Thanks to Abu Elvis, Barry Rubin, C. Cantoni, Cimmerian, Dymphna, Fausta, François, GC, Insubria, Jewish Odysseus, LN, TB, VH, and all the other tipsters who sent these in. Details are below the fold.
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Nothing Funny About Obama Losing, Funnyman Woody Allen Says
SAN SEBASTIAN, Spain (AFP) — US filmmaker Woody Allen, best known for such comedy classics as “Annie Hall,” says it will be no laughing matter if Barack Obama fails to win the race for the White House.
“It would be a disgrace and a humiliation if Barack Obama does not win,” he told Spanish journalists at the ongoing 56th San Sebastian film festival, where his latest film “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” is being screened.
“It would be a very, very terrible thing for the United States in many, many ways,” he said.
Democratic hopeful Obama, Allen said, is “so much better” than Republican rival John McCain, and “represents a huge step upward from (the) incompetence and misjudgement” of the Bush administration.
“It would be a terrible thing if the American public was not moved to vote for him, that they actually preferred more of the same.”
| — Hat tip: Jewish Odysseus | [Return to headlines] |
Belgium: Muslim Father and Son Nearly Kill a Tramp
In French, summary by François: Muslim father and son nearly killed a tramp by beating him with a rod with nails sticking out of it. Reason : he was drinking a beer (in Brussels). To the judge they said it was “self-defense”.
| — Hat tip: François | [Return to headlines] |
BNP Teacher Could be Struck Off
A teacher who posted comments on a right-wing website during a lesson could be struck off.
BNP member Adam Walker, 39, left his post at Houghton Kepier College, near Sunderland, last year after admitting contributing to the forum in work time.
He made critical comments about Islam, asylum seekers and immigrants.
It has now emerged he will face a General Teaching Council hearing and could become the first teacher banned for religious intolerance.
The technology teacher’s case is being fought by the trade union Solidarity, which is closely linked to the BNP and of which he is president.
‘Freedom of expression’
Solidarity general secretary Patrick Harrington said Mr Walker had admitted he was wrong to use his laptop to contribute to the forum during work time.
He said: “That was a contractual matter between him and his employer and when he resigned, that should have been the end of the matter.
“We feel this raises human rights issues. He has a right, like every other citizen, to freedom of expression and association.
“He criticised Islam in his posting, but people criticise religions all the time.”
Mr Harrington said the union would take the case to the High Court if they lose the GTC hearing, which will be held in due course.
Mr Walker’s brother Mark, also a BNP member and technology teacher, was suspended by Sunnydale College in Shildon, County Durham, in March last year.
His supporters claim he was suspended for looking at the BNP website on a school computer.
The school denies it has acted because of his political affiliation.
| — Hat tip: Cimmerian | [Return to headlines] |
Demonstrators Battle Police in Malmö
Clashes between police and demonstrators broke out on Friday as Malmö played host to the European Social Forum. Rocks were thrown at police, windows were broken and a woman was raped as 800 people demonstrated to highlight climate change.
The European Social Forum, an annual event, carries the slogan “another Europe is possible” and some participants displayed their disgust at the current world order by resorting to violence on Friday.
Around 100 protesters threw rocks at police and broke windows on Friday at a demonstration near the Triangeln shopping mall in the centre of the southern Swedish city.
A police officer said no one had been injured in the protest, which was finally broken up following charges by police.
One person was detained for public drunkenness, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
The violence followed a demonstration organised by a group called Reclaim the Streets, which attracted some 700 participants who spray-painted graffiti in the city centre before dispersing.
A further demonstration under the auspices of the climate action group Klimax marched on the premises of German energy company Eon on Nobelvägen in Malmö during the afternoon.
800 people joined the march which passed off peacefully and caused only minor traffic disruption in the area.
A 25-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of raping a 20-year-old woman in the Möllevången area of the city. The man was part of the march when he was arrested by police and taken in for questioning.
The European Social Forum opened in Malmö on Wednesday evening and continues until Sunday. The forum features four days of debate, seminars, demonstrations and activities. 20,000 people are expected at a demonstration on Saturday against capitalism and the destruction of the environment.
| — Hat tip: LN | [Return to headlines] |
EU Agriculture Ministers Rubber Stamp Terror List
Hoping to accommodate Tehran, Brussels placed an Iranian dissident group on the EU list of terrorist organizations — and got the bloc’s agriculture ministers to rubber stamp the decision without any debate. Now lawyers from across Europe are accusing the EU of abusing the law.
[…] Then they [EU Agriculture Ministers] had to deal with a particularly unusual point on the day’s agenda: the European Union’s new list of terrorist organizations. Following an “exhaustive examination,” according to the press release, the ministers voted unanimously in favor of the list.
However, those who took part in that meeting on July 15 recall that the submission was approved silently “without any discussion, without a single word being spoken and without a formal vote.” Most of those present had “no idea” what the document was about. The agriculture ministers could hardly have realized that their silent decision would lead two months later to a huge political stir.
There is method to this democratic farce. Important EU decisions are regularly made by bodies that officially have nothing to do with the issue being voted on. The decisions have to be made by a “council,” a collection of ministers from the 27 member states, which can be responsible for finance, health, labor or for dealing with the dear cows and their grass. The ladies and gentlemen of these councils don’t have to discuss or even understand the laws they are enacting. They just have to follow their own government’s guidelines. Blindly, to a certain extent.
The decision that the agriculture experts made in their meek ignorance had been prepared and formulated by a group that meets in secret. The names of the members of the group is classified as is the location where they meet and the dates of the gatherings.
Every six months they update the so-called black list, which currently contains 48 organizations and 46 individuals suspected of terrorist activities. Those on the list can have their accounts frozen, and it is illegal to donate money to them or to support them in any other way. The organizations in practice lose the means to support themselves. […]
Their Paris-based leadership in exile [of the People’s Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI), an Iranian dissident group] swore off the armed struggle in 2001. When the EU and the US placed dozens of organizations and individuals on a “black list” after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the PMOI was not included. The West was grateful for its information about Iran’s nuclear program. That did not suit the regime in Tehran. […]
| — Hat tip: VH | [Return to headlines] |
European Social Forum Demonstration Brings Riots in Malmö
Clashes between police and demonstrators broke out on Friday as Malmö played host to the European Social Forum. Rocks were thrown at police, windows were broken and a woman was raped as 800 people demonstrated to highlight climate change.
The European Social Forum, an annual event, carries the slogan “another Europe is possible” and some participants displayed their disgust at the current world order by resorting to violence on Friday.
Around 100 protesters threw rocks at police and broke windows on Friday at a demonstration near the Triangeln shopping mall in the centre of the southern Swedish city.
A police officer said no one had been injured in the protest, which was finally broken up following charges by police.
One person was detained for public drunkenness, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
The violence followed a demonstration organised by a group called Reclaim the Streets, which attracted some 700 participants who spray-painted graffiti in the city centre before dispersing.
A further demonstration under the auspices of the climate action group Klimax marched on the premises of German energy company Eon on Nobelvägen in Malmö during the afternoon.
800 people joined the march which passed off peacefully and caused only minor traffic disruption in the area.
A 25-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of raping a 20-year-old woman in the Möllevången area of the city. The man was part of the march when he was arrested by police and taken in for questioning.
The European Social Forum opened in Malmö on Wednesday evening and continues until Sunday. The forum features four days of debate, seminars, demonstrations and activities. 20,000 people are expected at a demonstration on Saturday against capitalism and the destruction of the environment.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Help Compile a List of the The Most Influential Euro Islamic Centers
IslamOnline.net (IOL)’s Euro Muslims Page works as a platform for the European Muslims communities. It aims to help these communities to build their relationships, coalitions and networks, in their countries. Euro Muslims Page finds the holy month of Ramadan as a great opportunity to achieve endless bliss through rethink our approaches and evaluate our conditions.
From what has been mentioned above, we would like you to help us compile a list of the most influential Euro Islamic centers by sending us your favorite Islamic centre. Islamic centers are assessed on their community-based services, educational and cultural programs, charitable projects and facilities (especially for women and youth).
You are invited to take a crucial part in the selection process throughout submitting your nomination. Nominateyour favorite Islamic centre between September 15 and October 15. Euro Muslims staff will review the submissions and the winning Islamic centre will be featured on European Muslims page to set a model. An interview (or a live dialogue) could be done with the center’s spokesperson.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Mafia Killing of Immigrants Sparks Riots Near Naples
Race riots exploded in the southern Italian town of Castelvolturno near Naples yesterday after six African immigrants were shot dead at a tailor’s shop in an attack by gangsters from the the Naples Mafia.
Police said that the violence was related to a drugs turf war among the Camorra, the Naples Mafia, in which African immigrants appeared to be involved. But the rioters, who smashed windows and turned over cars, accused the police and mafiosi of racism for assuming that immigrants were drugs dealers. At least six gunmen fired Kalashnikovs and small arms during the attack.
Young men with crowbars forced motorists out of their vehicles while African women screamed. “We want justice. It’s not true that our murdered friends sold drugs or were mobsters,” one protester said. The six dead, all in their late twenties, were from Ghana, Togo and Liberia.
Sando De Franciscis, head of the Caserta region, said: “The arrogance of the Camorra has reached intolerable levels.” Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, the Archbishop of Naples, said: “As long as these killers are not defeated we will always have cemeteries filled by hate and violence.” Police said that 130 bullets had been fired from a car and several motor scooters. Mafiosi gunmen also mowed down the owner of a games arcade in Castelvolturno, firing 60 bullets into his head and abdomen 20 minutes before the attack on the Africans.
Police said that the violence sprang from a crackdown by the Casalesi clan, a Camorra faction linked to the drugs trade, on dealers who had moved into the clan’s territory “without authorisation”.
| — Hat tip: Fausta | [Return to headlines] |
State Legislator Removed From Chamber for Using Nazi Comparison
A far-right lawmaker in the Brandenburg state legislature compared a rival politician to a Nazi, and found himself barred from the session. It’s a first in Brandenburg, where right-wing extremists have been winning government seats.
The eastern German state of Brandenburg kicked a legislator out of the chamber in its capital in Potsdam for the first time in its history on Wednesday after he compared a fellow lawmaker to a Nazi.
Markus Nonninger, a member of the far-right German People’s Union (DVU), was scolded for breaking democratic rules of order when he compared the Social Democrat Christoph Schulze to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels.
Schulze protested vehemently and called for Nonninger to be disciplined. The legislature’s vice-president, Gerlinde Stobrawa, of the Left Party, asked Nonninger to apologize. When he wouldn’t, she ordered him to abandon his seat in the middle of a full legislative session. He picked up his things and left, according to the Berlin daily Der Tagesspiegel.
The disciplinary move is unusual. A spokesman for the legislature, Katrin Rautenberg, said it had never happened during a full legislative session in Brandenburg before. […]
| — Hat tip: VH | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden’s Government Has a Plan to Integrate Immigrants Into Workforce
The government has announced plans to spend close to 2 billion kronor ($297 million) to help Sweden’s newly arrived immigrants and refugees integrate more quickly.
“It takes on average more than seven years for an adult refugee to find work in Sweden,” write finance minister Anders Borg and integration minister Nyamko Sabuni in an article in the Dagens Nyheter (DN) newspaper.
“Employment among the foreign born is around 10 percent lower than among those born in the country, and open unemployment is more than twice as high. These are devastating numbers.”
According to the ministers, getting more foreign born workers into the labour market and doing so faster is a key to reducing the dependence on welfare payment which the government believes contributes to immigrants’ social exclusion.
The government plans to present a proposal next spring on the management, shape, and financing of refugee intake to Sweden.
A total of 920 million kronor ($136.6 million) has been set aside in the budget to fund reforms starting in 2010.
“[The pattern of] social exclusion will be broken. The risk of people who come to Sweden being relegated to passivity and welfare dependence will be reduced,” say the ministers.
Borg and Sabuni say the initiative’s aim is to give the individual increased responsibility and stronger incentives to quickly establish themselves in the labour market…
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden’s New Defence Cuts
The Ministry of Defence announced plans for a 2.3 billion kronor ($340 million) reduction in spending on defence equipment by 2011.
Several planned upgrades and renovation programmes, including the modification of the CV90 combat vehicle and the Leopard 2(S) tank, will be scrapped altogether while other programmes will be significantly reduced.
“Together with other measures this [step] will provide for both a balance in finances and the ability to strengthen the military’s core activities in the form of operational units,” said Minister of Defence Sten Tolgfors in a statement.
But Håkan Juholt, a longtime Social Democratic member of Sweden’s commission on defence, blasted the way the government handled the decision.
“It’s flimsy and flaky and short sighted and unreliable and doesn’t build any trust. This happened without any dialogue with the opposition, plain and simple, and they don’t want to take a long-term view,” the TT news agency reported him as saying.
Juholt admitted that the proposal may have some valid suggestions, but he remained livid that the defence ministry had taken the decision without seeking, in his eyes, any sort of broad participation across the political spectrum.
“There’s been no dialogue,” he added.
The cuts will likely have repercussions for BAE Systems, which has an ownership stake in three Sweden-based defence companies affected by the cuts: Hägglunds, Bofors and C-ITS.
Just this past year Sweden had agreed to purchase 549 of the CV90 combat vehicles, but now the order has been cancelled, along with other planned upgrades to existing vehicles…
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Morocco Drives Out Its Berbers, Then Spies on Them
The Moroccan Secret Service’s attempts to recruit spies in the Netherlands has angered the Dutch government. And in Morocco, the espionage affair has provoked heated discussion. It seems that Morocco feels threatened by the Berber population living abroad and wants to monitor the life of its second-class citizens in foreign countries. Most of the Moroccans living in the Netherlands are Berbers from the Rif region.
The furore erupted after the dismissal of the Rotterdam police officer, Re Lemhaouli, following allegations that the policeman had been passing information to the Moroccan Secret Service via the embassy in The Hague. The Dutch government protested to the Moroccan Embassy. This week, the Dutch current affairs TV programme NOVA revealed that Rabat had recalled two its diplomats two months ago, after receiving the complaints about the alleged espionage. Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen has made it very clear that he does not appreciate Morocco’s interference in internal Dutch affairs. The Dutch parliament is to hold an emergency debate on the affair next week.
It has since transpired that the Rotterdam police officer is not the only person to have been approached. Fouad el Haji, a Labour local councillor, claims that he was also contacted, “just like a former Dutch MP of Moroccan origin.” Mr el Haji was apparently referring to former Socialist Party MP Ali Lazrak, who denies having been approached himself, adding that “it was well known that the Moroccan Secret Service was active in the Netherlands” and that other prominent politicians of Moroccan origin were asked to lend their co-operation.
A colleague at Radio Netherlands Worldwide confirms that certain Dutch citizens of Moroccan origin are routinely approached by the secret service. “The Moroccan government approached me years ago, when I first came to live in the Netherlands,” says the journalist and describes the way Rabat works as: “Scary. First, I got a call on behalf of the Moroccan ambassador asking if I wanted to help improve the image of Morocco here.” The journalist declined, but was “accosted by the press attaché at a conference”, though he was able to brush the embassy staff member aside. Afterwards the journalist was rung again, once at work and once at home.
Monitoring the Berbers
Two articles from the Arabic department of Radio Netherlands Worldwide, which were published word for word on Morocco’s largest website Hespress, have received reactions from dozens of Moroccans living in various European cities and Morocco. Rabat wants to monitor the Berbers living in the Netherlands, is basically the gist of the commentaries. “What frightens Morocco is the fact that half a million Berbers are living in the Netherlands. Amsterdam is the third largest Berber town after Nador and Huceima,” says one reaction. Another, written by someone who calls himself “the star of the Rif” says “The liberation of the Rif is taking place in Europe.” An emigrant Berber writes: “First, this regime drove us out of our country, then they followed us here”…
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Middle East: Shelling of Gaza Town May be a War Crime Says UN
New York, 19 Sept. (AKI) — Israel’s shelling of Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip in November 2006, which killed 19 Palestinian civilians, may constitute a war crime, the head of the United Nations-backed investigation into the incident has said.
The attack “took lives, inflicted horrendous physical and mental injuries, tore families apart, destroyed homes, took away livelihoods and traumatized a population,” Archbishop Desmond Tutu told reporters in Geneva late on Thursday.
Tutu described the shelling of Beit Hanoun as “a storyof the failure of the rule of law.”
“Faced with this absence of a well-founded explanation from the Israeli military, the mission has to conclude that there is a possibility that the shelling of Beit Hanoun constituted a war crime,” he stated.
He had presented the final report of the high-level fact-finding mission set up by the UN Human Rights Council.
The UN mission entered Beit Hanoun in May from Egypt ,after 14 months of trying to gain entry through Israel
During their visit to Gaza, the team spoke to a range of people, including survivors, government officials, staff from the UN and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), as well as former Palestinian prime minister Ismail Haniyah and other members of militant Islamist group Hamas.
“Nineteen civilians [including seven children] were killed and many more injured yet no verifiable explanation has been offered, no independent, impartial and transparent investigation has been held, no one has been held to account,” Tutu said.
The Israeli military has admitted responsibility for the attack but claimed a technological error, noted Tutu.
“Accountability involves providing a remedy and redress for victims,” he added. “To date, neither has been forthcoming from Israel.”
The report acknowledged that the shelling of Beit Hanoun took place as rockets were being fired at Israeli civilians by Palestinian militants. Hamas has a legal obligation to respect international humanitarian law prohibiting the targeting of civilians, Tutu stated
The UN investigators urged an independent, impartial investigation of the incident.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Who Do They Like, Who Do They Hate
by Barry Rubin
These two polls are very interesting especially when compared to each other, and are not so bad.
Contrary to what we think there are basically two models:
Strong support for Israel as against the PA: US
Relative evenhandedness: France, Germany, and UK.
We are not seeing results of high support for Palestinians versus Israel, even in a country like France, even after years of anti-Israel propaganda.
Note that there are no countries where support for the Palestinians is higher than that for Israel. In Germany there is greater support for Israel; in France and the UK more evenhanded.
But even this understates the case. The Palestinians are represented in this poll by the PA, which is perceived (rightly or wrongly) as moderate, nonviolence, and ready to make peace with Israel. Comparing Israel and the PA is going to end up being more even in result than comparing Israel to Fatah, the PLO, Hamas or talking about Israelis versus Palestinians.
After all, the argument would be that the PA are those Palestinians who want to live in peace with Israel so liking both means wanting the two sides to make peace and have a two-state solution. Presumably, most of those who liked the parties do not perceive a positive statement about the PA as anti-Israel.
Note also that in France, Germany and-to a lesser extent-the UK, support for Israel is not that far behind positive views of the US. After all, if the US can only get 47 percent in France is it so surprising Israel gets 41? And the same applies to Germany (51, 47); though the gap in the UK is a bit wider it is not that extreme.
The situation in Turkey is very bad since in recent years the support for the PA is based on the idea of Muslim solidarity. The high results for the US and USSR are also surprising. Clearly, the Islamic-oriented regime has had a big effect on popular thinking or, to put it differently, its election reflects shifts in public opinion.
So if the result isn’t great it isn’t terrible either, better than we would expect.
| — Hat tip: Barry Rubin | [Return to headlines] |
Iranian TV Report on the Heavy Metal Scene in Tehran
[MEMRI video]
| — Hat tip: Abu Elvis | [Return to headlines] |
Middle East: Economy Becoming Aid Dependent, Says World Bank
Gaza City, 18 Sept. (AKI) — The Palestinian economy is becoming increasingly aid dependent, and Israel’s policy of border closures in the Gaza Strip is eroding the occupied territory’s industrial backbone and paralysing its municipal services, a World Bank report warns.
Real per capita gross domestic product (GDP) is now 30 percent below its 1999 level as the economy shrinks and the population grows, according to the report on Palestinian economic prospects.
The report has been published amid growing concern over the occupied Palestinian territories’ stability. Unemployment has reached nearly 30 percent, and the percentage of those living below the national poverty line rose to 57 percent in 2006, according the UN.
The report noted that the Palestinian Authority has received 1.2 billion dollars in external budget support so far this year but requires another 650 million dollars and 300 million more in development aid.
The figures highlight the fact that as Palestinian economy worsens, it is becoming more aid dependent, the report said.
Ninety-eight percent of its industrial operations have been shut down. Out of 3,900 industries, only 23 are still operating, showing the crippling economic effect of Israel’s blockade on the Gaza Strip, according to the report.
“Closure of Gaza is also resulting in the collapse of the municipal sector. Municipalities, providing key services such as water, sewage, solid waste [disposal] etc. are facing a deep financial crisis,” the report stated.
“The impoverishment of the population and the near absence of private sector activities imply that municipalities are unable to collect fees for service provision and are unable to pay staff salaries.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Nuclear: Syria Runs for Seat in IAEA Board, Conflicts
(ANSAmed) — VIENNA, SEPTEMBER 19 — Syria is running for one of the 35 seats on the board of the International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA, the governing council of the agency, sources from the organisation told ANSA. The board will hold its next meeting in Vienna, where the headquarters of the agency is located, from Monday, September 22, to September 26. The board includes, apart from the permanent members, representatives of states from various areas of the world with a one-year term. Syria, as well as Afghanistan, are aiming at the Middle East and Southern Asian seat, left vacant by Pakistan. There are conflicts within the board over its candidacy, disliked by the western countries, as it is considered an obstacle to the policy of the agency towards the Iranian nuclear programme. In case of boycott Damascus threatens to nominate Iran. The candidacy of Afghanistan on the other hand results disliked by the Middle East countries, as they consider Kabul too close to the USA. The candidatures presented by the regional groups are generally adopted with consensus. In this case, given the internal conflicts within the Middle East regional group due to the delicate dossier of Syria and Iran, it could lead to a difficult vote in the general assembly, a fact without a precedent. The assembly, the most important organ of the agency, will have a meeting from September 29 to October 4 in Vienna. The Permanent Representative of Italy to the United Nations in Vienna, Ambassador Gianni Ghisi, will preside over the session. Italy has been a member of the board for a year now and will leave it on October 6. As it has also emerged, the IAEA has requested that Syria should be able to carry out further inspections on some suspected sites, where undisclosed nuclear activities could be running. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Saudi Radio Program That Suggested Killing “Immoral Broadcasters” Taken Off the Air
It is the same program on which, a few days ago, the fatwa was issued against “immoral broadcasters”. It is not clear whether the suspension is the result of the controversy that erupted after the broadcast. No official statement from the communication ministry. The judge who made the statement is speaking out to stem the controversy, saying that he was “misunderstood”.
Riyadh (AsiaNews/Agencies) — The fatwa against “immoral” programs and the managers who broadcast them has backfired against the radio program on which it was made. The Saudi broadcaster Holy Quran Radio has suspended the program Light in the Path, which illuminated the lives of millions of Muslims. The 30-minute news broadcast included commentary from the leading experts and teachers of Islam, who pronounced judgments, gave opinions, and supplied advice to listeners who were able to ask their questions live on the air.
Almost all of the Muslim religious leaders participated in the broadcasts, including the grand mufti of Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al Al Shaikh. The decision to suspend the broadcasts follows the controversy that erupted throughout the entire Arab world, over the statements made by Sheikh Salih Ibn al-Luhaydan, the most authoritative judge on the Saudi court. Responding to the question from a listener, he issued a fatwa according to which certain “diabolical” entertainment programs can foster “depravity” and “vice” among viewers, and it is permissible to kill the “owners and managers” of the channels if they do not “stop these broadcasts”.
According to the website Islam Today, in addition to the program at fault, the broadcast of the pro-Islamic program Fahd Al Sunaidi has also been suspended. The culture and information ministry denies any involvement in shutting down the programs, and says that it has “no official position” on the matter.
Salih Ibn al-Luhaydan had tried to calm the controversy himself: he clarified that he had been “misunderstood”, and his words had been used outside of their “proper context”. “What I said”, the website Gulf News quotes him as saying, “about the killing of the owners of these channels is that it is permissible for the authorities to kill them in accordance with a judicial ruling if they do not stop such evil transmissions”.
The “fatwa” issued by the judge on the Saudi court had unleashed strong and concerned reactions from broadcasters in the Arab world, subject to being killed for broadcasting programs believed to be immoral. Some defended themselves by saying they have never broadcast soap operas, provocative programs, or topics that clash with Islamic religion and morality. Moreover, the producers and creators of these programs are aware of the censorship they face, and they avoid offensive language and content in the process.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Sunnah Studies Awards in Medina
Interior Minister Prince Naif will attend a function organized on behalf of the Prince Naif International Prize for Sunnah and Islamic Studies, which is to be held in Madinah today.
Well-known Moroccan writer Abdul Razaq Harmas and Egyptian scholar Yasser Noor will jointly receive the first prize in the area of Sunnah studies, Saed Al-Harithy, secretary-general of the Prince Naif International Prize for Sunnah and Islamic Studies Committee, who is also adviser to the interior minister, said in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency yesterday.
Muhammad Hasanain of Egypt has won the first prize for Contemporary Islamic Studies for his work entitled “The Revival of Religion.” Saudi scholar Abdul Rahman Al-Dukhayyel and Egyptian writer Muhammad Yusri Ibrahim have jointly won the award for their papers on the role of religious edicts in Islam. A panel consisting of 12 domestic and international experts on various Islamic disciplines selected the five winners from 413 research studies. The award was instituted in 2002 to encourage scientific research in Sunnah and Islamic studies and to promote a spirit of competition among Muslim researchers the world over. The last time the prize was distributed was in 2005. Each prize consists of cash award of SR500,000, a certificate of appreciation and a medal.
Harmas won the prize for his research work on the sources of Prophet’s biography among the Hadith scholars and historians. He said that the prize is an impetus for researchers to double their efforts in studying Islamic topics.
The co-winner of the prize for the same topic, Yasser Noor, said that the objectivity of the judges with a vision above regional or ethnic considerations guaranteed the selection of the best works and contributed to the success of achieving the goals for which the prize is instituted.
Madinah Gov. Prince Abdul Aziz bin Majed stressed the importance of the study of Sunnah for Muslims across the world, as it is the second source of Muslim law after the Holy Qur’an. The prince said in his statement to the Saudi Press Agency that the award also aimed at correcting the misconceptions about Islam and dispelling the pervert ideologies wrongly attributed to it.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey Tries to Bring Together Afghanistan and Pakistan
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, SEPTEMBER 17 — Turkey has launched a diplomatic initiative to bring together Afghanistan and Pakistan again, diplomats said. Diplomats said that Turkey had taken action to bring together the two countries to revive the ‘Ankara Declaration’ process and discuss their problems. Within the scope of the initiative, Feridun Sinirlioglu, the deputy undersecretary of the Turkish Foreign Ministry, has been holding talks in Afghanistan since the beginning of this week. Sinirlioglu conveyed Turkish President Abdullah Gul’s special letter to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and exchanged views on a new trilateral summit to take place among Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Sinirlioglu is expected to visit Pakistan after completing talks in Afghanistan. The trilateral summit is planned to be held in coming months. Upon the invitation of former Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and Afghan President Hamid Karzai visited Ankara in 2007 and a trilateral summit was held among the three presidents. At the end of the summit, the presidents released the ‘Ankara Declaration’ which expressed their strong will to maintain dialogue and cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan in every area, and raise the welfare of Pakistani and Afghan people. The declaration is important for it was the first joint statement signed by the leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan. In the declaration, parties agreed to strengthen bilateral relations, good neighborly relations, respect to each other’s territorial integrity and not to intervene in internal affairs of each other. (ANSAmed).
2008-09-17 15:52
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey: Army to Buy Anti-Tank Missiles From Russia
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, SEPTEMBER 19 — Russia and Turkey signed an agreement to purchase anti-tank missiles, daily Aksam reports. According to the agreement Russiàs Rosoboronexport will sell 800 anti-tank missiles to Turkey’s land forces. The contract is worth USD 100 million, the source revealed. A letter from Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin removed all obstacles regarding the deal. Besides this deal Turkey will also purchase an air defense system from Russia which worths 1 billion USD, the report added. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey, Syria Trade Volume to Hit $2 Bln in 2008
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, SEPTEMBER 15 — Trade volume between Turkey and Syria is expected to hit 2 billion USD at the end of 2008, a Syrian business leader said on Saturday speaking to Anatolia Agency. The Free Trade Zone established by Turkey and Syria helped trade volume reach 1.2 billion USD last year, said Bahaa Aldin Hassan, chairman of the Syria-Turkey Businessmen Assembly. Hassan said that the two countries have good relations and that Turkey has always stood by Syria. “Turkey mediates between Syria and Israel. Fifth round of indirect talks will be held soon. This process had a great impact on economy,” he said. Hassan also said that Turkey and Syria should improve relations, and called on Turkish businessmen to cooperate with Syrian businessmen. “Turkey has the experience, industry and technology. Turkish businessmen could take advantage of cheap labor and raw materials in Syria,” he said. Hassan said Turkish businessmen were complaining about bureaucracy and paper work in Syria and having difficulties since there were no Turkish banks in this country. “We believe that Turks should open a bank in Syria. Most of the problems would disappear if there was a bank here,” he said. Foreign companies to set up a bank in Syria can own up to 49% stake of the bank under the Syrian laws. “Turkish businessmen asked Syrian officials to amend banking system. We worked on it. The new arrangement will reduce 51% Syrian stake to 40%,” Hassan said. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Russia Test-Fires New-Generation Strategic Missile
Russia said Thursday it had test-fired a new-generation strategic missile from a submarine, the latest launch of a multiple-warhead weapon designed to breach anti-missile shields.
“A new-generation Bulava ballistic missile was successfully fired from the White Sea to the Kura testing site in Kamchatka” in Russia’s far east, the Russian navy said in a statement.
The Bulava, which the statement said was fired by the Dmitry Donskoi nuclear submarine off the northwest coast of Russia, can be equipped with up to 10 individually targeted nuclear warheads.
The test comes amid Russian anger at US plans to locate a powerful missile-tracking radar in the Czech Republic as well interceptor missiles in Poland to combat what it says are threats to global security…
| — Hat tip: VH | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey-Russia Customs Row to Cost $1 Bln, Minister Says
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, SEPTEMBER 15 — The cost of Russiàs restrictions on Turkey’s exports would reach $1 billion at the end of September, Turkey’s trade minister said. Kursad Tuzmen said Turkey’s loss has reached $500 million so far and the cost of this trade dispute would double at the end of this month, Anatolian news agency reported. “I hope the problem will be resolved as soon as possible,” he also said. Lengthy customs procedures imposed by Russian customs authorities since last month are delaying the arrival of Turkish-made goods. Turkey has put a package of trade measures into action against Russia at the beginning of September, a move to retaliate against its top trade partner. Trade volume between Turkey and Russia was estimated to reach $38 billion at the end of 2008. Turkish investments in Russia are around $5 billion, while Turkish contractors have undertaken Russian construction projects worth over $25 billion. Last year, Turkish exports to Russia reached $4.7 billion, mostly automobiles, citrus fruits, tomatoes, synthetic thread, textiles and jewelry. Turkey imported mostly oil, natural gas and mineral oil from Russia worth $23.5 billion in 2007. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
At Least 40 Killed in Suspected Suicide Bombing in Pakistan
At least 40 people were killed today in a suspected suicide car bomb attack on the Marriott Hotel in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, the city’s police chief reported.
“A car laden with explosives rammed the gate at the Marriott and so far we have brought out 40 dead bodies, but the number could well be higher,” police chief Asghar Raza Gardazi said. […]
Hours before the blast President Asif Ali Zardari, making his first address to parliament, several hundred metres to the east of the hotel, said terrorism had to be rooted out. […]
The hotel, popular with foreigners, has been bombed twice before but the Saturday evening blast was the most serious in the Pakistani capital since the country joined the US-led campaign against militancy in late 2001.
Al Qaeda-linked militants based in sanctuaries in the Afghan border have launched a bloody campaign of bomb attacks in retaliation for offensives by the security forces.
Zardari, the widower of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, is close to the United States and had earlier vowed to maintain nuclear-armed Pakistan’s commitment to the US-led campaign against militancy, even though it is deeply unpopular.
In his address to parliament, he said Pakistan must stop militants from using its territory for attacks on other countries. He also said Pakistan would not tolerate infringement of its territory in the name of the fight against militancy. […]
| — Hat tip: VH | [Return to headlines] |
Jakarta Bows to Public Pressure, Puts Porn Bill on Hold
The House of Representatives (DPR) has finally succumbed to public pressure to delay the passage of a controversial pornography bill whose supporters had hoped would be a valuable Idul Firti (Muslim post-fasting month festivity) present if it were passed into law on Tuesday (Sept 23).
“We still need to popularize it and seek feed-back from the public,” Chairman of the Pornography Bill’s Committee Balkan Kaplale said here on Friday. The DPR was previously slated to deliberate on and pass the bill into law on Tuesday (Sept. 23 2008) amidst pros and cons in the public.
“God Willing, the bill will be passed into law in a plenary session of the DPR next Tuesday,” Ali Mochtar Ngabalin, a member of the porn bill drafting committee, said on Thursday.
However, as controversies arose on the plan, the passage of the bill was postponed. Up to now, pros and cons among factions in the House itself are also still taking place.
The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) faction had opposed the bill since the beginning. But other factions, such as those of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the Democratic Pioneer Star Party have been fully supporting the bill.
The postponement of the bill will at least provide more time for the House to popularize the bill and to collect inputs from the public. The bill had in the past few days drawn protests. […]
In response to the pros and cons, the Women’s study Center of the University of Gajah Mada (PSW UGM) said the bill needed multi-disciplinary approaches and studies before it could be endorsed. “The studies are needed to define the subjects called pornography because the limitations of pornography in the bill are not yet clear,” Head of the PSW UGM, Siti Hariti Sastriyani, said. […]
Those opposed to the bill are of the view that with such a definition, Indonesian traditional dances would be affected. According to Sastriyani, Javanese dances with the ‘kemben’ attire could be affected. “Since the time of our ancestors, the dance has been performed with such an attire. Yet no debate on it has been raised since then,” she added. […]
The bill would also ban [Balinese] dances like the ‘lengang lenggok’ (in which swaying movements dominate) whereas these dances were part of a local culture’s attraction for tourists, he said.
Yet, not all are opposed to the bill. […] “A law against pornography is urgently needed to protect our youngsters from pornography and its by-products,” Inke Maris, general secretary of the Save Indonesian Children Alliance [an organization pushing for the bill to be accepted as law], said. […]
| — Hat tip: VH | [Return to headlines] |
Norwegian Frigate to Hunt Pirates
The new frigate Fridtjof Nansen is likely to be used in the fight against pirates operating off the coast of Somalia.
According to daily newspaper VG, the new super frigate could be in the Gulf of Aden east of the mouth of the Red Sea by next spring.
The task of the ship will be to help the international naval force protect civilian ships against attacks from pirates.
The head of Norway’s armed forces Sverre Diesen confirms that the first of the new frigates has bean allotted to this task.
A clear UN mandate and political approval at home will be need for the project to go ahead.
Five Norwegian frigates are being built in Spain by Nevanti Ship Yards. Including six helicopters, the price tag is NOK 21 Billion (USD 3.8 billion).
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Pirates Attack Norwegian Ship
The tanker Front Voyager was sailing through the gulf when alert crew spotted a speed boat closing in on the vessel.
The pirates on board the speedboat, believed to be from Somalia, came up alongside the large tanker and attempted to board while firing between 10 and 15 shots, according to reports from the scene.
“Fortunately no one (on board the vessel) was hit,” said Dag Christoffersen of V Ships Norway, which manages the vessel.
The crew of the Front Voyager, trained to fend off pirates, contacted the Danish naval vessel Absalon stationed in the area to fight a wave of piracy in the gulf. The Danish ship sent an armed helicopter to the Front Voyager while the tanker’s crew used water canons to keep the pirates from scrambling up the sides of the ship.
“These water canons are very powerful,” Christoffersen told Aftenposten.no.
The helicopter arrived, the pirates were eventually captured and taken to an American battleship also stationed nearby.
Christoffersen praised the crew of the Norwegian-owned vessel, comprised of around 25 Russian officers and Filipino seafarers. The vessel continued sailing to Singapore after the drama subsided.
| — Hat tip: Dymphna | [Return to headlines] |
Immigration: EU Pact, Malta Threatens With Veto
(ANSAmed) — VALLETTA, SEPTEMBER 19 — Maltese Interior Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici pressed for an international commitment today to combat illegal immigration and threatened with Valletta’s veto on the approval of the pact on immigration proposed by the French presidency of the European Union in the absence of a fairer distribution of the quotas of migrants who cannot be repatriated. The minister pointed out the problems his country is forced to deal with, explaining that the arrival of 2,300 illegal migrants during the summer in a small country such as Malta presents an enormous challenge for the authorities. ‘‘Nonetheless, we are determined to respect our international humanitarian duties and appreciate the help given to us by some countries and organisations,’’ the minister assured. ‘‘Malta is calling for a fair distribution of the burden of non-repatriable migrants among all member states. We are calling upon all Mediterranean states to understand our problem and wish they addressed with greater solidarity the reality of our problem,’’ Mifsud Bonnici stated directing the appeal also to the Mediterranean Members of Parliament from 25 countries. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Did Mohammed Ever Live?
Did Muhammad Ever Really Live?
A number of Islamic associations have put a quick end to their collaboration with a professor — and trainer of people who are supposed to teach Islam in German high schools — who has expressed his doubt that Muhammad ever lived. Islam scholar Michael Marx spoke with SPIEGEL ONLINE about what lies behind the debate and the historical person of the Prophet.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Mr. Marx, someone studying Islam learns that the Prophet Muhammad was born on the Arabian Peninsula in A.D. 570 and died in Medina in A.D. 632. Is there any reason for doubting that this is true?
Michael Marx: Those are provisional dates that we should hold on to until there are better figures. The Islamic sources are rich with material about the person of the Prophet and his life story. Some of it is has elements that are somewhat mystical. But we can generally rely on the solid core of Islamic tradition.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: There is a group of prominent German Islamic scholars, who are becoming increasingly aggressive about questioning whether the existence of the Prophet is even historically accurate. The theory got its most recent backing from the University of Münster’s Professor Muhammad Sven Kalisch, who is in charge of training teachers for Islamic education at the secondary-school level. The Ministry of Education of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia is now planning to calm the waters by appointing an additional professor of Islamic pedagogy. Are we witnessing a split into two camps?
Marx: I don’t see it that way. But we should note that what we have from Kalisch at the moment are only the things he has allegedly said. From them, it sounds like he has decided to back the thesis of Professor Karl-Heinz Ohlig, which Ohlig publicized three years ago in his book “Dark Beginnings” (“Die dunklen Anfänge”). There, Ohlig posits that the Koran is a Christian text and that Muhammad probably never lived. But this group, which also includes the numismatist Volker Popp and some others, is very small. I’d say that their position isn’t really within the realm of accepted scholarship.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Why?
Marx: There are far too many pieces of evidence that make Ohlig’s thesis that the Prophet never lived untenable. In the 14 centuries of polemics between Christians and Muslims, this issue has never made an appearance. Even in Syrian-Aramaic sources, however, there is some documentation about the prophet from an earlier time.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Your scholarship focuses on the early period of Islam and the Koran. What is the evidentiary situation? How could we prove that the Prophet lived?
Marx: You have to be a bit delicate about it. In general, when it comes to history, you can’t point to any scientific proof. How would we, for example, prove the existence of Charlemagne? We can’t conduct any experiments; we have to work with evidence. And, for this issue, the evidentiary thread is the Koran. In this case, the evidentiary situation is better than it is for any other religion. We know of manuscripts of the Koran and Islamic inscriptions already 40-50 years after the Prophet died. It would be hard to explain the Koran, if you took the prophet out of the equation. Ohlig claims that Islam was actually a Christian sect up until the Umayyad Caliphate, that is, the eighth century. In this case, I run into this massive issue: It doesn’t match up with the text of the Koran. Why isn’t Christ a more central figure in the Koran, then? You hear about Abraham, Moses and Noah much more frequently.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: And what about with the format of the Koran?
Marx: That’s the second evidentiary thread. As can be shown in even linguistic terms, the Koran is a kind of speech. It isn’t a narration like the New Testament, a piece of correspondence like the epistles of Paul, an account of the Apocalypse or a Psalm. The genre only makes sense when I have a person that I can attach it to — a charismatic orator, a prophet. Why would a community that doesn’t have a prophet invent one after the fact and make up a text, which is then also Christian, as Ohlig sees it? Ohlig’s thesis is uneconomical; it raises more issues than it solves.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: In other words, if the Prophet did not live, in order to explain the literature, there must have been an enormous conspiracy.
Marx: Precisely. And that — from Morocco to India — not a single trace of this conspiracy remained. And who would have implemented the conspiracy? Already after the middle of the eighth century, we no longer have any central Islamic political authority that could have implemented the fabrication of the Prophet in Asia and Africa.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Are you saying that Ohlig and his fellow combatants are either demagogues or pseudo-scholars?
Marx: It’s not for me to make that type of judgment. But that’s what it seems like to me. Of course, it’s perfectly legitimate to discuss issues. And the Koran definitely contains a number of open questions. We at the Corpus Coranicum project (see author box) are first trying to conduct basic research before deriving overarching theories…
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Egyptian Compensated for Forced Deportation
Ahmed Agiza, one of two Egyptians forcibly deported from Bromma Airport by CIA agents in 2001, is to receive three million kronor ($440,000) in damages from the Swedish state, his lawyer said on Friday.
Agiza, who remains imprisoned in an Egyptian jail, had demanded 35 million kronor from the Swedish state.
His legal representative Anna Wigenmark said her client had accepted the Chancellor of Justice’s offer with a degree of hesitancy.
“He is primarily dissatisfied with the difficult situation in which he currently finds himself. He feels that he has been treated unfairly. He is not doing at all well. He has suffered serious mental and physical damage,” she told the TT news agency.
Ahmed Agiza and Mohammed Alzery were expelled from the country following a deportation order by the Swedish government. They were handed over to US agents at Bromma Airport in Stockholm and were flown to Egypt on an American government plane.
In July this year, Mohammed Alzery was also awarded three million kronor by Sweden’s Chancellor of Justice Göran Lambertz, who agreed to the sum after consulting with Alzery’s lawyers
The Swedish government sent both men back to Egypt on December 18th 2001 despite having insufficient diplomatic guarantees that they would not be tortured upon arrival, something for which Sweden has faced criticism from organizations including the UN Torture Committee.
The men had their hands and feet cuffed and hoods placed over their heads immediately prior to the deportation. Swedish Security Service Säpo had suspected them since May 2001 of links to a terrorist organization.
Once back on Egyptian soil, Agiza was sentenced by a military court to 25 years in prison, a sentence that was later reduced to 15 years.
Alzery was held without charge in an Egyptian prison until October 2003. Both men claim to have been tortured while in prison.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Global Cooling
Intellectual Conservative September 19th, 2008
A Spotless Sun
by Alan Caruba
Scientists and laymen who follow the Ice Age cycles have been warning that a Little Ice Age comparable to one that lasted from 1300 to around 1850 is on its way.
There’s a wonderful irony in the fact that, back in the 1970s, the Greens were issuing warnings and even writing books about the coming Ice Age. They would abandon this issue, based in well-known and accepted solar science, in favor of a vast international hoax alleging man-made global warming.
As the global warming hoax begins to lose its power to influence public opinion and policy, the Greens are not likely to be heeded for a long time to come because they were right about an Ice Age and lying through their teeth about global warming.
Scientists and laymen who follow the Ice Age cycles have been warning that, if not a full-fledged Ice Age, at the very least a Little Ice Age comparable to one that lasted from 1300 to around 1850 is on its way.
Amidst all the media coverage of Hurricane Gustav and the Republican Convention, a report in DailyTech.com was not likely to get much attention, but it forecast a very cold world in the years to come. The Earth has already started to cool and scientists date the change from 1998.
Headlined, “Drop in solar activity has potential effect for climate on Earth,” the news is that, for the first time in 100 years, “an entire month has passed without a single visible sunspot being noted.” The author, Michael Asher, noted that, “The event is significant as many climatologists now believe solar magnetic activity — which determines the number of sunspots — is an influencing factor for climate on Earth.”
| — Hat tip: GC | [Return to headlines] |
OIC Condemns “Anti-Islamization” Congress in Cologne
A spokesman of the OIC General Secretariat Observatory on Islamophobia in Jeddah strongly condemned the holding of the Anti-Islamization of Europe Congress that began in the German city of Cologne on September 19, 2008 and organized by the radical “Pro Koln” Group adding, that the incident further substantiated the Muslim World’s concerns of the growing trend of Islamophobia in Europe.
The spokesman said that the event was a clear manifestation of the racist and xenophobic mindset of the organizers and that their action went against all accepted norms and values of civilized society. He said that it was unfortunate that the organizers decided to go ahead with the event despite the concerns expressed by the OIC and the member states and also by some non-Muslim organizations and individuals. He said that the event violated the provisions of international convention and national laws against inciting discrimination, hostility or violence on religious grounds or belief and hoped that it would be rejected by all
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Omani Scholar Says Organ Donations Not Permissible in Islam
Organ donation, including eyes, is not permitted in Islam, said an Omani Islamic scholar, who sees no harm in donating blood even in Ramadan.
“There are three schools of thought on organ donations by Muslims but the majority of Islamic scholars believe that organ donation is not permissible in Islam,” Shaikh Khalfan Al Esry, a member of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque’s Steering Committee for Islamic Information Centre, told Gulf News in an interview.
Blood donation, he stressed, was different, as it is replenished.
He said that a minority group of scholars believe organ donation was permissible while some would like to leave it to the individual to decide. “Our body is sacred and a dead body is respected in Islam and there’s no need to scavenge it for organ donations,” Al Esry said. […]
| — Hat tip: VH | [Return to headlines] |
2 comments:
US filmmaker Woody Allen, best known for such comedy classics as “Annie Hall,” says it will be no laughing matter if Barack Obama fails to win the race for the White House.
That's strange; I always thought he was best known for leaving his wife and sleeping with the girl he raised as his daughter.
Do people really follow the opinions of schmucks like Woody Allen?
Our body is sacred and a dead body is respected in Islam and there’s no need to scavenge it for organ donations, Al Esry said.
Tell that to the thousands of people in need of kidneys, hearts, lungs, etc. They really do worship death over life.
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