will move in and detain them. Let's be really clear here. If a stranger moved in on me like that, I'd tell that person to go to hell, throw in a few other expletives for good measure and probably give them the finger as I stomped off. Of course, I wouldn't be stomping very far. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20298840/site/newsweek/page/0/
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Sweden cartoonist gets protection
Now the chicken runs and hides Sweden cartoonist gets protection The Swedish cartoonist at the centre of a row over drawings of the Prophet Muhammad says police have taken him to a secret location for his own safety. Lars Vilks said he was only able to pick up a few things when he returned from Germany at the weekend before police escorted him from his home. The purported head of al-Qaeda in Iraq has offered $100,000 (£49,310) to anyone who kills Mr Vilks. Muslims regard visual representation of the Prophet as blasphemous. Several Muslim countries have protested against the cartoon. Mr Vilks said the Swedish secret services considered the threat against him as very serious. The police guard was non-existent before this. It's 100% now, Mr Vilks said in a telephone interview with Associated Press agency. I can't live in my home, I've only been allowed to pick up some things. Local laws A man said to be the head of al-Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, offered a reward for the murder of Mr Vilks in an audio message aired on the internet. The $100,000 (£49,310) reward would be raised by 50% if Mr Vilks was slaughtered like a lamb, he said. The cartoon showed the Prophet Muhammad's head on a dog's body and was published by Nerikes Allehanda newspaper on 18 August. Many Muslims regard the dog as an impure animal. But Ibrahim el-Zayat, of the Federation of Islamic Organisations in Europe, told the BBC that Muslims in the West had to live with the local laws on freedom of expression. He said there were much more important issues to worry about, and praised the Swedish government for trying to defuse tensions. This month, Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt met ambassadors from 22 Muslim countries over the issue. Last year there were riots over Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, first published in September 2005 by the newspaper Jyllands-Posten. Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/6999652.stm
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] Police used Taser when Muslim refused order to drop his Quran
Police used Taser when Ocalan refused order to drop his Quran Austin L. Miller, Star-Banner, 9/21/07 http://www.ocala.com/article/20070921/NEWS/209210364/1001/NEWS01 The Ocala Police Department has launched an internal affairs investigation involving four officers accused of roughing up and stunning a man with a Taser when he refused to drop his Quran or even take his hand off the bulky book, which was tucked into his waistband. Deputy Chief Greg Graham said the complaint - made by Jeffrey Shields, 49, of Ocala - was sent to his office late Wednesday evening. Graham said he ordered the investigation Thursday morning. The incident happened Aug. 31, when officers sought to question Shields. They said he fit the description of a man said to be carrying a gun and a large amount of drugs. The officers are Officer Bernard Smith and Cpls. Jamie Buchbinder, Phillip Hazel and Doug Russell. They could not be reached for comment Thursday. Graham said the officers are still on the job. Based on the reports that I read from all parties, I don't see any reason to take those officers off the road, he said. There's no video of the incident. When police use force, like a Taser or firearm, the agency reviews what happened. The officer's supervisor starts, then sends his findings up the chain of command through a lieutenant, captain, major and then Graham. In this case, Graham said, the completed internal incident report was on his desk when the complaint from Shields came in. The deputy chief would not say what the completed report said. The report is not a public record because of the pending internal affairs investigation. The report and its findings were subject to public review before the Shields complaint came in. OPD spokesman Lou Biondi said the agency would not release the internal incident review report until the other investigation was complete. The use of force incident report must be completed within 20 days of the incident. Wednesday was Day 20. (MORE) http://www.ocala.com/article/20070921/NEWS/209210364/1001/NEWS01
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] A letter to Mr. Lee Bollinger concerning remarks to President Ahmadinejad
A letter to Mr. Lee Bollinger I wish to register my deepest regret in regard to your remarkably discourteous introductory remarks to President Ahmadinejad. Your class act as an arbiter at the University of Columbia was nothing short of disgrace. It lacked professionalism especially given the fact that Mr. Ahmadinejad had not even been given the chance to speak. And it clearly undermined your repeatedly made claim that the event upheld free speech. Fortunately, this age, despite all its cruelty and barbarity, is an age of transparency, which is why not even liberals can hide themselves behind their usual covers these days. What happened yesterday merely displayed utter conceit and petty politics showing who it was that really lacked civility. Trying to humiliate an invited guest, an elected President of a sovereign country, before an international media only reflects the culture of an insular and bigoted society. One wonders if your reaction had anything to do with donors threatening to withdraw funds from Columbia. It is incredulous that a respected American university chose to turn this meeting into a show trial of Iranian policies. So much for academic integrity and intellectual honesty. Your crass, ill-mannered and duplicitous greeting of President Ahmadinejad amounted to a crude planned ambush. It is just unbelievable that someone who is simply questioning elements of the US foreign policy and refuses to be a US client should be submitted to such a systematic harassment. If anybody wanted any proof that Israeli lobby controls US foreign policy, media, academic, etc., he has found plenty of evidence today. It has been noted that the protests against Iran at the UN and at Columbia were primarily made up of Israeli advocacy groups. Obviously, there is nothing wrong with that, but it highlights, among other things, AIPAC's influence not only on US foreign policy but also in the mainstream academia. One could be forgiven for thinking that what happened yesterday at Columbia University represents the typical mindset of the present American ruling elite: delusionally arrogant, insolent and insensitive to the rest of the world. A sad spectacle since they have become so politically isolated that they are even incapable of learning from their past experiences. It is extremely dishonest and manipulative to call into question the Iranian President's integrity when in reality it is the USA that is responsible for the misery and death of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and total destruction of their country. America is the same country that installed a medieval Shah with its secret SAVAK police after removing the democratically government of Dr Mosaddeq which in turn led to the hundreds of thousands of Iranians being killed and tortured by an Israeli trained police force. Ever since its inception, the Islamic Republic of Iran has been subject to countless destabilizing attempts by the US. But it has thwarted them all. The 8-year old war with Iraq, when all Western countries were helping their then good old chum Saddam, failed to bring this country to its knees. We do not think that the current drive towards waging a new war on Iran will stand a better chance of success. In any case, yesterday was an opportunity to show the world that the USA is an open country that will challenge its opponents with appropriate compassion and honest debate. Instead, your decision to gather all Zionist-manufactured anti-Iranian appellations, pile them up on the stage, and throw them shamelessly at your invited guest, will become the black page of ignominy in Columbia University's history. With regards, M. J. A. Larijani President Institute for Studies in Theoretical Physics and Mathematics (IPM) http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=24836sectionid=3510304
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] hadith: dua to recite on Laylat ul-qadr
A'ishah (radhiallahu `anha) reported that she asked Allah's Messenger (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam), O Messenger of Allah! If I knew which night is Laylat ul-Qadr, what should I say during it? And he instructed her to say: Allahumma innaka `afuwwun tuh.ibbul `afwa fa`fu `annee - O Allah! You are forgiving, and you love forgiveness. So forgive me. Recorded by Ahmad, Ibn Majah, and at-Tirmithi. Verified to be authentic by Al-Albani
Boycott Israel [IslamCity] hadith: Punishment for not paying zakat on these
Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) as saying: If any owner of gold or silver does not pay what is due on him, when the Day of Resurrection would come, plates of fire would be beaten out for him; these would then be heated in the fire of Hell and his sides, his forehead and his back would be cauterized with them. Whenever these cool down, (the process is) repeated during a day the extent of which would be fifty thousand years, until judgment is pronounced among servants, and he sees whether his path is to take him to Paradise or to Hell. It was said: Messenger of Allah, what about the camel? He (the Holy Prophet) said: If any owner of the camel does not pay what is due on him, and of his due in that (camel) is (also) to milk it on the day when it comes down to water. When the Day of Resurrection comes a soft sandy plain would be set for him, as extensive as possible, (he will find) that not a single young one is missing, and they will trample him with their hoofs and bite him with their mouths. As often as the first of them passes him, the last of them would be made to return during a day the extent of which would be fifty thousand years, until judgment is pronounced among servants and he sees whether his path is to take him to Paradise or to Hell. It was (again) said: Messenger of Allah, what about cows (cattle) and sheep? He said: It any owner of the cattle and sheep does not pay what is due on them, when the Day of Resurrection comes a soft sandy plain would be spread for them, he will find none of them missing, with twisted horns, without horns or with a broken horn, and they will gore him with their horns and trample him with their hoofs. As often as the first of them passes him the last of them would be made to return to him during a day the extent of which would be fifty thousand years, until judgment would be pronounced among the servants. And he would be shown his path-path leading him to Paradise or to Hell. It was said: Messenger of Allah, what about the horse? Upon this he said: The horses are of three types. To one than (these are) a burden, and to another man (these are) a covering, and still to another man (these are) a source of reward. The one for whom these are a burden is the person who rears them in order to show off, for vainglory and for opposing the Muslims; so they are a burden for him. The one for whom these are a covering is the person who rears them for the sake of Allah but does not forget the right of Allah concerning their backs and their necks, and so they are a covering for him. As for those which bring reward (these refer to) the person who rears them for the sake of Allah to be used for Muslims and he puts them in meadow and field. And whatever thing do these eat from that meadow and field would be recorded on his behalf as good deeds, as would also the amount of their dung and urine. And these would not break their halter and prance a course or two without having got recorded the amount of their hoof marks and their dung as a good deed on his behalf (on behalf of their owner). And their master does not bring them past a river from which they drink, though he did not intend to quench their thirst, but Allah would record for him the amount of what they drink on his behalf as deeds. It was said: Messenger of Allah, what about the asses?, Upon this he said: Nothing has been revealed to me in regard to the asses (in particular) except this one verse of a comprehensive nature: He who does an atom's weight of good will see it, and he who does an atom's weight of evil will see it (xcix. 7) Sahih Muslim, Book 005, Number 2161
Bismillah [IslamCity] 13th century Koran fetches record price at auction
First they rob muslim lands then they sell it for their profit. Look for future auctions to see stuff stolen from Iraq by its liberators...pictures which they themselves took of their theft exist. 13th century Koran fetches record price at auction Tue Oct 23, 6:19 PM ET A 13th century Koran was sold on Tuesday for a world record price of 1,140,500 pounds (2,320,917 dollars, 1,632,055 euros), auction house Christie's said. The Islamic holy book, which had been expected to fetch between 250,000 and 300,000 pounds, was sold as part of an auction of art from the Islamic and Indian World that brought in a total of 5.9 million pounds. Dated to 1203 and written entirely in gold, with marginal notes in silver, it is the earliest known complete, dated Koran, written in gold in the world, and broke the record for a Koran, and the record for any Islamic manuscript, sold at auction. Also sold on Tuesday was a nearly complete 10th century Kufic Koran, which is thought to originate from North Africa or the Middle East, which fetched 916,500 pounds, compared to its pre-sale estimate of up to 600,000 pounds. Today's extraordinary sale total is one of the highest ever for Islamic Art at Christie's, reflecting the depth of demand and very strong prices realised throughout the field of classical Islamic Art, said William Robinson, director of Islamic Art and Carpets and Head of sale at Christie's. Fiercely competitive bidding on the telephone, in the room and on the Internet led to a particularly lively salesroom. http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071023/lf_afp/lifestylebritainauctionartreligionislam
Bismillah [IslamCity] Biscuits Lure African Kids to France
Biscuits Lure African Kids to France IslamOnline.net News Agencies Some of the 103 kids were lured away from their parents and were not orphans. (Reuters) ABECHE — European aid workers offered poor African kids sweets and biscuits to lure them to leave their homes before attempting to smuggle them to France. A car came with two whites and one black man who spoke Arabic, ten-year-old Mariam, who was one of the group along with her younger sister, told reporters at an orphanage in Chad's eastern city of Abeche where they are cared for. The driver said come with me, I'll give you some money and biscuits and then I'll take you home, she recalled. We were taken to the white people's house and they gave us medicine -- small white tablets, said the young girl whose mother was dead but father was still alive . I was not ill. All the children were given pills. They told us that we would no longer be able to go home. Nine French nationals -- six members of the French charity Zoe's Ark and three journalists -- were arrested on Thursday as they prepared to fly 103 children, aged 1-10, to France . The seven members of the charter plane's crew, all Spanish citizens, are also being held by Chadian police. France has condemned the operation and the Paris prosecutor's office opened an investigation last week into illegal exercise of intermediary activities with the aim of adoption. French President Nicolas Sarkozy had phoned Chad President Idriss Deby to discuss the situation and reiterated his condemnation of the actions of Zoe's Ark. Zoe's Ark was founded by a volunteer firefighter, Eric Breteau -- among those arrested -- to provide assistance to victims of the December 2004 Asian tsunami . The Children Rescue operation initially planned to fly 10,000 children out of Darfur to Europe, a plan attacked as irresponsible and amateurish by adoption and humanitarian groups. Not Orphans Zoe's Ark representatives in Paris insist they mounted the Children Rescue operation in good faith, hoping to evacuate orphans whose lives were at risk in Darfur, over the Chadian border. UNICEF said after interviewing the children -- 88 boys and 22 girl -- that most appear to be Chadian, not Darfuri, and that there was no evidence they were orphans. Some children told reporters their parents are still alive, and they were taken from their villages on the Chad-Sudan border. My parents had gone to work in the fields. As we were playing some Chadians came and said here are some sweets, why don't you follow us to Adre and then we'll take you home, said a young boy called Osman, referring to a town on the Chad-Sudan border. We were taken to the hospital in Adre, he added. We spent seven days in Adre and I've been here in Abeche for more than one month. We were well fed by the whites, there was always food, said Osman. I would like to go back to find my parents. A French diplomat has said around 300 families in France and Belgium paid 2,800 to 6,000 euros ($4,000-8,600) per child to have them flown to an airport in Vatry, east of Paris, where families hoping to welcome them waited Thursday night in vain. The French Foreign Ministry issued a warning about Zoe's Ark in August, saying there was no guarantee the children were helpless orphans and casting doubt on the project's legality. France's Ambassador to Chad Bruno Foucher said the arrested French nationals would have to face Chadian justice. I think this situation is scandalous and our efforts and those of the French government have been centered on these children who were taken from their villages, and to make sure this never happens again, he told reporters in Abeche. It's an operation which was completely illegal, Foucher said, adding that those who took part in this illegal manipulation will answer for their acts in Chad. Zoe's Ark -- whose members were granted access to French military aircraft and facilities in Chad -- says the French government did nothing to stop it. Aid groups working in eastern Chad, home to some 236,000 cross-border refugees from Darfur as well as some 173,000 people displaced by a local rebellion, have firmly condemned the operation -- Comments: African Slave Trade all over again!. Europeans kidnapping young Africans Muslims for Slavery, as their ancestors did not long ago, kidnapping and trafficking men and women off the West Cast of Africa to America. Imagine if Muslims did this, it would have been on front pages, on TV daily news and even Hollywood movies would quickly be made about this. They create civil wars and strife in Africa then use that pretext to bring their troops in to keep the Piece and Church-arity groups to pacify Africans (always Muslims) and offer them
Bismillah [IslamCity] Million Riyal Award to Uproot 'Possessed' Date Palm
It's just one tree. Why not plant a few more trees and built the parking lot. -- Million Riyal Award to Uproot 'Possessed' Date Palm Arab News The offending date palm at the construction site in Jeddah. (Al-Yaum) JEDDAH, 5 November 2007 - A local Saudi investor has offered a reward of SR1 million to anyone who can remove a date palm from outside a mall currently under construction, Al-Yaum daily reported yesterday. The date palm is in the middle of what is meant to be a parking area for the mall. The offer sounds fantastic and many people will wonder why so much money is being offered for what should be a simple job. Many attempts have been made to remove the tree but all efforts have failed. Workers used tractors to pull the tree but they failed to dislodge it. Then they tried to cut it down but that too proved impossible. Surprised when the tractor failed to uproot the tree, the project manager ordered a bigger one to do the job but it failed as well. Finally, a number of religious sheikhs told the builder not to remove the date palm as a family of jinn lived under it and that was the reason all efforts to remove it had failed. The tree, it seems, is protected by the jinn, which live under it. Workers have also reported that the job did not go as expected - especially since attempts were made to move the tree. A security guard said that weird things had begun to happen and he pointed to the second floor from which he said a worker had fallen and died. The tree is still there and the offer still stands. So, if you are looking for a get-rich-quick scheme, grab your axes and chainsaws and head on down the site. http://www.arabnews.com/?page=9section=0article=103221d=5m=11y=2007 pixel.giftree5_.jpg
Bismillah [IslamCity] Public hospitals banned from doing circumcisions
Public hospitals banned from doing circumcisions THE South Australian Government has banned circumcision and some cosmetic surgery in the state's public hospitals. State Health Minister John Hill said today that the ban, which would come into effect this month, would ensure surgery was carried out only when there was a clear medical need. SA joins four other states in no longer providing male circumcisions for non-medical reasons. Other procedures include tattoo removal, breast implantation, liposuction and reversals of sterilisation. Mr Hill said the bans would lessen the demand on hospital beds and extend clinical resources and theatre time. He said parents who wanted to have their son circumcised could have the procedure done in a private hospitals. http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22744551-2,00.html
Bismillah [IslamCity] Hajj Workshop - held by Sheikh Adly
As-Salaamu 'Alaykum, Sheikh Muhammad Adly held a hajj workshop at the masjid a few weeks ago. He is offering it again this time on paltalk. I went to the first one and it was great, I encourage everyone to attend this (even if you're not going to hajj this year). wa'l salaamu alaykum Shahid. - Original Message - Subject: Hajj Workshop - UPDATED Assalaamu alakum, My dear brothers and Sisters. My name is Muhammad S. Adly and I am pleased to be your guide as we embark on the sacred journey to fulfill the Fifth pillar of Islam. Due to it's importance we need to talk and go over what is going to be facing us and what we are required to do and what to stay away from according to the Quran and the authentic Sunnah and also how they relate to this blessed event. I have prepared a workshop to help us in this area. It will start on Monday at 6 P.M.EST. It will be broadcast on PalTalk in the room Islam Emaan Ishan. IF you do not have a paltalk go to www.paltalk.com click on download for free then click run then run again agree to terms click next then next again this will install paktalk onto your computer. click Finnish then follow the on screen instructions. you make up a nickname and make up a password type in you email choose a question then type the answer remove the green check marks by clicking on them then click Finnish. click OK go to browse all rooms then religion and spirituality then Islam then Islam emaan ishan. and you will be ready for the class it seems like allot but it is easy as 123 that's on Monday Nov 26th at 6pm EST make sure that you are there. If you have any problems with paltalk call 803 223 1949 ask for Khalid and he will help you Inshallah. As salaamu alakum, Muhammad S. Adly Adlyonline.com
Bismillah [IslamCity] CAIR: OfficeMax Drops Savage Ads / Action: Ask JCPenney to Follow OfficeMax's Example
November 15, 2007 Forward to a Friend Support CAIR Contact Us Update Your Profile GOOD NEWS ALERT #528 ACTION ALERT #529: Ask JCPenney to Follow OfficeMax's Example OFFICEMAX DROPS MICHAEL SAVAGE ADS OVER ANTI-ISLAM BIAS (WASHINGTON, D.C., 11/15/2007) - The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today announced that OfficeMax, a leading office products retailer, has joined a growing list of companies that have stopped advertising on Michael Savage's nationally-syndicated radio program because of the host's anti-Muslim views. CAIR recently reported that Savage, whose The Savage Nation airs on more than 300 radio stations nationwide, screamed attacks on Muslims, Islam and the Quran, Islam's revealed text, during his October 29, 2007, program. To listen to Savage's bigoted statements, click here. SEE: National Radio Host Goes on Anti-Muslim Tirade The Washington-based Islamic civil rights and advocacy group called on radio listeners of all faiths to contact companies that advertise on Savage's program to express their concerns about the host's anti-Muslim bigotry. Companies that have dropped ads from Savage's program include Citrix Systems Inc., a global leader in application delivery infrastructure. It is encouraging that companies nationwide are choosing not to associate with Mr. Savage's hatred and bigotry, said CAIR Communications Coordinator Amina Rubin. Freedom of speech includes the right not to subsidize hate. Rubin thanked OfficeMax for its prompt response to Muslim concerns. She said CAIR is asking other Savage advertisers to follow that company's example. CAIR, America's largest Muslim civil liberties group, has 33 offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding. - END - CONTACT: CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-488-8787 or 202-744-7726, E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ; CAIR Communications Coordinator Rabiah Ahmed, 202-488-8787 or 202-439-1441, E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; CAIR Communications Coordinator Amina Rubin, 202-488-8787 or 202-341-4171, E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] SEE ALSO: CAIR ACTION ALERT #529 ASK JCPENNEY TO FOLLOW OFFICEMAX'S EXAMPLE IMMEDIATE ACTIONS REQUESTED: (As always, be POLITE. Hostile comments can and will be used by Savage to further defame Islam and Muslims.) 1. CONTACT JCPenney, today's featured Savage Nation advertiser. (Other advertisers will be featured in the future.) As part of the ongoing campaign to ask companies that advertise on The Savage Nation to stop buying air time on that program, today's featured company is JCPenney. Please contact company officials to express your concerns about their support of such a hate-filled program. CONTACT: Mr. Myron E. Ullman Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer J.C. Penney Company, Inc. 6501 Legacy Drive Plano, TX 75024 Tel: 972-431-1000 Fax: 972-431-9140 E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] COPY TO: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 2. Because The Savage Nation is a syndicated program, many of the advertisers vary from station to station. FIND OUT which station carries Michael Savage's program in your area, LISTEN to the program and write down the contact information for both local and national advertisers. CONTACT those advertisers to POLITELY inform them that you and your friends and family will not purchase their products or services as long as they continue to subsidize a hate-filled program. For a listing of radio stations that air Michael Savage's program, click here. 3. CONTACT Talk Radio Network, Michael Savage's syndicator, to express your concerns about his hate-filled attacks on Muslims, Islam and the Quran. Mr. Mark Masters Chief Executive Officer Talk Radio Network P.O. Box 3755 Central Point OR 97502 Phone: 541-664-8827 or 541-474-2297 Fax: 541-664-6250 or 866-876-5075 E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] , [EMAIL PROTECTED] 4. SEND COPIES of all correspondence to CAIR at: E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] or fax to 202-488-0833. 5. ORGANIZE local
Bismillah [IslamCity] Write to ATT to remove Advertising
Action: Ask ATT to Drop Ads from 'Savage Nation' Radio show IMMEDIATE ACTIONS REQUESTED: (As always, be POLITE. Hostile comments can and will be used by Savage to further defame Islam and Muslims.) 1. CONTACT ATT, today's featured Savage Nation advertiser. (Other advertisers will be featured in the future.) As part of the ongoing campaign to ask companies that advertise on The Savage Nation to stop buying air time on that program, today's featured company is ATT. Please contact company officials to express your concerns about their support of such a hate-filled program. CONTACT: Randall L. Stephenson Chairman of the Board, President, Chief Executive Officer, ATT 175 E. Houston San Antonio, TX 78205 Tel: (210) 821-4105 Fax: (210) 351-2071 E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] COPY TO: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 2. Because The Savage Nation is a syndicated program, many of the advertisers vary from station to station. FIND OUT which station carries Michael Savage's program in your area, LISTEN to the program and write down the contact information for both local and national advertisers. CONTACT those advertisers to POLITELY inform them that you and your friends and family will not purchase their products or services as long as they continue to subsidize a hate-filled program. For a listing of radio stations that air Michael Savage's program, click here. 3. CONTACT Talk Radio Network, Michael Savage's syndicator, to express your concerns about his hate-filled attacks on Muslims, Islam and the Quran. Mr. Mark Masters Chief Executive Officer Talk Radio Network P.O. Box 3755 Central Point OR 97502 Phone: 541-664-8827 or 541-474-2297 Fax: 541-664-6250 or 866-876-5075 E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] 4. SEND COPIES of all correspondence to CAIR at: E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] or fax to 202-488-0833. 5. ORGANIZE local coalitions with friends of the Muslim community to challenge Savage's hate rhetoric. http://www.cair.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?mid1=763ArticleID=23773name=ncurrPage=1
Bismillah [IslamCity] Sikh sues after being asked if he was Muslim
Sikh sues after being asked if he was Muslim and other things... FRESNO, Calif. - A federal judge has ordered Bally Total Fitness to pay $24,000 to a Sikh man who sued when the company denied him a job after asking if he was Muslim, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said Wednesday. Sukdev Devin Singh Dhaliwal applied for a sales job with one of Bally's five Fresno fitness centers in 2004. An interviewer quizzed Dhaliwal, who was born and raised in California, about his religious and ethnic background, and then denied him a job and hired non-Sikh, non-Indian applicants with less experience, according to the commission. He was basically asked where he was born, where his parents were born, what religion he subscribed to and whether he was a Muslim, said EEOC program analyst Linda Li. He's very American. Under the consent decree approved by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White, Bally must pay Dhaliwal $24,000 in damages and provide training in equal opportunity hiring practices to managers at its Fresno locations. Dhaliwal said he plans to donate some of the money to his alma mater, California State University, Fresno, where a business law professor steered him to the EEOC after hearing about the interview.
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: Signs of a pure hypocrite
Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Amr: Allah's Apostle said, Whoever has (the following) four characteristics will be a pure hypocrite: If he speaks, he tells a lie; if he gives a promise, he breaks it, if he makes a covenant he proves treacherous; and if he quarrels, he behaves in a very imprudent evil insulting manner (unjust). And whoever has one of these characteristics, has one characteristic of a hypocrite, unless he gives it up. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 53, Number 403
Bismillah [IslamCity] Ninjabis learn to fight back
We should be offering these self defense classes to the sisters in every community. This is just one reason why: http://www.thestar.com/article/231401 In Britain, Ninjabis learn to fight back http://www.reuters.com/article/inDepthNews/idUSL0250204920070503?feedType=RSS By Amil Khan LONDON (Reuters) - Anyone tempted to pick on a headscarf-wearing Muslim woman better hope they don't run into a Ninjabi. Every week around 30 Muslim women, most wearing veils, gather in a community centre in east London to learn how to block, knee and punch would-be attackers or lecherous men targeting passive-looking victims. The organizers, who named the classes after Japanese Ninja warriors and women who wear the hijab, say Muslim women are looking to fight back against unwanted advances and a rising number of anti-Muslim attacks. The ladies love the Ninjabi thing. It gives them a good giggle, said class instructor Dee Terry, who is not a Muslim herself. One of the attendees, 31-year-old mother Mahmuda Mazid, said she took up the classes after a gang of youths tried to rob her teenage brother while she was with him in a local park. There was this sheer feeling of helplessness that I couldn't help myself or my brother... and there was absolute rage, she said. I knew I had to do something to equip myself. In the classes I saw protection and self defense. That's what I needed. The classes start with a warm-up and then the women -- no men are allowed -- practice punches, strikes using the heel of the hand, knee strikes to the groin and defenses against knives and sticks. Terry also teaches the women how to deter potential attackers by looking assertive. The loose full-length clothing favored by Muslim women rules out high-kicking maneuvers but does not otherwise hinder movement, says Terry. The Hijab and the Niqab -- which covers the face and leaves only the eyes visible -- clearly identify Muslim women, increasing their chances of becoming victims of anti-Muslim hostility. But Terry says Islamic clothing itself does not make it easier to attack a woman. An attacker can pull your headscarf but they can also pull your hair, so Islamic clothes don't make that much of a difference, added Terry, who also teaches Judo, Jujitsu and Kickboxing. PERVY MEN AND HOODIES In the dilapidated area where the classes are held, Muslim women said their biggest worry was harassment from pervy men and the violent anti-social behavior of teenagers from urban low-income communities, popularly called hoodies and chavs. In other areas of London, Muslim women said growing hostility towards Muslims -- commonly called Islamophobia -- since London's July 7th bombings in 2005 was a big fear. Attacks on Muslims in London nearly quadrupled in the days after the July attacks. Figures collated by London's Metropolitan Police, and presented in a report by the Muslim Safety Forum, showed 303 attacks in July 2005, up from 82 in the previous month. Azad Ali, chairman of the forum, said the attacks ranged from verbal abuse and vandalism of mosques to physical attacks. But because of limitations in the way attacks are reported, the real number is likely to be far higher, he added. National figures are lacking because there are no universally agreed criteria among the country's police forces for what constitutes an Islamophobic attack, said Ali. Muslims, who make up about 3 percent of Britain's population, also do not readily report attacks. An initiative by London's police to engage with Muslim women found many did not report attacks because they felt the police would not act. Others had limited English and were unable to register complaints without help. The issue of reporting crime... was a major concern amongst certain (Muslim) communities, the police said in a report on meetings with Muslim women. This may lead to disenchantment with the process and eventual disengagement from the police and justice system, the police added in the report. ENTER THE NINJABI Official figures cite London as having the largest proportion of Muslims in the UK at 3.8 percent. The Ninjabi classes are held in the Newham area of the capital, where Muslims make up 24 percent of local inhabitants. The organizers said the classes were a response to overwhelming demand from Muslim women. It was a need. Women were coming and asking for self- defense classes. We had heard of increasing Islamophobia and other sorts of attacks on Muslim women, said Mizan Raja, a coordinator of Islamic Circles, the organization running the classes. The organizers say although similar self-defense classes are common the light-hearted approach which respects the women's faith has made the Ninjabi classes massively popular. We could fill a class a day. It's totally oversubscribed, said Raja. The organizers plan to split the class according to experience, using
Bismillah [IslamCity] Action Alert #528: CAIR Reminds Hajj Pilgrims of Their Legal Rights
Action Alert #528: CAIR Reminds Hajj Pilgrims of Their Legal Rights (WASHINGTON, D.C., 12/4/07) - CAIR today urged American Muslims taking part in this year's Hajj to be aware of their rights when leaving from or returning to the United States. Because of past allegations of flying while Muslim airport profiling incidents, CAIR is advising those going on pilgrimage to be aware of their civil and legal rights as airline passengers and citizens. CAIR is also offering a toll-free hotline (1-800-784-7526) for anyone who believes their rights were violated. In its Your Rights and Responsibilities as an American Muslim pocket guide, CAIR states: As an airline passenger, you are entitled to courteous, respectful and non-stigmatizing treatment by airline and security personnel. You have the right to complain about treatment that you believe is discriminatory. If you believe you have been treated in a discriminatory manner, immediately: * Ask for the names and ID numbers of all persons involved in the incident. Be sure to write this information down. * Ask to speak to a supervisor. * Ask if you have been singled out because of your name, looks, dress, race, ethnicity, faith, or national origin. * Ask witnesses to give you their names and contact information. * Write down a statement of facts immediately after the incident. Be sure to include the flight number, the flight date, and the name of the airline. Contact CAIR to file a report. If you are leaving the country, leave a detailed message, with the information above at 202-488-8787. SEE: Your Rights and Responsibilities as an American Muslim Last week, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) issued a travel advisory highlighting the significance of Hajj. SEE: Hajj Travel Information ACTIONS REQUESTED: 1. Any pilgrims who believe their constitutional rights have been violated should call CAIR's Hajji Hotline at 1-800-784-7526. 2. Those going on Hajj should also print out an incident report form from http://www.cair.com/FileaComplaint.aspx and keep it handy for the return trip to the United States. CAIR's Civil Rights Department can also be reached by e-mailing: [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.cair.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?mid1=763ArticleID=23897name=ncurrPage=1
Bismillah [IslamCity] Airport - Smile . Or Else
'Behavior Detection Officers' are now watching passengers' facial expressions for signs of danger. It's a new level of absurdity for America. WEB-EXCLUSIVE COMMENTARY By Patti Davis Special to Newsweek It was bound to happen. Now even a frown or grimace can get you into trouble with The Man. Specially trained security personnel will be watching passengers for micro-expressions that will reveal treacherous agendas and insidious intentions at airports around the country. These agents, who may literally hold your fate in their hands have been given a lofty, Orwellian name: Behavior Detection Officers. Did anyone ever doubt that George Orwell's prophecies in 1984 would arrive? In that novel, he wrote, You had to live-did live, from habit that became instinct-in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized. In the study of micro-expressions-yes, it is actually a field of study and there are some who are arrogant enough to call it a science-it has been decided that when people wish to conceal emotions, the truth of their feelings is revealed in facial flashes. These experts have determined that fear and disgust are the key things to look for because they can hint of deception. Let's see, fear and disgust in an airport? I'm frightened and disgusted weeks before I have to show up at an airport. In fact, I've pretty much sworn off the whole idea of going anywhere by airplane. It's bad enough that I might be trapped in a crowded plane with no food or water and nonworking toilets for hours; now there are security agents interpreting our facial expressions. The face police, in place at more than a dozen U.S. airports already, aren't identified as such. But the watcher could be at curbside baggage, the ticket counter or near the metal detectors and X-ray machines. The Transportation Security Administration hopes to have as many as 500 Behavior Detection Officers on the job by the end of 2008. But what about the woman who is getting on a plane to see a dying relative? Or the man who is traveling to another state to see a cancer specialist in a last bid for extending his life? What about the guy who just had a fight with his spouse and now worries that a plane crash would mean their last words were in anger? We've all had the experience of having a bad day, being in a rotten mood-especially at the airport, which has become a modern-day chamber or horrors. On those days, doesn't it seem like everyone we meet looks sour and unpleasant? The opposite is also true. When we're happy and joyful, we look at others and see happiness in them. Or even if we don't, we look at them kindly and with compassion. It's human nature to look at others through the lens of our own reality. Here's where it gets really absurd. Apparently, these Behavior Detection Officers work in pairs. One scenario is that an officer might move in to help a passenger retrieve their belongings after they've been screened. And then the officer will ask where the passenger is headed. If the passenger's reaction sets off alarm bells in the officer's well-trained mind, another officer will move in and detain them. Let's be really clear here. If a stranger moved in on me like that, I'd tell that person to go to hell, throw in a few other expletives for good measure and probably give them the finger as I stomped off. Of course, I wouldn't be stomping very far. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20298840/site/newsweek/page/0/
Bismillah [IslamCity] Fiqh Council of North America's Statement - Eid al-Adha: After the Day of Hajj
FIQH COUNCIL OF NORTH AMERICA STATEMENT Eid al-Adha: After the Day of Hajj Muslims in general hold two different opinions about the observance of Eid al-Adha: Some believe it should follow local lunar dates, and others that it should follow the Hajj in Mecca. The Fiqh Council, after careful study, has reached the conclusion that Eid al-Adha should follow the day of Hajj as announced in Mecca. This is also the conclusion of the European Council of Fatwa and Research. The following is a summary of a long paper on this subject; those who are interested may refer to the full text on our website. Eid and its Connection to the Pillars of Islam: Both our Eids are closely connected to the pillars of Islam, one to fasting and the other to the pilgrimage The Hajj therefore, is more than just the 4th pillar of Islam; it is in fact a season of worship which begins in Shawwal and ends with the Wuquf of Arafah. The greatjurist Ibn Taymiyyah was of the opinion that this is perhaps why the Prophet (PBUH) proclaimed two days of festivities, one to celebrate its beginning and the other, its end. Then there is reference to the ten days of hajj both in the Qur’an as well as in the Sunnah, and to the fact that these days belong to Islam’s most sacred days. The Texts: Most of the verses and the traditions that address the ritual of Hajj also mention the festival related to it: Baqarah, 2:183-203, for instance, strongly suggests a linkage between the Hajj and the Eid; and Hajj, 28 and 36, directly addresses pilgrims and indirectly addresses all others. Scholarly Opinion: Ibn Taymiyyah says that the animal sacrifice at Mina applies in the first place to pilgrims and thereafter to all others. The famous Hanbali jurist, Hafiz Ibn Rajab explains that the salat of Eid al-Adha should be performed concurrent with the rites being performed during the Hajj. Ahmad bin Hanbal maintained that Eid al-Adha prayer should be offered during the time when pilgrims were moving from Muzdalifah to Mina. Imam al-Bhaghawi quoting Ibn Abbas, Imam Malik and Imam Shafa’ee states that Muslims all over the globe are to follow the timings of Hujjaj vis-à-vis Takbeerat of Tashreeq; this according to Imam al-Sarkhasi was an opinion held by Abu Yusuf as well. Conclusion The Fiqh Council is of the opinion that in the case of Eid al-Adha global unity must prevail over local sightings or calculations. The Council does concede that no clear cut text requires Muslims worldwide to celebrate Eid al-Adha after the day of Hajj. But the evidence cited above, in the view of the Council, makes a compelling argument for connecting local Eid with global Hajj when circumstances permit. This is all the more relevant given that no Islamic text compels Muslims to use local sightings that are at odds with the declared day of Hajj. In addition to being the 4th ritual of Islam, Hajj is also the ultimate expression of global Muslim unity with dimensions that are both political as well as spiritual. The Fiqh Council strongly believes that this important symbol is compromised when global Islam is disunited on this auspicious day of festivity. Given the technology at our disposal today, there is no justification in Islamic law to compromise Muslim unity in deference to the traditional modes of determining local Eid celebrations. http://www.isna.com/events/Special-Announcement/Fiqh-Council-of-North-America-Statement.aspx
Bismillah [IslamCity] How sound is the hadeeth, Whoever neglects prayer, Allaah will send fifteen punishments upon him
Question #20897: How sound is the hadeeth, Whoever neglects prayer, Allaah will send fifteen punishments upon him? Click here to get a printable version Question: My question is regarding these hadiths i was given in an email. I just want to know if they are authentic before i pass them on. Jazakallah. HADITH OF PROPHET (P.B.U.H) The one who disdains the prayers will receive fifteen punishments from Allah. Six punishments in this lifetime Three while dying , Three in the grave Three on the Day of Judgement. THE SIX PUNISHMENTS OF LIFE: 1. Allah takes away blessings from his age(makes his life misfortunate) 2.Allah does not accept his plea(Du'aa) 3.Allah erases the features of good people from his face. 4.He will be detested by all creatures on earth. 5.Allah does not award him for his good deeds.(No thawab) 6.He will not be included in the Du'aa of good people. THE THREE PUNISHMENTS WHILE DYING: 1. He dies humiliated. 2. He dies hungry. 3. He dies thirsty. Even if he drinks the water of all seas he will still be thirsty. THE THREE PUNISHMENTS IN THE GRAVE: 1. Allah tightens his grave until his chest ribs come over each other. 2. Allah pours on him fire with embers. 3. Allah sets on him a snake called the brave,the bold which hits Him from morning until afternoon for leaving Fajr prayer,from the afternoon until Asr for leaving Dhuhr prayer and so on.With each strike he sinks 70 yards under the ground. THE THREE PUNISHMENTS ON THE DAY OF JUDGEMENT: 1. Allah sends who would accompany him to hell pulling him on the face. 2. Allah gives him an angry look that makes the flesh of his face fall down. 3. Allah judges him strictly and orders him to be thrown in hell. Answer: Praise be to Allaah. Firstly: The hadeeth, Whoever neglects prayer, Allaah will send fifteen punishments upon him, six in this world, three when he is dying, three in the grave and three when he emerges form the grave. is a fabricated (mawdoo') hadeeth which is falsely attributed to the Messenger of Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Concerning this hadeeth Ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, in the magazine al-Buhooth al-Islamiyyah (22/329): With regard to the hadeeth which the author of this pamphlet attributes to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) concerning the punishment of the one who does not pray, and which says that fifteen punishment will be sent upon him etc., this is one of the fabricated ahaadeeth that are falsely attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), as was stated by the scholars (may Allaah have mercy on him) such as al-Haafiz al-Dhahabi in Lisaan al-Meezaan, and al-Haafiz ibn Hajar and others. Similarly the Standing Committee issued a fatwa, no. 8689, declaring this hadeeth to be false, as it says in Fataawa al-Lajnah, 4/468. Among the things mentioned in this fatwa which it is worth quoting here is: What has been narrated from Allaah and from His Messenger concerning the punishment of the one who does not pray is sufficient. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): Verily, As-Salaah (the prayer) is enjoined on the believers at fixed hours [al-Nisa' 4:103] And Allaah says of the people of Hell (interpretation of the meaning): 'What has caused you to enter Hell?' They will say: 'We were not of those who used to offer the Salaah (prayers)' [al-Muddaththir 74:42-43] and He mentioned among their attributes the fact that they did not pray. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: The covenant that stands between us and them is prayer; whoever gives up prayer is a kaafir. Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 2621; al-Nasaa'i, 431; Ibn Maajah, 1079. classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Tirmidhi, 2113. And there are other verses and ahaadeeth which speak of giving up prayer, and the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) described it as kufr. See also question no. 2182. Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: This hadeeth is mawdoo' (fabricated) and falsely attributed to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). It is not permissible to propagate it unless it is accompanied by a statement that it is fabricated, so that the people will have a clear understanding about it. Fataawa al-Shaykh published by the Daw'ah center in 'Anayzah, 1/6 We ask Allaah to make you steadfast in your keenness to call your brothers and advise them, but
Bismillah [IslamCity] ruling: Things that decrease/increase faith
10809 Question # 10809: What are the things that make faith decrease? Question: What are the things that make faith decrease? Answer: Praise be to Allaah. The things that make faith decrease are as follows: 1. Ignorance of the names and attributes of Allaah makes a decrease in faith inevitable, because if a man is lacking in knowledge of the names and attributes of Allaah, he will be lacking in faith. 2. Neglecting to think about the signs of Allaah in the universe and the signs of sharee'ah (i.e., verses of the Qur'aan and miracles of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), etc.). This causes a decrease in faith or at the very least it causes it to stagnate and not grow. 3. Committing sins, because sin has a profound effect on the heart and on faith. Hence the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: The adulterer at the time when he is committing adultery is not a believer. 4. Neglecting to do acts of worship, because neglecting to do acts of worship causes a decrease in faith. But if the act of worship is obligatory and a person neglects it with no excuse, then he is to be blamed and deserves punishment. If the act of worship is not obligatory, or it is obligatory but a person does not do it for a valid reason, then he is lacking but is not to be blamed. Hence the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) described women as lacking in reason and in religion, and he explained their lacking in religion as being because of the fact that when they menstruate, they do not pray or fast. But they are not to be blamed for not praying or fasting during their menstruation; rather they are commanded not to do these things at that time. But because they miss out on doing some of the things that men do, they are regarded as lacking in this regard. Majmoo' Fataawa wa Rasaa'il Fadeelat al-Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him), vol. 1. p. 57 http://www.islamqa.com/index.php?ref=10809ln=eng 10776 Question # 10776: What are the means of increasing faith? Question: What are the means of increasing faith? Answer: Praise be to Allaah. There are several means of increasing faith: The first means is learning about Allaah through His names and attributes. The more a person learns about Allaah through His names and attributes, the more he will increase in faith, without a doubt. Hence you find that the scholars who know more about the names and attributes of Allaah than others do, are stronger in faith than others in this regard. The second means is looking at the signs of Allaah in the universe and the signs of sharee'ah (i.e., verses of the Qur'aan and miracles of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), etc.). The more a person looks at the signs of Allaah in the universe, the more he increases in faith. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): And on the earth are signs for those who have Faith with certainty. And also in your ownselves. Will you not then see? [al-Dhaariyaat 51:20-21] The verses which indicate that are many, I mean the verses which indicate that by pondering and thinking about this universe, man can increase in faith. The third means is doing many acts of worship, for the more acts of worship a person does, the more he will increase in faith thereby, whether those acts of worship involve words or actions. So dhikr increases faith in quantity and quality, and prayer, fasting and Hajj also increase faith in quantity and quality. Majmoo' Fataawa wa Rasaa'il Fadeelat al-Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him), vol. 1. p. 49 http://www.islamqa.com/index.php?ref=10776ln=engqa-no1.jpg
Bismillah [IslamCity] Iraqi Refugees in Syria Turning to the Unknown
It seems like Syria just let them in the country to get money (International Aid) from other countries. Iraqi Refugees in Syria Turning to the Unknown By Raya Shokatfard Freelance Writer - Egypt Iraqi refugees wait to register their names at the UNHCR centre in the Douma suburb of Damascus, July 19, 2007. (Reuters Photo) As nations praise Syria for being the only Arab country keeping its borders open for the Iraqis driven from their homes, the refugees blame Syria and the rest of the world for forgetting about their hardship and needs. They let us in, but stamp our passport with 'work not permitted' and give us no financial support, said a woman holding eight passports in her hands outside the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Sayeda Zainab district. How are we supposed to live, on what? she screamed, crying about the financial hardship they are facing, living on the very little basics. Currently, Syria hosts about 1.5 million refugees, according to the UNHCR. Immediately prior to the Iraq war, Syria entered into an agreement with the UNHCR to provide temporary protection to Iraqis during the instability in Iraq; they are given a renewable 3-month legal residence visa. Due to lack of work, some of the Iraqis who exhaust their savings have to return to Iraq and face further hardship; some with better financial capabilities seek other countries. Resonated With Sorrow They let us in, but stamp our passport with 'work not permitted' and give us no financial support, said a woman holding eight passports. Beside financial hardship, much of the suffering the Iraqis face in Syria is due to lack of adequate medical help. A man showed a picture of his little girl with a bloated and deformed stomach that, he explained, may have been caused by her mother's exposure to depleted uranium prior to giving birth. He gets no financial help from the Iraqi government or the US; Syria would pay only for limited medical costs. An elderly woman cried as she talked about her adult daughter who has some disease causing her to be overweight, making her unable to walk. There are not enough medical resources for any remedy for her. Others described their sufferings as their faces resonated with sorrow. An elderly Christian man who could barely walk, was in bad need of knee surgery, but unable to find such help. He was desperately approaching reporters or any foreigners begging them to find him a way to leave the country and arrange for a knee operation. Some of the afflictions were more difficult to bear than others. A wife of a blind Sunni Imam was crying with grief as he was talking about how they lost everything they had during the US occupation of Iraq, including a dignified life back home. Now they are merely refugees with no more possessions, she said. Their mosque was bombed by the Americans, leaving scores dead or wounded. Her husband has lost sight due to the bombing, but narrowly escaped death. As for Iraqis inside Syria, although nearly 1000 persons per day register with the UNHCR, there is still a large number unaccounted for. When they register, they get international relief protection, especially for the vulnerable families. People don't have to register unless they think we can help them, Wilkes said. Yet, in a visit of the UNHCR office in Sayyada Zainab district, most of the Iraqis showed their registration and complained that this paper has made no difference in their situation and they have received no help. Double Displacement A Sunni Imam talked about how they lost everything they had during the US occupation of Iraq, including a dignified life back home. Iraqis are not the only ones suffering as refugees. Palestinians from Iraq have the worse of the conditions among the refugees. Some Iraqis who have made it into Syria are grateful they are not in the Palestinian camps - isolated and without recourses. Although the Palestinian refugees in the camps receive food and tents, they are deprived of all other amenities Iraqis might get. UNHCR's regional public information officer in Syria, Sybella Wilkes, said the situation in the overcrowded Al-Tamp and Al-Waleed makeshift camps, where close to 1400 Palestinian refugees from Iraq stay, is very bad. Al-Tamp camp is in no man's land, while Al-Waleed camp is inside Iraq, but close to the Syrian borders. Children are stranded. No one is allowed to cross the borders. There is deficiency in medical facilities and emergency services. According to Wilkes, there are at least 12 children there who are in need of immediate medical attention or they will face death. Abdul Majeed Alwali and Taleb Ghadi Amin from the ministry of information say that since 1948 all Arab countries agreed that the Palestinians are to go back to Palestine,
Bismillah [IslamCity] SILENT SCREAMS: Help Iraqi Refugee Girls From Prostitution
From: Mercy MANKIND [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: SILENT SCREAMS: Help Iraqi Refugee Girls From Prostitution Assalamualaikum Dear Brothers Sisters, IRAQI Refugee girls in Syria are forced to prostitute themselves just so they can eat. Please sign our petition to help them - 1 Million Signatures needed as soon as possible.. They are someone's sister, mother, wife, or daughter, who, out of sheer desperation and hunger, resort to prostitution. We came across a news report of a Muslim, hijab-wearing mother who said that so far only her deen has stopped her from turning to prostitution - that's how bad it is ! PLEASE SIGN What do we hope to achieve? We want to present our concerns to world leaders so they can mobilise large organisations like the UN Refugee Council who have the money and resources to help these vulnerable people, InshaAllah. We need 1 Million signatures. Please forward to your friends and encourage them to sign on the dotted line - Its free. Details are on our website : MercyMankind.org Jazakallahukhayr Mercy Mankind - A British non-profit working for the poor. Iraqi Refugees in Syria Turning to the Unknown - http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_Ccid=1189064848147pagename=Zone-English-Muslim_Affairs%2FMAELayout '50,000 Iraqi refugees' forced into prostitution - http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article2701324.ece
Bismillah [IslamCity] Turkish parliament lifts university headscarf ban
Turkish parliament lifts university headscarf ban By Gareth Jones and Hidir GoktasSat Feb 9, 11:11 AM ET Turkey's parliament lifted a ban on Saturday on female students wearing the Muslim headscarf at university, a landmark decision that some Turks fear will undermine the foundations of their secular state. Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's ruling AK Party, which has Islamist roots, hailed parliament's move as a triumph for democracy and justice in Turkey, a European Union candidate country where two thirds of women cover their heads. Our main aim is to end the discrimination experienced by a section of society just because of their personal beliefs, AK Party lawmaker Sadullah Ergin told private broadcaster NTV, adding that 80 percent of lawmakers had backed the reforms. But underlining the powerful emotions the headscarf evokes, tens of thousands of people waving Turkish flags and chanting secularist slogans staged a protest rally against the changes just a few km (miles) from the parliament in central Ankara. President Abdullah Gul is expected to approve the reform soon. The government must also amend a law governing the state body for higher education before the changes can take effect. Turkey's powerful secular establishment, which includes army generals, judges and university rectors, sees the headscarf as a symbol of radical Islam and believe it threatens the country's secular order. Turkey is 99 percent Muslim. Parliamentary speaker Koksal Toptan, -- the second ranking official in Turkey's state hierarchy after Gul -- said he hoped Turks could move beyond the divisions sparked by the reform. I hope this will be for the best of Turkey and hope it is done in a spirit of tolerance and reconciliation, Toptan said after lawmakers backed the changes by 411 for to 103 against. Others were less optimistic, noting the main opposition CHP now plans to ask the Constitutional Court to block the reforms. The polarization of Turkish society will increase, said Murat Yetkin, a commentator for the liberal Radikal daily. Girls will start wearing the headscarf on campus from Monday, he said. COMPLEX IDENTITY The headscarf issue cuts to the heart of Muslim but secular, Western-oriented Turkey's complex identity. Erdogan, a pious Muslim whose own wife and daughters cover their heads, has long argued that the headscarf ban is a violation of individual and religious freedoms. But Turkey's old secular elite regards the headscarf ban as vital for maintaining a strict separation of state and religion. For them, freeing the headscarf is just a first step in what they see as a long campaign by religious conservatives to undermine Turkey's secular institutions, shut women up at home and turn Turkey away from Europe towards the Islamic world. The AK Party denies the claims it has an Islamist agenda. Ayse Ayata, a feminist professor of sociology at Ankara's Middle East Technical University, said it was now important to protect female students who do not wear the headscarf against possible social pressures to cover up on campus. Wearing the headscarf means accepting that as a woman you are different from birth, that you are a second class citizen, Ayata said. Similar concerns were voiced by demonstrators at Saturday's anti-headscarf rally, the second in Ankara in a week. I do not want my wife to have to cover herself up, but that is where all this is leading. They want to segregate men and women, said Devrim Ozkaya, 31, a company employee. Demonstrators waved pictures of Kemal Ataturk, the revered soldier-statesman who founded the Turkish republic in 1923. They (government) want us to become like Iran, they want to bring (Islamic) sharia law to Turkey, said Ebru Okay, 32, who had traveled from the Aegean port of Izmir to join the rally. The headscarf ban in universities dates back to the 1980s but was significantly tightened in 1997 when army generals, with public support, ousted a government they deemed too Islamist. The army has remained silent during the latest debates, but senior judges and university rectors have condemned the planned changes as unconstitutional. Opinion polls show a majority of Turks back an easing of the ban. Even after the reforms, women professors as well as civil servants will still be prohibited from wearing the headscarf. (Additional reporting by Thomas Grove; Editing by Sami Aboudi) http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080209/ts_nm/turkey_headscarf_dc_5
Bismillah [IslamCity] Sharia law in UK is 'unavoidable' - Supporting Shariah puts Archbishop in trouble
Sharia law in UK is 'unavoidable' The Archbishop of Canterbury says the adoption of certain aspects of Sharia law in the UK seems unavoidable. Dr Rowan Williams told Radio 4's World at One that the UK has to face up to the fact that some of its citizens do not relate to the British legal system. Dr Williams argues that adopting parts of Islamic Sharia law would help maintain social cohesion. For example, Muslims could choose to have marital disputes or financial matters dealt with in a Sharia court. He says Muslims should not have to choose between the stark alternatives of cultural loyalty or state loyalty. 'Sensational reporting' In an exclusive interview with BBC correspondent Christopher Landau, ahead of a lecture to lawyers in London on Monday, Dr Williams argues this relies on Sharia law being better understood. At the moment, he says sensational reporting of opinion polls clouds the issue. He stresses that nobody in their right mind would want to see in this country the kind of inhumanity that's sometimes been associated with the practice of the law in some Islamic states; the extreme punishments, the attitudes to women as well. But Dr Williams said an approach to law which simply said there's one law for everybody and that's all there is to be said, and anything else that commands your loyalty or allegiance is completely irrelevant in the processes of the courts - I think that's a bit of a danger. There's a place for finding what would be a constructive accommodation with some aspects of Muslim law, as we already do with some other aspects of religious law. 'Other loyalties' Dr Williams added: What we don't want either, is I think, a stand-off, where the law squares up to people's religious consciences. We don't either want a situation where, because there's no way of legally monitoring what communities do... people do what they like in private in such a way that that becomes another way of intensifying oppression inside a community. The issue of whether Catholic adoption agencies would be forced to accept gay parents under equality laws showed the potential for legal confusion, he said. That principle that there is only one law for everybody is an important pillar of our social identity as a western democracy, he said. But I think it is a misunderstanding to suppose that means people don't have other affiliations, other loyalties which shape and dictate how they behave in society and that the law needs to take some account of that. 'Custom and community' Dr Williams noted that Orthodox Jewish courts already operated, and that the law accommodated the anti-abortion views of some Christians. The whole idea that there are perfectly proper ways the law of the land pays respect to custom and community, that's already there, he said. People may legally devise their own way to settle a dispute in front of an agreed third party as long as both sides agree to the process. Muslim Sharia courts and the Jewish Beth Din which already exist in the UK come into this category. The country's main Beth Din at Finchley in north London oversees a wide range of cases including divorce settlements, contractual rows between traders and tenancy disputes. Dr Williams' comments are likely to fuel the debate over multiculturalism in the UK. Last month, the Bishop of Rochester, the Right Reverend Dr Michael Nazir-Ali, said some places in the UK were no-go areas for non-Muslims. Dr Williams said it was not at all the case that we have absolute social exclusion. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7232661.stm Supporting Shariah puts Archbishop in trouble The Archbishop of Canterbury continues to face calls for his resignation despite attempts to defuse the row over his Islamic Sharia law comments. Dr Rowan Williams has been condemned from inside and outside his church for saying the adoption of parts of the law was unavoidable in Britain. At least two General Synod members have called for him to quit and he has been heckled as he left a church service. But supporters say his comments have been misinterpreted. The archbishop is said to be shocked and hurt by the hostility his comments have provoked, and on his website he said he certainly did not call for its introduction as some kind of parallel jurisdiction to the civil law. However the criticism mounted as his predecessor Lord George Carey accused Dr Williams of overstating the case for accommodating Islamic legal codes. 'Brilliant scholar' Writing in the News of the World, Lord Carey warned: His acceptance of some Muslim laws within British law would be disastrous for the nation. But he said Dr Williams should not be forced to quit over his remarks, adding: He is a great leader in the Anglican tradition and he has a very important role to play in the Church. Members of the Synod - the Church of England's
Bismillah [IslamCity] Pakistan blocks YouTube website
Pakistan blocks YouTube website Turkey and Thailand have in the past also banned access to the site Pakistan has blocked access to the popular YouTube website because of content deemed offensive to Islam. Its telecommunications authority ordered internet service providers to block the site until further notice. Reports said the content included Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad that have outraged many. But one report said a trailer for a forthcoming film by Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, which portrays Islam in a negative light, was behind the ban. They asked us to ban it immediately... and the order says the ban will continue until further notice, said Wahaj-us-Siraj, convener of the Association of Pakistan Internet Service Providers. Users are quite upset. They're screaming at ISPs which can't do anything. The government has valid reason for that, but they have to find a better way of doing it. If we continue blocking popular websites, people will stop using the internet. Other countries that have temporarily blocked access to YouTube include Turkey and Thailand. ref: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7261727.stm _42985287_shot_afp203.jpg
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: Lofty mansions in paradise
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: The Prophet said, The people of Paradise will look at the dwellers of the lofty mansions (i.e. a superior place in Paradise) in the same way as one looks at a brilliant star far away in the East or in the West on the horizon; all that is because of their superiority over one another (in rewards). On that the people said, O Allah's Apostle! Are these lofty mansions for the prophets which nobody else can reach? The Prophet replied, No! By Allah in whose Hands my life is, these are for the men who believed in Allah and also believed in the Apostles. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 478
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: Those who sleep through Fajr
Narrated 'Abdullah: It was mentioned before the Prophet that there was a man who slept the night till morning (after sunrise). The Prophet said, He is a man in whose ears (or ear) Satan had urinated. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 492
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: How hot is fire of hellfire
Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Apostle said, Your (ordinary) fire is one of 70 parts of the (Hell) Fire. Someone asked, O Allah's Apostle This (ordinary) fire would have been sufficient (to torture the unbelievers), Allah's Apostle said, The (Hell) Fire has 69 parts more than the ordinary (worldly) fire, each part is as hot as this (worldly) fire. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 487
Bismillah [IslamCity] Slain in Their Homes - Gaza HOLOCAUST
Slain in Their Homes IslamOnline.net Newspapers Israeli troops even targeted Gazan children while bunkering down in their homes CAIRO - Creeping out from the rubble of their bombed out homes in the Gaza Strip, shell-shocked Palestinians bitterly remember how homes and walls failed to protect family members, mostly kids, from the Israeli death. There must have been an Israeli sniper on a rooftop because he fired one shot and hit her in the stomach, Raad Abu Seif told the Telegraph on Monday, March 3. His 12-year-old daughter Safa died in his arm inside the family home in the Zimo Square area of Jabaliya in northern Gaza. The father, his wife and seven children had bunkered down inside their home when Israeli troops trudged through the Jabaliya refugee camp. Safa was going up upstairs to join her uncle and his family when an Israeli bullet penetrated her young body. She was still about four meters from a window and up on the first floor. The horrified father rushed to the phone and called an ambulance to save his child, but the car came under Israeli fire and was not able to reach the house. In a desperate attempt, Abu Seif carried the girl out of the house, raising a white flag. An Israeli tank fired warning shots above his head, forcing him to dive for cover. Shortly, the 12-year-old child breathed her last in her father's arms. I stroked Safa's hair, said Abu Seif, his voice hoarse. And then her eyes rolled backwards in her head. I tried to massage her heart for a minute, two minutes, three minutes, I don't remember. And then I felt there was nothing. My Babies Israeli occupation forces withdrew ground troops from Gaza early Monday, after killing at least 118 Palestinians, most of them civilians, in a five-day deadly blitz. Ahmed Abu Radwan, a teenager, told the Telegraph he was shot three times when he approached the Zimo Square area to see what was happening. Speaking from a hospital bed, he said that his neighbor Jihad Abu Hilayel, also a teenager, was shot dead by Israeli soldiers. But Hatem Abu Shbek said his nephew, Eyad, 16, and niece, Jacqueline, 17, were shot in his sitting room. He insists they were several meters from the window, accusing Israeli snipers of deliberately targeting them. Their mother Marfat Abu Shubak was unable to make sense of what happened. I want Eyad and Jacqueline, cried the bereaved mother, as she clung to a bundle of clothes the two children once wore, huddling in one of the rooms in the half of her house that is still standing. -- __ FIOE Statement on Gaza Holocaust By Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe The Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE) denounces the atrocities committed by the Israeli Army in Gaza and calls for a responsible and decisive stance. The Israeli military campaign in Gaza Strip has entered a dangerous phase. We fear that there will be unprecedented atrocities against the Palestinian population, including refugees in densely populated and defenceless camps. For several weeks, the Israeli military have tightened the blockade against the Gaza Strip. On 27 February, this collective punishment turned into a military campaign. Israeli forces used aerial, land and sea bombardment against a people completely isolated from the outside world and caused widespread civilian deaths, including women and children, and destruction to communities and infrastructure. We have warned, for months, of the consequences of the crimes committed by the Israeli Government and its war machine. Their actions indicate plans to commit further atrocities against one and a half million people, a bigger holocaust in Gaza. We condemn this grave and dangerous development. We are shocked by and condemn Israel's Deputy Defence Minister, Matan Vilnai's despicable threat of a bigger holocaust against the Palestinians. All parties must intervene and prevent this from happening. This threat of genocide is particularly dangerous since it comes against a background of escalating and intensifying Israeli military activities on the ground and high level political statements of intent to continue to wage brutal war on the beleaguered, besieged and defenceless people of the Gaza Strip. Israeli actions against the Gaza Strip, round the clock military bombardment, economic blockade and complete closure, have deprived its people of basic supplies and transformed them into prisoners in the world's largest prison. These actions require all people of good will to stand up against the occupying force's violations of the Palestinian population's human rights. This is a moral, historical and humanitarian
Bismillah [IslamCity] Evil Deeds that Lead One to Hell
In the name of Allah, the Most-Merciful, the All-Compassionate May the Peace and Blessings of Allah be Upon You Bismillah Walhamdulillah Was Salaatu Was Salaam 'ala Rasulillah As-Salaam Alaikum Wa-Rahmatullahi Wa-Barakatuhu Mentioning Bismillah before and saying Al-Hamdulillah after Eating `Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, When any of you wants to eat, he should mention the Name of Allah in the begining, (i.e., say Bismillah). If he forgets to do it in the beginning, he should say Bismillah awwalahu wa akhirahu (I begin with the Name of Allah at the beginning and at the end). [At-Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud]. 100/729 - Riyad Us-Saliheen (Gardens of the Righteous) Excellence of using the right Hand for Performing various good Acts `Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported: Messenger of Allah was used to using his right hand for performing Wudu and for eating his food whereas he was used to using his left hand in his toilet and for other similar purposes. [Abu Dawud] 99/722 - Riyad Us-Saliheen (Gardens of the Righteous) Evil Deeds that Lead One to Hell Sheikh al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah (swt) have mercy on him, was asked: What are the deeds of the people of Hell and what are the deeds of the people of Paradise? He replied, The deeds of the people of Hell are: * associating partners in worship with Allah (swt) * disbelieving in His Messenger * kufr (ingratitude, disbelief) * hasad (malicious envy) * lying * treachery * oppression and wrongdoing (dhulm) * promiscuity * backstabbing * cutting off the ties of kinship * cowardice at the time of jihaad * miserliness * inconsistency between what is in one's heart and the face one shows to people * despairing of the mercy of Allah (swt) * feeling secure from the plan of Allah (swt) * panicking blindly at the time of crisis * pride and extravagance at the time of plenty * abandoning one's duties towards Allah (swt) * transgressing His limits * violating His sanctity * fearing a created being instead of the Creator * showing off * going against the Qur'an and Sunnah in word or deed * obeying a created being in some act of disobedience to the Creator * blindly supporting falsehood * mocking the signs of Allah (swt) * rejecting the truth * withholding knowledge and testimony that should be revealed * witchcraft and magic * disobeying one's parents * killing any soul forbidden by Allah (swt) except for reasons of justice * consuming the wealth of the orphan * riba (usury) * desertion from the battlefield * slandering the reputation of innocent, chaste, believing women (Yaqadhat uli al-I'tibar, p.222) The Messenger of Allah (saw) mentioned all the sins that will lead one to Hell. Muslim reports from 'Iyadh bin Himaar that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said, during a lengthy khutbah: ..the people of Hell are five: the weak who lack the power to (avoid evil); the (carefree) who pursue (everything irrespective of whether it is good or evil) and who have no concern for their families or their wealth; the dishonest people whose greed cannot be concealed even in the case of minor things; and those who betray you, morning and evening, with regard to your family and your property. He also mentioned misers, liars and those who are in the habit of abusing people and using obscene, foul language. (Muslim in Kitaab al-Jannah wa Sifaat Na'imihaa Baab as-Sifaat allaatee yu'raf bihaa fid-dunyaa ahl al-Jannah wa ahl an-Naar, 4/2197 no. 2865) Based on the Book by Dr. Umar Sulaiman al-Ashqar source - http://www.missioni slam.com/ knowledge/ jannahnaar. htm The Prophet (PBUH) said Pass on knowledge from me even if it is only one verse
Bismillah [IslamCity] ruling: Tahleel marriage is haraam and invalid
91627 Question # 91627: Tahleel marriage is haraam and invalid Question: My friend has divorced his wife the third and final divorce. Is it permissible that I marry her then divorce her so that she can return to her first husband?. Answer: Praise be to Allaah. If a man divorces his wife for the third time, then she is not permissible for him to marry until she has married another man, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): And if he has divorced her (the third time), then she is not lawful unto him thereafter until she has married another husband [al-Baqarah 2:230]. It is stipulated that this marriage which will make her permissible for her first husband should be a valid marriage. Temporary marriage (mut'ah marriage) or marriage for the purpose of making her permissible for her first husband then divorcing her (tahleel marriage) are both haraam and invalid according to the vast majority of scholars, and it does not make the woman permissible for her first husband. See: al-Mughni (10/49-55). There are saheeh ahaadeeth from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) which show that tahleel marriage is haraam. Abu Dawood (2076) narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Allaah has cursed the muhallil and the muhallal lahu. This was classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Sunan Abi Dawood. The muhallil is the one who marries a woman and divorces her so that she can go back to her first husband, and the muhallal lahu is the first husband. Ibn Majaah (1936) narrated from 'Uqbah ibn 'Aamir (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Shall I not tell you of a borrowed billy-goat. They said, Yes, O Messenger of Allaah. He said, He is al-muhallil. May Allaah curse al-muhallil and al-muhallal lahu. Classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh Sunan Ibn Maajah. 'Abd al-Razzaaq (6/2650 narrated that 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allaah be pleased with him) said whilst addressing the people: By Allaah, no muhallil or muhallal lahu will be brought to me but I will stone them. This applies whether he states his intention clearly when doing the marriage contract and they stipulate that when he has made her permissible for her first husband he will divorce her, or they do not stipulate that and he intends it to himself only. Al-Haakim narrated from Naafi' that a man said to Ibn 'Umar: I married a woman and made her permissible for her first husband, and he did not tell me to do that and he did not know. He said: No, marriage should be based on genuine intentions; if you like her then keep her, and if you do not like her then leave her. He said: At the time of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) we would regard that as zina. And he said: They will still be adulterers, even if they remain for twenty years. Imam Ahmad was asked about a man who married a woman intending thereby in his heart to make her permissible for her first husband, but the woman did not know about that. He said: He is a muhallil, and if he intends thereby to make her permissible for her first husband, then he is cursed. Based on that, it is not permissible for you to marry this woman if you intend thereby to make her permissible for her first husband. Doing that is a major sin, and the marriage will not be valid, rather it is zina - Allaah forbid. Islam QA http://islamqa.com/index.php?ref=109245ln=eng qa-no1.jpg
Bismillah [IslamCity] ACTION ALERT - Israeli lives mean more to BBC than Palestinian lives!
ACTION ALERT - Israeli lives mean more to BBC than Palestinian lives! http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/4454/34/ The BBC ignored the murders of over 120 Palestinians in Gaza! On the other hand the BBC gave full coverage to the 8 Israeli deaths at a Mercaz HaRav seminary just recently. The headlines were full of the news! Please email the BBC and complain NOW. If we can generate enough complaints the BBC will buckle. It has worked before and TOGETHER we can do it again inshAllah! Please PLEASE if you care about your Palestinian brothers and sisters you would do every little it takes to help. Follow this link and complain to the BBC http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/4454/34/ Protest to BBC - email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] I condemn the killing of all innocent civilians, Israelis and Palestinians. But it seems the BBC value the lives of Israelis above the lives of Palestinians. This is clear when reporting on the story of the attack on the seminary. That story received much more coverage compared to the killings of 39 children that died a week/fortnight before in Palestine in attacks from the Israeli Government. To give you an example, when 4 Palestinian children were killed by the Israelis whilst playing football, you dedicated just one page and one video. See: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/mid...st/7269154.stm In contrast lets look at the seminary attack. You have the following web pages: 1. Israel buries victims of shooting 2. Attack won't halt talks - Israel 3. World reacts to shooting 4. In pictures: Seminary attack 5. Ripple effect Fallout from Jerusalem seminary attack depends on who ordered it 6. Grim mood at seminary 7. Israeli voices: Seminary shooting And then you have two videos. Does the BBC value the lives of Israelis more than Palestinians? I am asking that you give the Palestinians the same coverage when their children get killed as the Israelis. Most shockingly Israeli civilian victims are given hugely disproportionate coverage compared to Palestinian civilian victims. Also I have noticed that Israeli attacks are often described as a 'response', but Palestinian attacks are rarely if ever described that way - distorting the portrayal of responsibility in the 'cycle of violence'. Also Israeli victims are usually portrayed in a way that engenders empathy (named, pictured, their grieving families highlighted) whereas Palestinian victims are often mentioned merely as statistics. Crucially there has also been a shocking lack of critical scrutiny of claims by the Israeli authorities that the army acts to avoid civilian casualties - despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary from respected human rights organisations.
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: human birth Satan
Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet said, When any human being is born. Satan touches him at both sides of the body with his two fingers, except Jesus, the son of Mary, whom Satan tried to touch but failed, for he touched the placenta-cover instead. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 506
Bismillah [IslamCity] ruling: Internet relationships
Question # 91868: Internet relationships Question: I am a female college student. My problem is that I have gotten to know a young man over the internet. In the beginning the relationship was one of respect and exchanging information, until it turned into love. My mother rejects the idea of me marrying him, and she has threatened to tell my father about this relationship. I cannot do without him and he feels the same way, because he has told me that he will commit suicide if we cannot get married. I hope that you can advise me. I cannot be apart from him and he does not. Answer: Praise be to Allaah. Note - may Allaah bless you - that our great religion firmly warns us against forming relationships between the sexes outside the framework of marriage and firmly closes the door to the calamity of introduction programs that are propagated by means of newspapers, magazines and the internet. These warnings are a means of warding off fitnah (temptation and tribulation) and preventing love affairs which usually lead people to commit acts of grave immorality and transgression of the sacred limits set by Allaah - Allaah forbid - or they lead them to marriages that end in failure and are filled with suspicion and mistrust. First of all, you made a mistake by entering the chat room before knowing what the Islamic ruling on that is. Then you made another mistake by forming a relationship and friendship with a young man who is not related to you. Beware of making a third mistake by marrying him because he claims to love you sincerely and you are afraid that he may commit suicide! Marriage that is not based on a sound Islamic foundation is doomed to end in failure and regret. A young man who has spent all this time forming a relationship with a girl through chat rooms and telephone calls is in fact a young man who has no religious commitment, modesty or manners, and he cannot be entrusted with the honour of the Muslims. His threat to commit suicide means one of two things: Either he is sincere in his threat, which means that he is very weak in faith, because killing oneself is a major sin - may Allaah keep us safe and sound; Or he is lying, which means that he is a hateful opportunist and a fool, as well as a selfish individual who cares only for his own personal interests. If you were to marry this person, it would not take very long before suspicions arose which would lead to him losing trust in you and not having a peaceful or relaxed life with you. From his point of view, a girl whom he gets to know through talking on the phone or through chat rooms cannot be trusted not to form relationships with others. This will occupy his thoughts and make him anxious. Finally, you should note that this advice which we are offering to you is based on sincere concern for you. You should learn a lesson from the experience of other girls who have fallen victim to love relationships and lost their honour as a result. You should give up this young man immediately and repent to Allaah and ask His forgiveness, and praise Him for saving you from committing immoral actions even though the means that lead to them are easily available. You should also praise Him for putting obstacles in the way of this marriage, through your family's refusal. Start a new life filled with purity and chastity, regret and prayers for forgiveness, keeping away from the things that lead to temptation and immorality. Do a lot of righteous deeds, read a great deal of Qur'aan, and attend many righteous gatherings. With time, your relationship with this person will fade, for it is based on emotions that are not based on shar'i guidelines or wise thinking. Beware lest the Shaytaan ensnare you and makes you think that you cannot forget or sever the relationship forever; these are just whispers and tricks, and devilish attempts to keep you in the hell of love and emotion, and distract you from the higher aims of sincere devotion and submission to Allaah and constant striving to please Him. We ask Allaah to give you a way out from your distress and anxiety. Dr Riyaadh al-Musaymeeri. http://www.islamqa.com/index.php?ref=21933ln=eng Question # 93553: If he asks her to say I accept So and so as a husband before Allaah, does she become his wife? Question: My problem is that I got to know someone on the Net and we loved one another, but after that he asked me to marry him so that our conversing would not be haraam, and the way to do that was that I would say: I, So and so, accept So and so as a husband before Allaah. After that he asked me to take off my hijab in front of him but I refused because I was not convinced about this marriage with regard to its conditions. He said: There was acceptance and the mahr (dowry). I said: I don't want it and there were no witnesses. He said: There were witnesses; but I
Bismillah [IslamCity] Facebook gets entangled in Middle East conflict
Facebook gets entangled in Middle East conflict By Joseph Nasr Complaints by Jewish settlers angry at Facebook for listing them as residents of Palestine prompted the popular social networking Web site to allow users to switch themselves back to Israel. Facebook users living in Maale Adumim, Ariel and other large Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank protested when the site automatically listed their hometowns as being in Palestine. A group of settlers accused the California-based company of having a political agenda. I was surprised and disappointed to find that my hometown of Ariel is listed in Facebook as being part of a country called 'Palestine,' wrote Ari Zimmerman in a posting on Facebook. I am a citizen of Israel, as are all of the other residents of Ariel. We do not live in 'Palestine', nor does anyone else. Brandee Barker, Facebook's director of communications, said users living in major settlement blocs can now choose between being listed as residents of Israel or Palestine. Facebook users in the Israeli West Bank settlements of Maale Adumim, Beitar Illit, and Ariel can now choose between Israel and Palestine, Barker said last week in an email to Reuters. Israel wants to hold onto Maale Adumim and other major settlement blocs under any future peace deal with the Palestinians. We also offer Hebron in both Israel and Palestine, Barker said, referring to the major West Bank city which is home to about 150,000 Palestinians and some 400 Jewish settlers. Barker said about 18 West Bank settlements were currently listed on Facebook and that many more would be added in the future, giving users the option of choosing Israel or Palestine. In a posting on a Facebook page used by settlers, Channah Lerman wrote: Be aware! Should you restore the cities of Judea, Samaria (the West Bank) ... people will get more enraged than they are already. Palestine is not a country. RIVAL GROUPS Palestinian users have set up their own Facebook group whose members threatened to cancel their accounts if Palestine was removed from the site. Called If Palestine is removed from Facebook, I am closing my account, the group has over 4,700 members. We created this group to let our voices be heard not only among Facebook's management but all the users, and to tell everyone that Palestine is and will always be a country, Saif Qadoumi, the group's 20-year-old founder, told Reuters. Sara Al, a group member, urged users in one entry to join a group called It's not Israel, It's Palestine, saying it was a response to another group set up by Israeli users advocating the opposite message. Please join to beat another group called 'It's not Palestine, it's Israel' which has 13,000 members, she wrote. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Middle East war, and annexed Arab East Jerusalem in a move that has not won international recognition. It regards all of Jerusalem as its capital. Facebook, for its part, identifies Jerusalem as part of Israel. Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of the state they aspire to establish in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. (Editing by Paul Casciato) http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080317/wr_nm/settlers_palestinians_facebook_dc
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: Looking here there during prayer
Narrated 'Aisha: I asked the Prophet about one's looking here and there during the prayer. He replied, It is what Satan steals from the prayer of any one of you. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 511
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: Rememberence in gathering regret
Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: No people sit in a gathering in which they do not remember Allaah or send blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), but it will be a source of regret for them on the Day of Resurrection, even if they enter Paradise as a reward. Narrated by Ahmad (2/463) and classed as saheeh by the commentators according to the conditions of the two Shaykhs (al-Bukhaari and Muslim), and by Shaykh al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah (no. 76)
Bismillah [IslamCity] Women-only subway cars in 2008
Women-only subway cars in 2008 The subway corporations serving South Korea's capital will introduce women-only cars to make rides more comfortable and free of groping male hands, a subway official said on Wednesday. Sexual crimes happen frequently when the cars are packed and people are pressed against each other, the subway official said. Nearly half the crimes reported on the city's eight subway lines are sexual in nature, with many taking place on two lines that serve university and office districts, lawmaker Lee Jai-chang said in parliament on Monday. The Seoul subway network moves 6.1 million people a day and, as in Tokyo, uniformed attendants are on hand at rush hour pushing passengers into packed carriages. Several Tokyo train lines have tried women-only carriages to prevent groping. http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN3129288120071031?feedType=RSSfeedName=oddlyEnoughNews
Bismillah [IslamCity] Video: Israel's Influence on U.S. Foreign Policy
Israel's Influence on U.S. Foreign Policy: Is It in Our Best Interests? Scott Ritter describes Israel's role in shaping U.S. foreign policy. Should all of us as American citizens be concerned? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O125hGt9qt4
Bismillah [IslamCity] Diebold Accidentally Leaks Results Of 08 Election
The Onion is a United States-based parody newspaper published weekly in print and daily online. It features satirical articles reporting on international, national, and local news as well as an entertainment The Onion: Diebold Accidentally Leaks Results Of 08 Election http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBrDzZCOQtI
Bismillah [IslamCity] Harvard University economist: recession could be the worst since World War II
Harvard Expert Says US Economy In Recession's Grip By Bloomberg 03/16/08 Gulf News -- - Atlanta: Harvard University economist Martin Feldstein, a member of the group that dates business cycles in the US, said the nation has entered a recession that could be the worst since World War II. I believe the US economy is now in recession,'' Feldstein, president of the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), told the Futures Industry Association conference in Boca Raton, Florida. Could this become the worst recession we have seen in the postwar period? I think the answer is yes. I would emphasise the word 'could'. Feldstein's remarks represent the first time that a member of the NBER's business-cycle dating committee has publicly described the current downturn as a recession. The economy may not respond quickly to Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts, and a package of tax rebates and investment incentives will offer only a temporary boost, he said. Investors on Friday raised their bets that the Fed will slash interest rates by a full percentage point this week after the central bank and JPMorgan Chase agreed to provide emergency funding to Bear Stearns, the fifth-largest US securities firm. Bush administration officials including Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson have avoided saying the economy is in a recession. We have slowed down very significantly,'' Paulson said on Friday. I'm not getting into'' whether it is a recession. The economy expanded 0.6 per cent at an annualised pace last quarter, and economists predict the pace will slow to 0.1 per cent in January to March. The US unexpectedly lost jobs in February for the second consecutive month, a government report showed on March 7. A private report Friday showed consumer sentiment this month sank to a 16-year low. By almost every measure the US economy is moving sideways or slightly down for the last few months,'' said Feldstein, who in January put the odds of a recession at more than 50 per cent. © Al Nisr Publishing LLC 2007 http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article19547.htm
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: Satan is afraid of Umra (r.a)
Narrated Sad bin Abi Waqqas: Once Umar asked the leave to see Allah's Apostle in whose company there were some Quraishi women who were talking to him and asking him for more financial support raising their voices. When 'Umar asked permission to enter the women got up (quickly) hurrying to screen themselves. When Allah's Apostle admitted 'Umar, Allah's Apostle was smiling, 'Umar asked, O Allah's Apostle! May Allah keep you gay always. Allah's Apostle said, I am astonished at these women who were with me. As soon as they heard your voice, they hastened to screen themselves. 'Umar said, O Allah's Apostle! You have more right to be feared by them. Then he addressed (those women) saying, O enemies of your own souls! Do you fear me and not Allah's Apostle ? They replied. Yes, for you are a fearful and fierce man as compared with Allah's Apostle. On that Allah's Apostle said (to 'Umar), By Him in Whose Hands my life is, whenever Satan sees you taking a path, he follows a path other than yours. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 515
Bismillah [IslamCity] Dutch protest against Islam film
Dutch protest against Islam film Protesters called for an end to hatred and fear in the Netherlands At least 1,000 people have taken part in a demonstration in Amsterdam against the planned release of a film expected to be highly critical of Islam. Protesters objected to the planned internet release of the film by Dutch right-wing politician Geert Wilders. Mr Wilders says the 15-minute film deals with Islamic ideology which he describes as the enemy of freedom. The planned release, expected before the end of this month, has sparked angry responses in the Muslim world. Some protesters in central Amsterdam carried signs that said Stop the witch hunt against Muslims. We can no longer remain silent. There is a climate of hate and fear in the Netherlands, said Rene Danen, a spokesman from anti-racism organisation Nederland Bekent Kleur (The Netherlands Shows its Colours), which organised the protest. The Dutch government has disassociated itself from Mr Wilders' views, but there are fears the film will spark protests similar to those that followed the publication in Denmark two years ago of cartoons seen as offensive to Muslims. The film has already been condemned by several Muslim countries, including Iran and Pakistan. 'Fight for freedom' Mr Wilders' film is entitled Fitna, an Arabic word used to describe strife or discord, usually religious. Mr Wilders wrote a commentary in a Dutch newspaper on Saturday. The film is not so much about Muslims as about the Koran and Islam. The Islamic ideology has as its utmost goal the destruction of what is most dear to us, our freedom, he wrote in De Volkskrant. Fitna is the last warning for the West. The fight for freedom has only just begun, he said. Mr Wilders says he plans to release his film on the internet before the end of the month. He has had police protection since Dutch director Theo van Gogh was killed by a radical Islamist in 2004. Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/7309838.stm _44509466_wilders_203b_afp.jpg
Bismillah [IslamCity] Al-Hajj's Guantanamo cartoons banned
Dutch Jews Post Front Page Ad to Defend Muslims against Wilders
IslamToday / Agencies
Dutch-Jewish television producer Harry de Winter placed on the front page of
Monday's edtion of newspaper de Volkskrant an advertisement denouncing Geert
Wilders tirade against Muslims.
The text of the advertisement, which has also been signed by two Dutch Jewish
organisations, reads:
If Geert Wilders had said the same things about Jews (and the Old Testament)
as he has now reeled off about Muslims (and the Qur'an), then he would have
been ostracised a long time ago and accused of anti-Semitism.
Television producer Harry de Winter is one of the founders of Een ander Joods
geluid ('Another Jewish Voice'), a group of Dutch Jews who are critical of the
policy of Israel towards the Palestinians. The climate that is being shaped by
Mr Wilders is, according to him, comparable with the rise of anti-Semitism in
the 1930s. Mr De Winter believes there has been far too little reaction to Mr
Wilders in the Netherlands. But especially he believes that a reaction must
come from the Jewish corner.
As he says in de Volkskrant: We Jews know like no others what this sort of
discrimination can lead to.
In an interview with the paper, De Winter says that Wilders' approach to Islam
is like the build-up of anti-Jewish sentiment before World War II. 'I see no
difference between a skull-cap (worn by Jewish men) and a headscarf,' De Winter
said. 'I hope we get support from across the Jewish community because they
should recognise this like no-one else.'
Amongst other things, Geert Wilders, leader of the right-wing Freedom Party,
has called the Qur'an a fascist book and a licence to kill. Mr De Winter
finds such statements absurd.
It's incomprehensible that Mr Wilders keeps on coming out with such rubbish.
If you read the Old Testament [the Jewish Torah] then you also find texts about
hatred of homosexuals, hatred of women and the murdering of non-Jewish
preachers.
But if on that basis you shouted that the holy book of the Jews is fascist,
then according to Mr De Winter, the country would be up in arms:
Then all sorts of organisations, such as the Anne Frank Foundation, would be
taking action immediately. But when it's about Muslims, then anything goes,
apparently.
Dutch Muslims feel strengthened by the advertisement. Fouad Sidali of the
Cooperative Organisation of Moroccans in the Netherlands told Radio Netherlands
Worldwide: The feeling of double standards has remained strong amongst the
Moroccan Muslims. But if we were to say that ourselves, then it we'd soon be
accused of placing ourselves in the role of victims and not being able to take
criticism. Therefore I'm happy it's come from our Jewish neighbours.
But the Dutch Jewish community is not entirely united. Ronnie Naftaniel from
the Israel Information and Documentation Centre (CIDI) thinks that, in his
criticism of Mr Wilders, Harry de Winter is blurring the distinction between
Islam and Muslims.
If Mr Wilders says that no more Muslims may enter the country, that indeed is
discrimination. But you must be able to criticise a religion. That falls under
freedom of expression. You may also say that Judaism is a backward religion.
Sources:
Michael Hoebink, Dutch Muslims surprised by anti-Wilders advertisement Radio
Netherlands Worldwide March 18, 2008
Wilders' anti-Islam akin to anti-semitism Dutch News March 18, 2008
Al-Hajj's Guantanamo cartoons banned
The US army has banned the publication of four cartoons drawn by Sami al-Hajj,
the Al Jazeera camera held in the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay,
according to his lawyer.
The pieces, called Sketches of My Nightmare, include a drawing depicting
al-Hajj, who has been on hunger strike for eight months, as a skeleton being
force fed by US guards.
The drawings were submitted to the military censor but they would not permit
their release.
However, detailed descriptions of the sketches were allowed through the
censorship process and Lewis Peake, a political cartoonist, was able to
recreate one entitled Scream for Freedom.
Al Hajj described the way he sees himself being force fed in the so-called
Torture Chair - the restraint chair into which they are strapped twice a day
to have a 110cm tube forcibly inserted into one nostril so that liquid food can
be administered.
The tube is pulled out after each feeding and the prisoner is left in the chair
for up to two hours so he can be force fed again if he vomits.
'Torture chair'
The first sketch is just a skeleton in the torture chair, he explained.
My picture reflects my nightmares of what I must look like, with my head
double-strapped down, a tube in my nose, a black mask over my mouth, with no
eyes and only giant cheekbones, my teeth jutting out - my bones showing in
every detail, every rib, every joint.
The tube goes up to a bag
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: Reward for giving the Adhaan
Narrated Abdur-Rahman bin Abdullah bin Abdur-Rahman bin Abi Sasaa Ansari: That Abu Said Al-Khudri said to his father. I see you are fond of sheep and the desert, so when you want to pronounce the Adhan, raise your voice with it for whoever will hear the Adhan whether a human being, or a Jinn, or anything else, will bear witness, in favor on the Day of Resurrection. Abu Said added, I have heard this from Allah's Apostle . Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 517
Bismillah [IslamCity] FW: German Comic Vs Muslim Extremism
my comments: Since original sender has already placed his/her comments about jihad and western wish to enslave Muslims, I want to comment on something equally very important. That is the issue of the kaffirs ruining Muslim women. Throughout history the kaffirs have abducted, raped, and tortured the Muslim women. Hindus did it in the gujrat pogrom, and are doing it in Kashmir, Christians are doing it in Africa, Christians Serbs raped, impregnated and killed a quarter million of Bosnian Muslim women during Clinton's presidency, zionists Jews are doing it in Palestine, Americans are doing it in Afghanistan and Iraq. Not only are they doing physical attacks on these Muslim women (and girls) but they are attacking their minds too now. This comic is one of the new methods where they use media to show a Muslim women with a kaffir man (willingly) and often her brother is an evil thug. It is quite common in Indian movies, and I wouldn't be surprised if they got this idea from there. These German pigs even went further by putting a hijab and jilbab on the Muslim women and then gave the comics to kids! Helping them are the hypocrite kaffirs who claim to be Muslims (like the mazyek person mentioned below). They want to make adulteresses out of the Muslim women just as they have done with the other women. They are upset that she can't even marry a kaffir, so they are trying to brainwash the girls when they are young. -- Forwarded message -- German Comic Vs Muslim Extremism IslamOnline.net News Agencies The comic features Andi, his Muslim girlfriend Ayshe, her brother Murat, a radical friend and a hate preacher. (Reuters) BERLIN - The German state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) is using a novel tool to prevent Muslim schoolchildren from being drawn into extremism and violence: cartoon comics. We have learned from our opponents, Hartwig Moeller, head of the NRW interior ministry's intelligence gathering department, told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday, March 25. Officials in NRW, Germany's most populous state, had run a well received comic strip in 2004 starring Andi, a schoolboy hero who stands up against xenophobia and racism. Drawing on that experience, they launched Andi last October into a second adventure featuring his Muslim girlfriend Ayshe and her brother Murat, who comes under the influence of a radical friend and a hate preacher. Some 100,000 copies of the comic, featuring boldly drawn Manga-style figures, have been distributed to every secondary school to be used in citizenship and religion lessons for schoolchildren aged 12 to 16. This is exactly the age at which the Islamists are trying, through Qur'anic schools and other means, to fill young people with other values, said Moeller. The comic reportedly aims to show young people the difference between peaceful Islam and the violent, intolerant version peddled by militants. If I get through to someone this way, and it makes him more critical of people who want to make him a jihadist, then I've stopped him at some point committing terrorist attacks or going to a terrorist camp in Afghanistan or Pakistan, Moeller argues. Maybe he won't slide off into this milieu -- that's the idea. Germany is home to nearly 3.4 million Muslims, the second biggest Muslim minority in Western Europe. Islam comes third in the country after Protestant and Catholic Christianity. New Tactics Copies of the comic have been distributed to every secondary school to be used in citizenship and religion lessons for schoolchildren aged 12 to 16. (Reuters) Using a medium that grabs children's imagination the German state seeks to get its message across more effectively. If you're serious about getting through to young people, you have to choose a style that they'll take in their hands and accept, that's how the comic came about, said Thomas Grumke, the NRW official who thought up the original Andi idea. A comic can go much further than a normal text, he maintains. There's a great deal more room to play with, more room for interpretation. Aiman Mazyek, general secretary of the Central Council of Muslims in Germany, welcomed the comic strip. We found the basic approach was right and good, we only regretted (the authorities) didn't tell us about this initiative in advance, then it could have been made much better, he said. Admitting that hate preachers exit, the Muslim leader insisted the portrayal in the comic was a bit overdone. Mazyek said copies of the comic have been distributed in mosques. According to Reuters, the regional government in Hamburg state is also
Bismillah [IslamCity] Jewish producer makes 'Life in Occupied Palestine'
Original Message From: Iqra Newspaper [EMAIL PROTECTED] Asalaam alaikum, I recently viewed a documentary called Life in Occupied Palestine Eyewitness Stories and Photos produced by Anna Baltzer, an American Young Jewish women. It is not a typical documentary, it is more like a presentation with many photographs. It is very informative and highly suggested to share with people of other faiths. I believe it is a compelling film which doesn't come across preachy. At the same time it is rather sad. I truly believe if something doesn't change soon, the majority of the Palestinians in the West Bank will be forced off their lands. The DVD cost about $10. A group in Houston is showing the film in April. (please note that the group is non-Muslim) There is another film out about the strip searches at check points. I have it but haven't viewed it yet. When I do insha'Allah, I will give you my thoughts www.AnnaIntheMiddleEast.com Cara Karema
Bismillah [IslamCity] Please speak up against Fitna!
Urgent: Please write to LiveLeak protesting airing Fitna Posted by: Md. Shaheed [EMAIL PROTECTED] Thu Mar 27, 2008 10:30 pm (PDT) Assalaamualaikum Wa RahmatuAllah: As many already know, Geert Wilders has finally found a hosting place for his film Fitna with LiveLeak, where, they have placed a disclaimer about supporting freedom of speech. Please take a minute and write to LiveLeak protesting their decision at the link below. Please pass this email to other groups and to as many people you know. Every single one of our efforts, even the smallest one, will inshaAllah count, when done with sincerety. This is the least we can do to show that we have Imaan left in our hearts. http://www.liveleak .com/contact_ us JazakumAllah Khair. Shaheed 858-688-0414 (cell) And every one of them will come to Him (Allah SWT) alone on the day of resurrection (without any helper, protector, defender) The Quran - Surah Maryam: Ayah 95
Bismillah [IslamCity] UN chief condemns anti-Islam film
UN chief condemns anti-Islam film UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has strongly condemned a controversial film on Islam made by a Dutch politician, calling it offensively anti-Islamic. Several Muslim countries have also condemned the film, a 15-minute polemic by the far-right MP Geert Wilder, which was posted online on Thursday. Pakistan, Indonesia, Iran and Bangladesh were among those to protest. The film sets verses from the Koran against a background of violent images from terror attacks. I condemn, in the strongest terms, the airing of Geert Wilders' offensively anti-Islamic film, Mr Ban said in a statement. The right of free expression is not at stake here, he added. Freedom must always be accompanied by social responsibility. The EU's Slovenian presidency said the film served no purpose other than inflaming hatred. 'Defamatory' In Pakistan there were small protests in several places on Friday against the film, while the government summoned the Dutch ambassador in Islamabad to lodge a protest. The country's Foreign Ministry said the film was defamatory and deeply offended Muslim sentiments. Pakistan said it told the Dutch ambassador that it was incumbent on the Netherlands to prosecute Mr Wilders for defamation and deliberately hurting Muslim sentiments, the official Associated Press of Pakistan news agency reported. The world's most populous Muslim nation, Indonesia, also condemned the film, saying it was misleading and full of racism. The foreign ministry in Bangladesh issued a statement calling the film unwarranted and mindless. Iran said it was blasphemous, anti-Islamic and heinous - a sign it said of deep hatred felt by Westerners towards Muslims. In the Netherlands, Mr Wilders has said he is happy with what he sees as the relatively positive domestic reaction to his film. But the Dutch prime minister said the film wrongly equated Islam with violence. We reject this interpretation, Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said shortly before its publication. The vast majority of Muslims reject extremism and violence and in fact the victims are often also Muslims. Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/7319188.stm news_logo.gif
Bismillah [IslamCity] UN rejects water as basic human right
UN rejects water as basic human right Mike De Souza Canwest News Service Tuesday, March 25, 2008 OTTAWA - The Harper government can declare victory after a United Nations meeting rejected calls for water to be recognized as a basic human right. Instead, a special resolution proposed by Germany and Spain at the UN human rights council was stripped of references that recognized access to water as a human right. The countries also chose to scrap the idea of creating an international watchdog to investigate the issue, choosing instead to appoint a new consultant that would make recommendations over the next three years. Federal officials in Canada said last week that the government wanted to ensure the meeting's outcome reflected the fact that access to water is not formally recognized as a human right in international law. But a social advocacy group said that the position was designed to protect the right to sell water under the North American Free Trade Agreement. Clearly (the Harper government is) happy with the status quo: They're not going to be an agent for change, and they're not going to support the right to water, said Maude Barlow, chair of the Council of Canadians. About every eight seconds, a child somewhere in the world is dying from dirty water, and it's just shocking that our government has taken this position. The opposition Liberals supported the government's position last week, arguing that the original UN resolution could open the door to bulk water exports to the U.S. because of NAFTA. Liberal water critic Francis Scarpaleggia said he planned to introduce a private member's bill to restrict large transfers of water within Canada to ensure that bulk exports abroad would also be forbidden. The UN's high commissioner for human rights, Louise Arbour, said last week that the position doesn't reflect Canada's traditional role on the international stage. Canada is taking a position that is not the more classic perceived, Canada as the kind of the bridge builder, peacemaker, consensus maker, Arbour told the CBC. Meantime, Barlow denied that the resolution would require Canada to make bulk water exports to the U.S. The requirement in the United States would be for them to conserve first, said Barlow. There's no requirement as a human right for us to provide water for swimming pools and golf courses and fountains in Las Vegas. A spokesperson for the Foreign Affairs Department said in an e-mail that there was no consensus among states regarding the existence, scope or content of such a right. [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=b65b35fd-477f-4956-98f4-c17a46fe3e26k=40211
Bismillah [IslamCity] Muslims' fury forces schools to shelve anti-homophobia storybooks for 5-year-olds
Muslims' fury forces schools to shelve anti-homophobia storybooks for 5-year-olds ref: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=553008in_page_id=1770 Two primary schools have withdrawn storybooks about same-sex relationships after objections from Muslim parents. Up to 90 gathered at the schools to complain about the books which are aimed at pupils as young as five. One story, titled King King, is a fairytale about a prince who turns down three princesses before marrying one of their brothers. Another named And Tango Makes Three features two male penguins who fall in love at a New York zoo. Bristol City Council said the two schools had been using the books to ensure they complied with gay rights laws which came into force last April. They were intended to help prevent homophobic bullying, it said. But the council has since removed the books from Easton Primary School and Bannerman Road Community School, both in Bristol. A book and DVD titled That's a Family!, which teaches children about different family set-ups including gay or lesbian parents, has also been withdrawn. The decision was made to enable the schools to operate safely after parents voiced their concerns at meetings. Around 40 are said to have gathered at Easton to speak to staff and another 50 at Bannerman Road. Members of the Bristol Muslim Cultural Society said parents were upset at the lack of consultation over the use of the materials. Farooq Siddique, community development officer for the society and a governor at Bannerman Road, said there were also concerns about whether the stories were appropriate for young children. The main issue was there was a total lack of consultation with parents, he said. The schools refused to deal with the parents, and were completely authoritarian. The agenda was to reduce homophobic bullying and all the parents said they were not against that side of it, but families were saying to us 'our child is coming home and talking about same-sex relationships, when we haven't even talked about heterosexual relationships with them yet'. They don't do sex education until Year Six and at least there you have got the option of withdrawing the children. But here you don't have that option apparently. You can't withdraw because it is no particular lesson they are used in. He added: In Islam homosexual relationships are not acceptable, as they are not in Christianity and many other religions but the main issue is that they didn't bother to consult with parents. The issue should have been, how do we stop bullying in general, and teaching about homosexuality can be a part of that. This was completely one-sided. Homosexuality is not a priority to parents but academic achievement is. This just makes parents think 'What the heck is my child being taught at school?'. He said the two schools were 60 to 70 per cent Muslim but pointed out that non-Muslim parents were among those who complained. Traditional Islamic views condemn homosexuality but there are liberal movements, such as the Al-Fatiha Foundation, which is dedicated to gay Muslims. The schools used materials promoted by the No Outsiders project, led by academics at Sunderland University. A spokesman for Bristol City Council said: All Bristol schools have a legal duty to report and deal with homophobic harassment as part of the curriculum since April 2007. She said the council had temporarily withdrawn the use of the materials in question and was liaising with various groups to ensure that the topic can be addressed in an inclusive manner in the curriculum. Ben Summerskills of gay rights group Stonewall said: The small number of parents who make a fuss will cause children to think there is something wrong. How stupid are these parents who have a problem with it because it wasn't discussed with them, not because it is a haraam thing their kids are being taught. Al-Fatiha is not a liberal movement, it is a deviant movement dedicated to a major sin. Under the disguise of homophobic they are trying to make more people gay with all they do.
Bismillah [IslamCity] Palestine: If It Bleeds, It Leads Gazzah Somalia
If It Bleeds, It Leads Not in Gaza and Somalia By Abukar Arman Freelance Writer - USA US Media continue to ignore mass killings in Gaza and Somalia. In news media coverage, there is a tacit cliché rule known as if it bleeds, it leads. It is the pervasive mentality that puts violence captured on film as the most attractive of all news reporting. Ironically, in the case of the Gaza Strip and Mogadishu, they bleed but lead not. Whenever the media fail to report on matters of war, the foreseeable consequence is prolonged destruction and bloodshed. Aside from Baghdad, Iraq, nowhere is such consequence more evident than in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Territories, and in Mogadishu, Somalia. While in all three cases predatory foreign intervention is exacerbating the situation, this article focuses on the latter two because of the magnitude of their manmade humanitarian crises. In each case, the crisis has rapidly evolved into a full-fledged catastrophe. Holocaust in Gaza In the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military has waged what its defense minister Ehud Barak had promised would be a major military offensive. Deadly strikes on Gaza followed a severe blockade that had cut off fuel, electricity, food, and services essential to the survival of more than 1.4 million people in the world's largest prison camp, as described by Paul McCann, former spokesman for the UN's Palestinian refugee agency in Gaza Strip, in an opinion published by The Independent Aug. 16, 2005. But the worst might be yet to happen. Reuters Web site reported February 29, that Israeli deputy defense minister Matan Vilnai said, they (the Palestinians) will bring upon themselves a bigger holocaust because we will use all our might to defend ourselves. For Vilnai, self-defense meant anything from mass destruction to denying emergency healthcare for a dying senior women. In this regard, B'Tselem, an Israeli human rights group, documented a case of a heart patient, Fawziyeh a-Dark, 66, who died of heart attack after the Red Crescent ambulance coming to transport her to the hospital was denied permission to go through the checkpoint. According to the report, the driver called the patient's husband and urged him to bring the wife to the checkpoint so he could receive her there. Later when the patient was brought to the checkpoint, she was denied crossing over to the other side. In a helpless frenzy, the husband kept begging the Israeli soldiers to let his wife get the medical attention that she desperately needed, but to no avail. Let her die, let her die, it doesn't interest me, it is forbidden to cross, heartlessly said one of the soldiers manning the checkpoint, and she died. Both Israel and Ethiopia are in direct violation of Articles 33 and 55 of the Fourth Geneva Convention as they have been punishing the entire populations for the acts of a few. Catastrophe in Somalia Similarly, in Somalia the Ethiopian forces continue their routine indiscriminate shelling of densely populated Mogadishu neighborhoods. In 2007, the first year of occupation, 7,000 civilians - mostly women and children - were killed, according to Elman Human Rights group. Since the occupation, life in Mogadishu has become so unbearable that approximately 1 million civilians - again mostly women and children - have fled for safety and became Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). They now inhabit makeshift refugee camps and are deprived of goods and services to survive. According to the UN, the total number of people in Somalia at risk of starvation is now 1.5 million, thus moving the situation toward a humanitarian catastrophe, described Davide Bernocchi, executive director of Caritas Somalia, according to the Web site of ReliefWeb. In another Gaza-like example, Somali civilians are routinely denied their most basic right of medical attention, as frequently documented by many local and international human rights groups. Both the occupation and the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces are reported to practice random killings and psychological intimidation of civilians. The recent assassination of the brother of the TFG's Minister of Information, while speaking on his cell phone outside his home only highlights the horrors reported by helpless civilians whose loved ones have fallen victim before their eyes. According to Human Rights Watch, both Israel and Ethiopia are in direct violation of articles 33 and 55 of the Fourth Geneva Convention as they have been punishing the entire populations for the acts of a few. Both have been violating their respective obligations, as the occupying forces, to ensure the flow and distribution of food, medicines, and all other humanitarian relief goods and services to civilians. So why is it that we
Bismillah [IslamCity] Ninjabis learn to fight back
We should be offering these self defense classes to the sisters in every community. This is just one reason why: http://www.thestar.com/article/231401 In Britain, Ninjabis learn to fight back http://www.reuters.com/article/inDepthNews/idUSL0250204920070503?feedType=RSS By Amil Khan LONDON (Reuters) - Anyone tempted to pick on a headscarf-wearing Muslim woman better hope they don't run into a Ninjabi. Every week around 30 Muslim women, most wearing veils, gather in a community centre in east London to learn how to block, knee and punch would-be attackers or lecherous men targeting passive-looking victims. The organizers, who named the classes after Japanese Ninja warriors and women who wear the hijab, say Muslim women are looking to fight back against unwanted advances and a rising number of anti-Muslim attacks. The ladies love the Ninjabi thing. It gives them a good giggle, said class instructor Dee Terry, who is not a Muslim herself. One of the attendees, 31-year-old mother Mahmuda Mazid, said she took up the classes after a gang of youths tried to rob her teenage brother while she was with him in a local park. There was this sheer feeling of helplessness that I couldn't help myself or my brother... and there was absolute rage, she said. I knew I had to do something to equip myself. In the classes I saw protection and self defense. That's what I needed. The classes start with a warm-up and then the women -- no men are allowed -- practice punches, strikes using the heel of the hand, knee strikes to the groin and defenses against knives and sticks. Terry also teaches the women how to deter potential attackers by looking assertive. The loose full-length clothing favored by Muslim women rules out high-kicking maneuvers but does not otherwise hinder movement, says Terry. The Hijab and the Niqab -- which covers the face and leaves only the eyes visible -- clearly identify Muslim women, increasing their chances of becoming victims of anti-Muslim hostility. But Terry says Islamic clothing itself does not make it easier to attack a woman. An attacker can pull your headscarf but they can also pull your hair, so Islamic clothes don't make that much of a difference, added Terry, who also teaches Judo, Jujitsu and Kickboxing. PERVY MEN AND HOODIES In the dilapidated area where the classes are held, Muslim women said their biggest worry was harassment from pervy men and the violent anti-social behavior of teenagers from urban low-income communities, popularly called hoodies and chavs. In other areas of London, Muslim women said growing hostility towards Muslims -- commonly called Islamophobia -- since London's July 7th bombings in 2005 was a big fear. Attacks on Muslims in London nearly quadrupled in the days after the July attacks. Figures collated by London's Metropolitan Police, and presented in a report by the Muslim Safety Forum, showed 303 attacks in July 2005, up from 82 in the previous month. Azad Ali, chairman of the forum, said the attacks ranged from verbal abuse and vandalism of mosques to physical attacks. But because of limitations in the way attacks are reported, the real number is likely to be far higher, he added. National figures are lacking because there are no universally agreed criteria among the country's police forces for what constitutes an Islamophobic attack, said Ali. Muslims, who make up about 3 percent of Britain's population, also do not readily report attacks. An initiative by London's police to engage with Muslim women found many did not report attacks because they felt the police would not act. Others had limited English and were unable to register complaints without help. The issue of reporting crime... was a major concern amongst certain (Muslim) communities, the police said in a report on meetings with Muslim women. This may lead to disenchantment with the process and eventual disengagement from the police and justice system, the police added in the report. ENTER THE NINJABI Official figures cite London as having the largest proportion of Muslims in the UK at 3.8 percent. The Ninjabi classes are held in the Newham area of the capital, where Muslims make up 24 percent of local inhabitants. The organizers said the classes were a response to overwhelming demand from Muslim women. It was a need. Women were coming and asking for self- defense classes. We had heard of increasing Islamophobia and other sorts of attacks on Muslim women, said Mizan Raja, a coordinator of Islamic Circles, the organization running the classes. The organizers say although similar self-defense classes are common the light-hearted approach which respects the women's faith has made the Ninjabi classes massively popular. We could fill a class a day. It's totally oversubscribed, said Raja. The organizers plan to split the class according to experience, using
Bismillah [IslamCity] Muslims more numerous than Catholics
Muslims more numerous than Catholics By ALESSANDRA RIZZO, Associated Press Writer Islam has surpassed Roman Catholicism as the world's largest religion, the Vatican newspaper said Sunday. For the first time in history, we are no longer at the top: Muslims have overtaken us, Monsignor Vittorio Formenti said in an interview with the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano. Formenti compiles the Vatican's yearbook. He said that Catholics accounted for 17.4 percent of the world population - a stable percentage - while Muslims were at 19.2 percent. It is true that while Muslim families, as is well known, continue to make a lot of children, Christian ones on the contrary tend to have fewer and fewer, the monsignor said. Formenti said that the data refer to 2006. The figures on Muslims were put together by Muslim countries and then provided to the United Nations, he said, adding that the Vatican could only vouch for its own data. When considering all Christians and not just Catholics, Christians make up 33 percent of the world population, Formenti said. Spokesmen for the Vatican and the United Nations did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment Sunday. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080330/ap_on_re_eu/vatican_muslims Study: Muslims to Outnumber Catholics in Britian within 10 Years Jeremy Reynalds ASSIST News Service LONDON (ANS) -- The increasing influence of Islam on British culture is disclosed in upcoming research. Jonathan Petre in a story published in Britain's Telegraph newspaper reported that the study shows the number of Muslims worshiping at mosques in England and Wales will overtake the numbers of Roman Catholics going to church in just over a decade. The Telegraph reported that the projections, to be published next month, estimate that if those trends continue, the number of Catholics attending Sunday Mass will fall to 679,000 by 2020. By that time, statisticians predict, the number of Muslims praying in mosques on Fridays will have increased to 683,000. Church spokesmen noted, the Telegraph reported, that an increasing number of Anglicans worship at other times of the week. The Telegraph said that the figures, based on British government and academic sources and the latest edition of Christian Research's Religious Trends, come amid growing tensions over the place of Muslims in British society. They follow heated debate over the extent to which Islamic law should be recognized, and claims that no-go areas for non-Muslims are emerging in parts of the country. The Telegraph reported that Dr. Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, provoked criticism by saying the introduction of some aspects of sharia (Islamic law) into British society was unavoidable. The Bishop of Rochester, the Rt. Rev. Michael Nazir-Ali, faced death threats after writing in The Sunday Telegraph that Islamic extremism was turning some communities into no-go areas, where adherence to this ideology has become a mark of acceptability. Peter Brierley, a former Government statistician who edited the latest Religious Trends, said that the continuing growth of the Muslim population since the 2001 census would have significant implications for society. A story by Cyril Dixon in Britain's Daily Express newspaper said that the report's findings are bound to cause additional concerns about the spread of Islam. The Daily Express recently revealed controversial plans to let Islamic imams (ministers) teach the Koran nationwide in state schools across Britain. The Express reported that the man who compiled the latest figures, Peter Brierley, a former government statistician, said the trends were bound to have massive implications for society. Nicola Bourque, professor of religious studies at Glasgow University, told the Express, Attendance at Catholic churches is declining. Many people are Catholic but don't go to church. These days, mosques act as a community center in a way that churches don't. The National Union of Teachers - Britain's biggest teaching union - is behind calls to teach the Koran. The Express reported that Steve Sinnott, the general secretary, said it would reunite divided communities, and also demanded that Christian schools admit pupils from other faiths. http://www.crosswalk.com/news/religiontoday/11571824/ Priest burns himself to death over Islam A retired priest committed suicide by setting himself on fire in a German monastery in protest at the spread of Islam and the Protestant Church's inability to contain it. Roland Weisselberg, 73, poured a can of petrol over his head and set light to himself in the grounds of the Augustine monastery in the eastern city of Erfurt, where Martin Luther spent six years as a monk at the beginning of the 16th century. Witnesses said that
Bismillah [IslamCity] hadith: Cruelty to Animals
Narrated Ibn 'Umar: The Prophet said, A woman entered the (Hell) Fire because of a cat which she had tied, neither giving it food nor setting it free to eat from the vermin of the earth. Sahi Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 535
Bismillah [IslamCity] news: World Muslims get tough on Islam-bashing
West and Muslims clash on free speech By ELIANE ENGELER, Associated Press Muslim and Western nations clashed at the United Nations on Tuesday after a measure backed by Islamic countries added monitoring religious prejudice to the duties of a U.N. free speech expert. The U.N. investigator on freedom of opinion and expression is responsible for reporting on repressive governments' restriction of free speech. The change sponsored by Egypt and Pakistan now requires him to also report acts of racial or religious discrimination that constitute abuse of the right of freedom of expression. The change passed 32-0 by the U.N. Human Rights Council on Friday was seen as a move against forms of expression that have offended Muslims, such as Danish newspaper cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. The U.S., Canada and some European countries said the measure could curtail freedom of expression and help dictatorial regimes block dissenting views. The resolution adopted attempts to legitimize the criminalization of expression, U.S. Ambassador Warren W. Tichenor told the 47-nation Human Rights Council. European countries, Canada and some other nations abstained from voting last week. The United States is not a member of the council but can speak as an observer. Pakistani Ambassador Masood Khan said on behalf of the 57-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference that the resolution would not limit free speech and simply attempted to require people to exercise their freedom of expression responsibly. Egypt's ambassador, Sameh Shoukry, said the right to freedom from religious discrimination and defamation was not being sufficiently protected, permitting some of the worst practices that incite racial and religious hatred. Some Islamic groups began demanding limits on free speech after the caricatures of Muhammad provoked riots in 2006. Muslim countries also protested the recent release of an anti-Islamic film by a Dutch lawmaker as well as controversial comments by the pope about Islam. The Human Rights Council has no enforcement powers, but is supposed to act as the world's moral conscience. It has been accused of spending excessive amounts of time focusing on Israel while giving a free pass to countries with poor records of observing human rights. The U.S. Senate voted in September to cut off U.S. funding for the council, accusing it of bias. The council adopted a resolution last week urging countries to enact anti-defamation laws to protect Muslims. The Paris-based Reporters Without Borders warned that the change in job description could shift Kenyan legal expert Ambeyi Ligabo's role as an independent expert from protecting free speech toward limiting it. It turns someone who is supposed to defend freedom of opinion into a prosecutor whose job is to go after those who abuse this freedom, the group said in a statement. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080401/ap_on_re_eu/un_free_speech;_ylt=Ale9fYWJMj3RPKl9tpsurGA7Xs8F
Bismillah [IslamCity] Strip Search: Camera That Sees Through Clothes From 80 Feet Away
Strip Search: Camera That Sees Through Clothes From 80 Feet Away Monday, March 10, 2008 By Jonathan Leake LONDON - A camera that can see through people's clothing at distances of up to 80 feet has been developed to help detect weapons, drugs and explosives. The camera could be deployed in railway stations, shopping centers and other public spaces. Although it can see objects under clothes, its designers say the images do not show anatomical details. However, it is likely to increase fears that Britain has become a surveillance society. The new technology, known as the T5000 system, has attracted interest from police forces, train companies and airport operators as well as government agencies. It has been developed by ThruVision, an Oxfordshire-based company spun out from the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, one of the British government's leading physics research centers. It was designed for use in spacecraft and astronomy but researchers soon realized that cameras capable of seeing through clouds of cosmic dust could also see through clothing. This week the camera will be displayed at the Home Office scientific development branch's annual exhibition, Britain's premier showcase for security equipment, to be held on an RAF airbase in Buckinghamshire. ThruVision already offers a smaller system designed for office foyers that can scan through clothing at a range of 30 to 40 feet. This has been used at the Canary Wharf complex in east London, which is home to several global banks and is regarded as a target for terrorists. The Dubai Mercantile Exchange has a similar installation. The system can be linked to a computer so that it can automatically scan anyone passing and alert its human operator to anything suspicious. Clive Beattie, ThruVision's chief executive, said: Acts of terrorism have shaken the world in recent years and security precautions have been tightened globally. The T5000 dramatically extends the range over which we can scan people. Bill Foster, the president of Thermal Matrix, an American defense contractor specializing in imaging systems for the U.S. military, is one customer. He said: This could be deployed at major sporting events, concerts and rail stations as well as for military use. The technology works by detecting and measuring terahertz waves, or T-waves for short. These are a form of electromagnetic radiation, emitted by all people and objects that lie between the infrared and microwave parts of the spectrum. The waves from any given material also carry a distinctive signature, offering the potential to distinguish Semtex plastic explosive from modeling clay and cocaine from sugar. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,336287,00.html
Bismillah [IslamCity] NATO sacked two women for Muslim marriage
NATO sacks two women for Muslim marriage Monday 27 August 2007 Two Dutch women who recently married young Muslims from Tunisia have lost their jobs at the NATO base at Gellenkirchen in Germany, close to the Dutch border. The Defence Ministry confirmed to the Volkskrant on Monday that its AIVD security service has banned the women from the base. Gellenkirchen is the home base for AWACS planes with their airborne warning and control systems, which are used in the international fight against terrorism. One of the women is taking legal action to get her job back. The other is the secretary to acting commander Jelle Zijlstra who told Saturday's Telegraaf that the women had given years of loyal service. http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2007/08/nato_sacks_two_women_for_musli.php
Bismillah [IslamCity] UAE and Qatar may drop dollar peg in six months
UAE and Qatar may drop dollar peg in six months (Bloomberg) 9 November 2007 DUBAI - The United Arab Emirates or Qatar may drop their currencies' pegs to the dollar within six months as inflationary pressures outweigh the benefits of maintaining the links, Merrill Lynch Co said. We believe there is a significant risk of a change in the policy regimes of either the UAE or Qatar in the coming six months, Merrill Lynch said in a research note published yesterday. Speculation pressure on other members of the GCC will remain and we expect Kuwait to maintain constant appreciation against the dollar. Kuwait dropped the dinar's peg to the dollar May 20, citing inflationary pressure from European imports, prompting speculation that its Gulf Arab neighbours including Saudi Arabia and the UAE might follow. The Saudi riyal has been trading near 20-year highs since Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain chose not to follow the Federal Reserve's half-point rate cut. The central bank governors of Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have all said a number of times since May that they have no plans to drop their currencies' pegs to the dollar. UAE Central Bank Governor Sultan bin Nasser Al Suwaidi said repeatedly that any change will be coordinated with other Gulf states. All six of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries followed the Fed's quarter-point cut on October 31. Reducing interest rates is inflationary at a time when the Gulf states are battling to control price increases as their economies boom on record oil prices. Saudi inflation: Saudi Arabia's inflation rate in September rose to 4.9 per cent, its highest in at least five years. Saudi central bank Governor Hamad Saud Al Sayari said yesterday that accelerating consumer price growth is the biggest challenge facing the economy. Inflation rose to a record 9.3 per cent in the UAE last year, while in Qatar price growth slowed to 12.8 per cent in the second quarter from 14.8 percent in the first quarter. Attempting to control inflation through monetary policy at the same time as retaining currency stability is not sustainable in the long-term, Merrill Lynch said in yesterday's note. If there are higher interest rates in the pegged country then speculative funds will flow in as an attempt to arbitrage the difference. http://www.islamicity.com/m/news_frame.asp?Frame=1referenceID=34650
Bismillah [IslamCity] update - Importance and power of boycott - Dutch Businesses to Sue Wilders
updated links include the right videos and the wrong links removed. - Forwarded message -- Fitna - Schism (The Bible version of Fitna) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpiccERJaFk Fitna the movie (what about the bible) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8E_T45M0gVsfeature=related The Bible version of Fitna: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpiccERJaFkfeature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvxGiYC-Py0feature=related Dutch Businesses to Sue Wilders THE HAGUE - Fearing a Muslim boycott, major Dutch businesses are threatening to sue far-right lawmaker Geert Wilders over his documentary portraying the Noble Qur'an as inciting violence. If they (Muslims) decide to boycott Dutch businesses, it will harm Dutch exports, Bernard Wientjes, the chairman of the Dutch employers' organization VNO-NCW, told the newspaper Het Financieel Dagblad, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP). Companies like Shell, Philips and Unilever are easily recognizable as Dutch companies. Wilders, the leader of the far-right Freedom Party, released his anti-Qur'an film on a video-sharing website on Thursday, March 27. The film intersperses images of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and the Madrid train bombings in 2004 with verses from the Qur'an. The documentary also featured a Danish cartoon of a man said to be Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him) with a bomb protruding from his turban. I don't know if Wilders is rich, or well-insured, but in the case of a boycott, we would look to see if we could make him bear responsibility, said Wientjes. Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard has already threatened legal action against the far-right politician for using the cartoon in his film without permission. Dutch-Moroccan rapper Salah Edin has also vowed to sue Wilders for using his picture to portray the killer of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh over his anti-Islam film Submission. Effective The anti-Qur'an film has already sparked mounting calls in the Muslim world for boycotting Dutch products. If Muslims unite, it will be easy to take action, said former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad. If we boycott Dutch products, they will have to close down their businesses. If the world's 1.3 billion Muslims unite and say they won't buy, then it (the boycott) will be effective, he said. Nearly 30 Jordanian newspapers, radio stations and websites have launched a bid for boycotting Dutch businesses. Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende has warned it could be months before the consequences of the film were known. Muslims worldwide boycotted Danish products during the 2005 Prophet cartoon crisis, causing Danish companies nearly $1.5 million a day in losses. Denmark's leading dairy company Arla Foods, one of the hardest hit, issued at the time a strong condemnation of the cartoon and appealed to Arabs and Muslims to end their boycott of its products. http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_Ccid=1203758509173pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout
Bismillah [IslamCity] Importance and power of boycott - Dutch Businesses to Sue Wilders
Dutch Businesses to Sue Wilders THE HAGUE - Fearing a Muslim boycott, major Dutch businesses are threatening to sue far-right lawmaker Geert Wilders over his documentary portraying the Noble Qur'an as inciting violence. If they (Muslims) decide to boycott Dutch businesses, it will harm Dutch exports, Bernard Wientjes, the chairman of the Dutch employers' organization VNO-NCW, told the newspaper Het Financieel Dagblad, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP). Companies like Shell, Philips and Unilever are easily recognizable as Dutch companies. Wilders, the leader of the far-right Freedom Party, released his anti-Qur'an film on a video-sharing website on Thursday, March 27. A Counter Movie Against Wilders' In Opposition to Anti-Qur'an Film The film intersperses images of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and the Madrid train bombings in 2004 with verses from the Qur'an. The documentary also featured a Danish cartoon of a man said to be Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him) with a bomb protruding from his turban. I don't know if Wilders is rich, or well-insured, but in the case of a boycott, we would look to see if we could make him bear responsibility, said Wientjes. Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard has already threatened legal action against the far-right politician for using the cartoon in his film without permission. Dutch-Moroccan rapper Salah Edin has also vowed to sue Wilders for using his picture to portray the killer of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh over his anti-Islam film Submission. Effective The anti-Qur'an film has already sparked mounting calls in the Muslim world for boycotting Dutch products. If Muslims unite, it will be easy to take action, said former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad. If we boycott Dutch products, they will have to close down their businesses. If the world's 1.3 billion Muslims unite and say they won't buy, then it (the boycott) will be effective, he said. Nearly 30 Jordanian newspapers, radio stations and websites have launched a bid for boycotting Dutch businesses. Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende has warned it could be months before the consequences of the film were known. Muslims worldwide boycotted Danish products during the 2005 Prophet cartoon crisis, causing Danish companies nearly $1.5 million a day in losses. Denmark's leading dairy company Arla Foods, one of the hardest hit, issued at the time a strong condemnation of the cartoon and appealed to Arabs and Muslims to end their boycott of its products. http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_Ccid=1203758509173pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout - Forwarded message -- Fitna - Schism (The Bible version of Fitna) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpiccERJaFk Fitna the movie (what about the bible) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8E_T45M0gVsfeature=related Fitna movie Dutch MP Geert Wilder anti-Islam -Video response http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NV2uITx6QCsfeature=related The Bible version of Fitna: http://www.turntoislam.com/forum/showthread.php?s=dd64de59518d6fbecabab762b636492bt=31339 http://www.turntoislam.com/forum/showthread.php?t=30439
Bismillah [IslamCity] Boycott Hurts Denmarks Economy
Report: Muslim Boycott Hurts Denmark's Economy (IsraelNN.com) The Danish Arla Foods Company announced recently that it had suffered serious losses due to a Muslim consumer boycott. If the boycott continues for the entire year, the company could lose $372 million, managers said. Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moller recently spoke to the local daily Boerson and warned that a third printing of the caricatures could cause Denmark serious long-term financial losses. Source: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/144969 Great news Hope you all know about the Denmark newspaper who made fun upon our loving Prophet and till now they never regret. let us make them regret for all time. The Denmark ambassador, prime minister and Denmark channel they all try to do something just to stop the boycott made by Muslims last month, by which their losses has reached to 2 billion Euro. If we continue to boycott Denmark products after 7 months it could reach around 40 billion Euro's destruction. Dear All, please spread the news to all your friends you know in order to rise up our spirit and warning Denmark and other hostile nations towards Islam, we Muslim are united and not easy to break against any one who think to harm or insult Almighty's messenger (peace be upon him). Now we need to start boycotting the Dutch products also so the people and government can let Wilders know how they feel about loosing money
Bismillah [IslamCity] fatwa: Openly criticising the Muslim ruler
AN ALL MENS E-GROUP NO WOMEN ALLOWED!On openly criticizing the Muslim ruler Question: Is it permissible to openly criticize the Muslim ruler in front of a gathering and the people? Answer: We have spoken about this issue many times before! It is not permissible to speak about the rulers because this brings about evil and differing in the society and it splits the unity of the Muslims and cause hatred between the ruler and the ruled. And this splitting and evil leads to rebellion against the ruler and the shedding of blood and matters which have blameworthy consequences. So if you have a comment about them, take it to the ruler secretly by visiting him, if possible, or by writing to him or by informing someone who can convey it to the ruler as a sincere advice to him, and it should be done secretly not openly and this has been mentioned in the hadeeth, Whoever wishes to advise the ruler, then let him not mention it in public, rather let him take the ruler by his hand. So if he listens then that is that, and if not then he has fulfilled that which was upon him. And this meaning has been reported from the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahualaihi wasallam). Shaykh Saalih al-Fawzaan Al-Ijaabaat al-Muhimmah fee Mashaakil il-Mudlahimmah by Muhammad bin Fahad al-Husayn Translated by Abul-Irbaad Abid Zargar
Bismillah [IslamCity] Fed Up With War, Thousands Won't Pay Taxes
Fed Up With War, Thousands Won't Pay Taxes By JOHN CHRISTOFFERSEN NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) - When the United States invaded Iraq more than four years ago, war opponent David Gross asked his bosses for a radical pay cut, enough so he wouldn't have to pay taxes to support the war. I was having a hard time looking at myself in the mirror, Gross said. I knew the bombs falling were in part paid with my tax dollars. I had to actually do something concrete to remove my complicity. The San Francisco technical writer was making close to $100,000 a year. He didn't know exactly how big of a pay cut he would need to fall below the federal tax threshold, but later figured out he would have to make less than minimum wage. In any event, his employer turned him down and he quit. Gross, 38, now works on a contract basis, and last year he refused to pay self-employment taxes. War tax resistance, popularized by Henry David Thoreau in the 19th century and by singer Joan Baez and others during the Vietnam War, is gaining renewed interest among peace activists upset over the Iraq war. Clearly this year we definitely had more people calling, sending e-mails about how they decided to start resisting, said Ruth Benn, coordinator of the National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee in New York. Based on the committee's mailing list and reports from numerous groups it works with around the country, Benn estimates 8,000 to 10,000 Americans refuse to pay some or all of their federal taxes over war objections. Internal Revenue Service officials say they don't have figures for that specific category, but earlier this year reported an overall noncompliance rate of 16.3 percent and estimated the annual tax gap at about $345 billion. Peace activists are considering a mass tax resistance campaign next April to step up pressure to end the war in Iraq, Benn said. Many tax protesters say they redirect the money they withhold to charities. Some, like Joanne Sheehan of Norwich, keep their income below taxable levels. I don't see the point of working for peace and paying for war, Sheehan said. Gross said he now manages to live on about $15,000 per year by carefully tracking his spending. He acknowledged the tax resistance movement is too small to stop the war. But I think what we're doing is showing the way for people in the anti-war movement, Gross said. I can look myself in the mirror and say at least I'm not supporting it, at least I'm not part of the machine. The IRS said that while taxpayers have a right to express their opinions, they still have an obligation to pay their taxes. Tax resisters place an undue burden on taxpayers who pay their fair share of taxes, IRS spokeswoman Dianne Besunder said. John Ubaldi, spokesman for Move America Forward, which supports the military and the war on terror, said the government would not be able to function if everyone opposed to a program stopped paying taxes. They're showing the terrorists that America is not committed, Ubaldi said. The IRS considers it a frivolous argument when a taxpayer cites disagreement with the government's use of tax money as the reason for not paying taxes. A new federal law increases the penalty for frivolous tax returns from $500 to $5,000. The IRS says it investigates promoters of frivolous arguments and refers cases to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution. Unlike the days when Thoreau was sent to prison in a tax protest against the Mexican-American War, modern war tax protesters rarely go to prison, according to tax resisters. The IRS may take their money from wages and bank accounts - with penalties and interest - after sending a series of letters. They're very polite, which makes it a little boring, said Rosa Packard of Greenwich, a longtime anti-war tax protester. But Randy Kehler, who has refused to pay federal income taxes since 1976 to protest U.S. military policy, was evicted with his wife from their home in Colrain, Mass., in 1989 for nonpayment of more than $45,000 in taxes, interest and penalties. Kehler was also jailed for nearly three months for contempt of court. Their tax fight was the subject of a 1997 documentary called An Act of Conscience, narrated by actor Martin Sheen. War protesters have been pushing for a law called the Religious Freedom Peace Tax Fund that would allow designated conscientious objectors to have their income, estate, or gift taxes used for nonmilitary purposes. After years of efforts, they hope a Congressional hearing will be held on the proposal next year. People fear the IRS more than they fear God, said Alan Gamble, executive director of the National Campaign for a Peace Tax Fund. They're paying under a tremendous burden. Posted by CRIMES AND CORRUPTION OF THE NEW WORLD ORDER NEWS mparent Marc Parent CCNWON http://mparent-2.blogspot.com/2007/07/fed-up-with-war-thousands-wont-pay.html
Bismillah [IslamCity] Austria's Haider says to ban mosque-building
Austria's Haider says to ban mosque-building (Reuters, August 27, 2007) Vienna, Austria - Austrian right-wing firebrand Joerg Haider said on Monday he plans to change building laws to prevent mosques and minarets being erected in his home province of Carinthia. Haider, Carinthia's governor, said he would ask its parliament to amend the building code to would require towns and villages to consider religious and cultural tradition when dealing with construction requests. We don't want a clash of cultures and we don't want institutions which are alien to our culture being erected in Western Europe, Haider said in a statement. Muslims have of course the right to practice their religion, but I oppose erecting mosques and minarets as centers to advertise the power of Islam, he said. His spokesman, Stefan Petzner, said that there were no plans to restrict Muslim prayer rooms, as this would violate Muslims' human rights, and the planned change applied only to dedicated mosques and minarets. Muslims in Europe are meeting increasing resistance to plans for mosques that befit Islam's status as the continent's second religion after Christianity, with petitions in London, protests in Cologne, a court case in Marseille and violence in Berlin. However, while all those places have significant Muslim minorities, Haider's Carinthia has the second lowest share of Muslim citizens of all Austrian provinces -- 11,000 out of a population of around 400,000, a Muslim spokesman said. It's a ridiculous statement to say he fears a clash of civilizations (in Carinthia), said Omar al-Rawi, a centre-left lawmaker who is spokesman for the Austrian Muslims' Initiative. We don't know of any mosque plans there. His move is meaningless, populist, racist and anti-Islamic, he added. Haider became known beyond Austria's borders in the 1990s with remarks seen as xenophobic and as playing down Nazi war crimes as the rightist Freedom Party he then led rose to become the second biggest in Austria. His new group, which broke away from Freedom after he lost an internal power struggle, has few followers outside his home province and almost failed to enter parliament last year. Despite his rhetoric against Islam at home, Haider also praises himself for his close ties to Muslim leaders including Libya's Muammar Gaddafi, whom he calls a personal friend.
Bismillah [IslamCity] palestine: Statistics of the siege imposed on Gaza
Outcomes and Statistics of Siege imposed on Gaza Strip 52 Patients killed by Israeli Occupation due to Closure! 96% of factories are closed 67 thousand factories employee become out of work 25 thousand of textile workers became jobless 100% of textile factories are closed $58 million are the losses of wooden industries 570 thousand of wooden industries workshop are closed 20-30 food lorries inter Gaza Strip instead of 300 in the past 85% of citizens are under poverty line 650$ is the rate of annual income per capita 65% of stores works are decreased $55 million are the wastage of the agricultural sector $120 million are the wastage of the industrial sector $52 million are the losses of the fiber sector 470 cancer patients are likely to die 4500 strawberry farmers become out of work $14 million are the wastage of strawberry and flowers season $370 millions are the costs of stalled construction projects 3000 fishermen become out of work due to siege 160 thousand workers are out of work 6 months, Gaza with closed crossings and borders 136 medical instrument are stopped or our of order 97 sorts of medicines on the verge of depletion 107 class of basic medicines are depleted from Gaza Strip 22 money holistic are suspended from work due to the siege 322 patients are in serious danger and in need of urgent treatment 1562 patients in need of treatment outside Gaza Strip For more Information: www.freegaza.ps [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- Popular Committee Against Siege(PCAS), PCAS Manager, Sam AK Gaza - Palestine Mob:00972598873055 [EMAIL PROTECTED] Website: www.freegaza.ps اللجنة الشعبية لمواجهة الحصار غزة- فلسطين
Bismillah [IslamCity] Catholic Church for Saudi Arabia other muslim countries
The real reason for all these churches being built is found in #4, the last article, which is so Qatar has a chance to host Olympic games. Ignoring the command of the Prophet (sallallahua alayhi wassalam), just so they can make money from the Olympic games... and it seems to be the reason other are following Qatar. Compare their these actions to this: http://www.wwrn.org/article.php?idd=26035sec=33con=44 # 1 First Catholic Church for Saudi Arabia # 2 Vatican-Saudi talks on Churches # 3 Father Federico Lombardi # 4 Saudi Arabia extends hand of friendship to Pope Richard Owen in # 1 First Catholic Church for Saudi Arabia Published: March 18, 2008 Negotiations are underway to build the first Catholic church in Saudi Arabia with King Abdullah lending his support for its construction. Vatican Radio reports the Vatican and the Saudi government are currently in talks to allow the church despite the kingdoms ban on allowing the construction of any non-Muslim place of worship. No religion other than Islam is allowed to schedule public services, and even the possession of bibles, rosaries, and crucifixes is forbidden. Saudi Arabia is the only country on the Arabian Peninsula without a Catholic Church despite the 800,000 Catholics - virtually all of who are foreign workers. While Saudi Arabia does not have formal diplomatic relations with the Holy See, King Abdullah became the first reigning Saudi monarch ever to visit the Vatican last November. Commenting after his meeting with the Pope Vatican officials confirmed the Pontiff pressed for permission to open a Catholic church in the kingdom. Holy See spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi said that opening a Catholic parish in the Islamic land would be a historic achievement for religious freedom and a major step forward for inter-religious dialogue. The apostolic nuncio to Kuwait, Qatar, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, Archbishop Paul-Mounged El-Hachem, is reportedly the lead Vatican negotiator in talks with Saudi officials. http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=6247 # 2 Vatican-Saudi talks on Churches [Archbishop Paul-Mounged el-Hachem (14 March 2008)] Archbishop Hashem discussed the Saudi talks whilst visiting Qatar. The Vatican is holding talks with Saudi Arabia on building the first church in the kingdom, where some 1.5m Christians are not allowed to worship publicly. Archbishop Paul-Mounged el-Hachem, one of Pope Benedict XVI's most senior Middle East representatives, said the discussions had begun a few weeks ago. But the archbishop cautioned that the Vatican could not predict the outcome. The discussions come in the wake of King Abdullah's historic meeting with the Pope at the Vatican last November. A Catholic-Muslim Forum was also set up by the Pope two weeks ago to repair relations between the two faiths after the crisis caused by a speech he gave in Germany in 2006, in which he appeared to associate Islam with violence. 'Reciprocity' The disclosure of talks between the Vatican and Saudi Arabia, which do not have diplomatic ties, came soon after the first Roman Catholic church in the Qatari capital, Doha, was opened in a service attended by 15,000 people. Archbishop Hachem, the Apostolic Nuncio to Kuwait, Qatar, Yemen, Bahrain and the UAE, who attended the inauguration, said he hoped there would soon be a similar church for the many Christians in neighbouring Saudi Arabia. If we manage to obtain authorization for the construction of the first church, it will be an outcome of historic dimensions # 3 Father Federico Lombardi Spokesman for Pope Benedict Discussions are under way to allow the construction of churches in the kingdom, he said. Although he made clear the outcome was uncertain, the archbishop added that a church in Saudi Arabia would be an important sign of reciprocity between Muslims and Christians. The Vatican has noted that Muslims are free to worship openly in Europe and demands religious freedom as a condition for the opening of diplomatic relations. About a million Catholics, many of them migrant workers from the Philippines, live in Saudi Arabia. They are allowed to worship in private, mostly in people's homes, but worship in public places and outward signs of faith, such as crucifixes, are forbidden. The last Christian priest was expelled from the kingdom in 1985. Christians complain that rules are not clear and that the Saudi religious authorities, who enforce the kingdom's conservative brand of Islam, sometimes crack down on legitimate congregations. The authorities cite a tradition of the Prophet Muhammad that only Islam can be
Bismillah [IslamCity] anti-islam: Austrian minister sparks controversy over teachers wearing headscarves
Austrian minister sparks controversy over teachers wearing headscarves (AFP, March 09, 2005) Austria's education ministry said Wednesday that public school teachers would not be banned from wearing the traditional Islamic headscarf despite controversial comments by the country's new interior minister. Liese Prokop, speaking to the weekly Falter, said she found teachers wearing the headscarf in public schools shocking. I don't know if a ban of the headscarf is legally possible, but I am in favor of it, the new minister of the governing conservative party was quoted as saying Tuesday. I find it shocking because it does not correspond to the values of our society and tolerance is going too far. Prokop also denounced forced marriages, honor killings and wife battery in Austria's minority Muslim community. Omar Al-Rawi, a Muslim community leader, said the statements amounted to a slap in the face of Muslim women. On Wednesday, education ministry spokesman Ronald Zecha told AFP that there was no proposal to bar teachers from wearing the headgear in public schools. There is no problem in Austria, because we have a system of good cooperation and of reciprocal tolerance with the different religious communities, Zecha said. Austria established freedom of religion in 1912, he said. The wearing of the Islamic headscarf has been the subject of heated debate across Europe. In France, it was banned in public schools after a protracted legal and political battle. http://www.wwrn.org/article.php?idd=2174sec=33con=44
Bismillah [IslamCity] anti-Islam: German businessman who printed name of Quran on toilet paper will face trial
German businessman who printed name of Quran on toilet paper will face trial BERLIN (AP) - A German businessman who printed the name of the Quran on toilet paper and offered the rolls for sale to mosques and media will face trial for disturbing the peace. The man, identified only as Manfred van H., is scheduled to go on trial Feb. 23 at a court in Luedinghausen in western Germany, Jochen Dyhr, a spokesman for judicial authorities in nearby Muenster, said Thursday. The businessman last summer printed sheets of toilet paper with the sentence Koran, the Holy Qur'aen and sent them to about 15 mosques, television stations and magazines. In an accompanying letter, authorities say, he asserted that Islam's holy book is a cookbook for terrorists that calls for acts of violence. He proposed that a memorial to all victims of Islamic terror be set up, financed by sales of the toilet paper -- an offer that prosecutors say he also posted on the Internet. The businessman's offer led to criminal complaints and telephone death threats against him. Prosecutors argue that the man's actions overstepped the legally guaranteed freedom to criticize other religions. They say he has cited his right to freedom of opinion and artistic expression, and said his aim was to provoke rather than actually sell the toilet paper. http://www.courttv.com/people/2006/0210/toiletpaper_ap.html
Bismillah [IslamCity] Muslims design robot making prayers
Robot Praying Salah http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpm_ElmtHTw
Bismillah [IslamCity] Airport body scanners 'virtual strip searches'
Airport body scanners 'virtual strip searches' Date: April 19 2008 Dan Weikel, Los Angeles TRAVELERS at Los Angeles and New York airports will be searched using a new scanner that peers through their clothes and creates an image of the person's body, federal officials announced. The sophisticated technology, called millimetre wave imaging, might prove to be a more effective way to check travelers for guns, knives, bombs and dangerous materials than pat-down searches. But it has raised questions by privacy and civil rights advocates, who say the screening process is invasive and amounts to a virtual strip search. I don't think people are really aware of just how accurate and detailed the images are of their naked body, said Peter Bibring, a staff lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union in Los Angeles. We need to make sure there are good safeguards. The temptation is great not to follow procedures when a celebrity or someone well known is involved. Millimetre wave pictures are white and dark gray. Although somewhat fuzzy, they are detailed enough to reveal such features as breasts and body anomalies. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials said the agency planned to buy at least 30 more devices this year for other airports. It unveiled the whole body imaging machine at the Delta Airlines terminal at the Los Angeles airport on Thursday. Another millimetre wave machine was rolled out at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. The devices, part of a pilot program involving major airports, are being tested under actual conditions. This will allow us to enhance our security at LAX (Los Angeles airport), said Nico Melendez, a TSA spokesman. Imaging devices are not a brand new security tool, but they are a brand new security tool for airports. Travelers randomly selected for secondary screening will go through the scanning device, which uses electromagnetic waves to create an image from energy reflected from the human body. The device costs about $US150,000 ($A160,000). If passengers don't want to go through the scanner, they can opt for other screening measures, including pat-down searches. Signs in the checkpoint area will advise travelers of this option. During the process, a person walks into a large portal and assumes two positions for the scan. A three-dimensional image later appears on a computer screen checked by a security official in a separate location. The process takes a minute or two. To protect a person's privacy, officials said that security officers review the images in a booth about 20 metres away and are unable to see the passenger in question. The faces of those scanned are blurred, and the images cannot be stored, copied or printed, officials said. According to the TSA, about 80% of travelers scanned during recent tests at Sky Harbour International Airport in Phoenix opted for the imaging machine instead of a pat-down search. Mr Melendez said there have been no complaints from passengers since testing began at Sky Harbour late last year. Civil-rights and privacy advocates say the images are detailed depictions of the naked human body and should be tightly controlled to prevent them from being posted on the internet, sold to tabloid publications or misused in other ways. LOS ANGELES TIMES
Bismillah [IslamCity] usa: American Jew arrested as nuclear spy for Israel
American arrested as nuclear spy for Israel By Randall Mikkelsen U.S. authorities arrested an 84-year-old American on Tuesday suspected of giving Israel secrets on nuclear weapons, fighter jets and missiles in the 1980s in a case with links to imprisoned spy Jonathan Pollard. Ben-Ami Kadish acknowledged his spying in FBI interviews and said he acted out of a belief he was helping Israel, according to court documents. Kadish was accused of reporting to an Israeli government handler who was also a main contact for Pollard, an American citizen serving a life term on a 1985 charge of spying for Israel. Kadish's arrest indicates that spying revealed by the Pollard case, still an irritant in the close U.S. alliance with Israel, may have spread wider than previously acknowledged. It was bigger than we thought, and they hid it well, said former U.S. Attorney Joseph diGenova, who prosecuted the Pollard case. State Department spokesman Tom Casey said, We will be informing the Israelis of this action ... 20-plus years ago during the Pollard case we noted that this was not the kind of behavior we would expect from friends and allies and that would remain the case today. Kadish was arrested in New Jersey on a four-count complaint of conspiracy and espionage and was scheduled to make an initial appearance on Tuesday afternoon at U.S. District Court in New York, authorities said. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Arye Mekel, asked about the arrest, said: We know nothing about it. We heard it from the media. Kadish's lawyer, Bruce Goldstein, did not immediately return a call for comment. Pollard, accused of passing on large quantities of classified materials, pleaded guilty in 1986. Israel granted him citizenship in 1996 and acknowledged in 1998 the former U.S. Navy intelligence analyst was one of its spies. Israel has unsuccessfully sought Pollard's release. Kadish is a Connecticut-born U.S. citizen who worked as a mechanical engineer at the U.S. Army's Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center at the Picatinny Arsenal in Dover, New Jersey. His spying lasted roughly from 1979 to 1985, and his contact with the unidentified Israeli handler continued until March of this year, the federal complaint against him said. Based on circumstances of the case, DiGenova identified Kadish's contact as Yosef Yagur, who has been linked in court documents to the Pollard case. A Justice Department spokesman said he could not confirm that. The complaint cited Kadish as saying that, unlike Pollard, he received no money from the Israelis, just small gifts and restaurant meals. CC-1 Kadish, who had a security clearance, took 50 to 100 classified documents from the arsenal's library, the complaint said. He worked from a list provided by the handler, identified in court documents as CC-1. The contact would then photograph the documents in Kadish's basement and Kadish would return them to the library, the complaint said. It said one of the classified documents passed on by Kadish contained information concerning nuclear weaponry. Israel is widely believed to have nuclear weapons but has never acknowledged it. Another document obtained by Kadish related to a major weapons system .. a modified version of an F-15 fighter jet that the United States had sold to another foreign country, the complaint said. It did not identify the country. A third document contained information regarding the U.S. Patriot missile air defense system. The U.S. military first deployed the system in 1984, and Israel used the system to defend against Iraqi missiles in the 1991 Gulf war. The complaint said Kadish maintained contact with CC-1, met him in Israel in 2004, and spoke with him by telephone on March 20 of this year, after his first FBI interview. It said the handler told him to lie to U.S. authorities: Don't say anything ... What happened 25 years ago? You don't remember anything, the handler was quoted as saying. The complaint said the handler worked for the Israeli government as consul for science affairs at the Israeli Consulate General in New York from 1980 to November 1985. During the late 1970s, he worked for what was known as Israeli Aircraft Industries, an Israeli government contractor, the complaint said. It said the handler left the United States when Pollard was arrested and had not returned. The details fit Yagur's history. A woman who identified herself as Yagur's wife, when reached by telephone in Israel, said: We're not speaking to journalists. Goodbye. (Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed, Christine Kearney in New York and Dan Williams in Jerusalem; Editing by Patricia Wilson and Peter Cooney) http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080422/ts_nm/usa_israel_spy_secret_dc_6
Bismillah [IslamCity] palestine: Gaza's sewage 'tsunami'
Gaza's sewage 'tsunami' A five-month-old baby lay on a blanket in the shade of a hut made of metal sheets. Thin tree branches, with leaves and twigs intact, were laced around the ends of the hut to insulate it against the hot wind that blows into the sand dunes, rolling away to the border fence and on to Israel. The baby's mother sat with her legs tucked under her, hiding most of her face behind her black head-scarf. It flapped slightly in the breeze, and she used it to wipe her tears and muffle her sobs. The woman's name is Aziza Abu Otayek. She wept because she was remembering the death of another baby son, one morning in March last year, just after the older children had gone to school. Until that day their home was just downhill from a deep pond of sewage, pumped into a depression in the dunes and held there by earth walls because the water authorities in the Gaza Strip had nowhere else to put it. 'Wall of human waste' On 27 March 2007, the walls gave way. Aziza heard someone shouting, telling her to run away. She got out of the hut, then went back in because she had forgotten her head covering. The wall of raw human waste slammed into them. It knocked her down and tore the baby from her arms. He drowned. They found his body against the wall of the mosque a hundred metres away. He was nine months old. His grandmother was also drowned. Aziza worried about her new baby until he was born at the end of last year, because when she was hit by the flood she swallowed some of the sewage and she thought it might have harmed him. They named the new baby Mohammed, after his dead brother. While she talked, he gurgled happily, untroubled by the flies that buzzed around his eyes and lips. Aziza has an older son, a four-year-old called Ramadan. His father said he asks about his dead brother, and when he is cross he says he prefers the first Mohammed to the second one. But Ramadan seems a cheery little soul, though he has nightmares about the flood. He looks around the lakes of almost raw sewage that still lie near their home and asks his parents if another wave is going to come. One might. The pond that killed Ramadan's brother and grandmother is not the only one near their home. The others are much bigger and full of sewage. Growing population A Palestinian water engineer called Sadi Ali gave me a tour. He explained that the sewage lakes have grown so big because Gaza's growing population - 1.4 million, half of whom are under 16 - has overwhelmed what were anyway inadequate facilities for dealing with waste water. though, to his great regret, they pump tens of thousands of litres of untreated sewage into the Mediterranean every day, they have to do something with the rest. Sadi said that the lakes are 11m (36ft) higher than the surrounding land, and only the earth walls around them hold the muck in. In this single spot alone - and he said other parts of Gaza were as bad - the lakes were so big that if the dykes burst a tsunami of sewage 6m (20ft) or 7m (23ft) high would swamp an area inhabited by 10,000 people. Conflict with Israel Sadi Ali worries that a stray bomb or missile could break a dyke. There is a £40m ($80m) plan, funded by international donors, for a proper sewage treatment system for north Gaza. Sadi Ali is trying to build it. But it is well behind schedule. The problem is the same one that dominates every part of life here - the conflict with Israel. Restrictions imposed by the Israelis - which they say are vital to protect their own people - have slowed down, and sometimes completely stopped the import of raw materials for construction like cement and piping. Contractors have not been able to move freely. The latest problem is the lack of fuel. Try building a sewage system in a war. Gaza has been battered by years of fighting. When we set up the television camera near the sewage lakes a little barefoot boy, barely more than a toddler, came up and asked if we were going to attack the Israeli positions. He might have been asking if it was going to rain. For him, and several hundred thousand other Gazan children, explosions are part of the soundtrack of their lives. The boy must have assumed the camera and its tripod looked like a weapon. After that we worked faster, in case the Israelis thought the same thing. ref: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/7354571.stm
