For fourteen centuries, Muslims were able to conceal some of their most outrageous teachings from the rest of the world. Their deceptions were hidden behind language, cultural and geographic barriers. Modern technology and new communication methods have made it difficult for Muslims to hide the dark side of Islam any longer.
On August 2, renowned Egyptian activist Saad Eddin Ibrahim was convicted in absentia for "harming Egypt's reputation," and sentenced to two years in prison. His "crime" was asserting in the Washington Post that U.S. aid to Egypt be tightly linked to specific political and economic outcomes. During President Bush's first term, Ibrahim served two years for "tarnishing Egypt's image" and receiving foreign funds "without permission." Ironically, he was finally set free after the White House conditioned future aid on his release.
SPECIAL REPORT: Hezbollah Signs Pact with Salafis - But implementation to be decided later
WALID PHARES
Amidst a growing world crisis, new developments in Lebanon may signal what lies ahead in the sphere of global jihadist forces in the near future. A memorandum of understanding has been signed by Hezbollah, the main pro-Iranian organization in the region, and a number of Salafist groups outlining efforts to "confront America."
Goerge Sa'ad bizarre denial of persecution of Copts in Egypt raises interest "and disgust" of foreign observers.
Raymond Ibrahim: the Coptic Conundrum "repeat" discussed on Dhimmi watch
Based on my recent viewing of one George Sa'ad, a Copt, who, according to some remarks made on American Thinker, is apparently a bought and paid for dhimmi through and through. "The Coptic Conundrum," from American Thinker, August 16:
Why are Egypt's Coptic Christians so apathetic about their persecution?
The other night flipping through Arabic satellite stations, I came across a Coptic man who was lividly discussing the "Coptic question." His name was George Sa'ad, and he was speaking on the famous Arabic show, Al-Bayt Baytak, which airs on Al-Masriya ("The Egyptian"). It quickly became apparent, however, that his objections were not directed at Egypt's radicals or even the government; no, he was upset with the "trouble-making" Copts of the diaspora, particularly those living in the West. Sa'ad, a member of the Itihad al-Misriyin in Canada, (the "Egyptian Union") was claiming that there is no real problem in Egypt, and that it is the Western Copts who are creating all this "propaganda."
By now, days after Georgian forces stormed the capital of south Ossetia and Russian units counter attacked across the breaking away province and beyond; a devastating war has spread across the Caucasus causing death, destruction and displacement of populations. All wars are terrible -- even the legitimate ones where country, freedom and survival at are at stake. But this war is particularly unnecessary, could have been avoided and above all is wrong; in fact I call it the perfect wrong war.
Jihad Watch Board Vice President Hugh Fitzgerald discusses why all anti-jihadists should support Serbia today:
The jihad in Serbia is one that is obscured in a particularly vexing way. Accordingly it must be emphasized that in alerting people to attacks on the Serbs, and to the destruction of ancient churches and monasteries, and on the infiltration into the area of Arabs bringing a brand of Islam quite different from the relaxed, syncretistic local version (not exactly full-bodied Islam in practice,
In Britain, the Muslim Brotherhood has made its presence felt through its front groups and individuals who play double roles in society. The Muslim Association of Britain (MAB) is widely perceived as a front-group of the Muslim Brotherhood. It was co-founded in 1997 by Kemal el-Helbawy the European spokesman of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood.
A mob action was committed against unarmed Copts in Egypt . The Government of Egypt treated the matter with benign neglect. The mob got their cue from the government response and went on a rampage against the Copts in Egypt .
In February 2008, Gwyn Prins, a professor at the London School of Economics, and Robert Salisbury, the marquess of Salisbury and a privy counselor, published a breakthrough essay in the RUSI Journal on the incongruity between current British defense discourse and the threat posed by radical Islam.[1] The essay, a portion of which is excerpted below, represents the consensus view not only of the authors but also of ten former military chiefs, diplomats, analysts and academics. As important as are the authors is the place of publication:
Frontpage Interview’s guest today is Rev. Keith Roderick,a defender of religious prisoners of conscience since 1982 as the Director of the Society of St. Stephen and Co-Director of the International Taskforce on Soviet Jewery. After responding to the appeals of Coptic Christians in 1987,
Do you believe this Fascist Message is on the Official Al-Azhar web site, the cost of this is paid for by Tax Payers both Christians and Muslims? Do you believe that the public money should be spent by Al-Azhar to encourage Muslims to annihilate Christians and Jews?
Part of the text
"Peaceful relations and mutual respect among us can only be achieved through strength. We must cease indulging in apologetics and present the Islamic message to the world honestly and forthrightly. Before we can hope to succeed with Tabligh on a large scale, we must first convert the nominal Muslims into true believers. We must establish a full-blooded Islamic state where the world will witness our precepts translated into action. Finally, we must crush the conspiracies of Zionism, free-masonry, Orientalism and foreign missions both with the pen and with the sword. We cannot afford peace and reconciliation with the Ahl al Kitab until we can humble them and gain the upper hand" .Full Text
You board a flight for New York someplace in Europe. The passenger list is a mix of Christians, atheists, muslims and Jews and over the loud speaker comes a prayer while a picture of the Vatican flickers on the overhead screens. Who would complain? The Jews? Most likely not, except for the lapsed Israel hating kind that infest New York, so maybe some of them would. The atheists? Maybe in passing while stating authoritatively that there is no God. I bet they’re gonna feel like fools on judgment day, huh? The muslims? You betcha buddy.
Much has been reported about the complex system of terrorist financing and the money trail facilitating the September 11 terror attacks. Individuals and charities from the Persian Gulf--mainly from Saudi Arabia--appear to be the most important source of funding for terrorist organizations like Al-Qaeda.
TOMORROW, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will pardon hundreds of prisoners who have served more than half of their sentences, an annual gesture of mercy coinciding with commemorations of the July 23, 1952, "revolution" that brought Egypt's military-backed regime to power.
Increasing violence between Egypt's Muslims and Coptic Christians is raising alarms that the sectarian hostility besetting Lebanon and Iraq may take root in the Middle East's most populous country.
Egypt's reputation for a live-and-let-live ethos is under assault following recent murders of Copts in Cairo, street fighting in cities including Alexandria and a pitched battle between Muslims and Coptic monks at an ancient desert monastery.
ROME, JULY 13, 2008 (Zenit.org).- The small Christian community in Algeria has undergone a rough period in the last few months. Two converts to Christianity were recently convicted of promoting their faith and given suspended sentences and fines, the Associated Press reported July 2.
The huge spread of sharia finance should cause us the greatest possible concern. It is seen as relatively untroublesome way of reaching out to Muslims while making some people a very great deal of money. So everyone is happy? This couldn’t be further from truth. It fails to understand that this country doesn’t just face Islamic terrorism but an attempt to colonise Britain for Islam through the spread of sharia and the most extreme interpretation of Islam.
Our survey shows British Muslims don’t want sharia
Irfan al-Alawi & S. Schwartz
A senior establishment figure has once more raised the question of whether sharia law should be introduced as a parallel system of justice for British Muslims. Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, the Lord Chief Justice, was following in the footsteps of the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, who in February suggested that the institutionalisation of unspecified aspects of sharia law is ‘unavoidable’.
This column will probably get Barack Obama in trouble, but that’s not my problem. I cannot tell a lie: Many Egyptians and other Arab Muslims really like him and hope that he wins the presidency.
Virtual Caliphate: Islamic extremists and their websites
The Centre For Social Cohesion
Here - attached and appended - are some questions and answers put down in the Lords by Baroness Miller on the new Centre for Social Cohesion publication Virtual Caliphate: Islamist extremists and their websites.
Jordanian Columnist and Former Minister Laments the Emigration of Christians from the Middle East Caused by Their Persecution
In the wake of the growing tensions between Copts and Muslims in Egypt, which were precipitated by the murder of four Copts in Alexandria and by violent attacks on Copts by Muslims in Upper Egypt,(1) former Jordanian information minister Salah Al-Qallab published an article in which he called for peaceful coexistence between the majority Muslim population and Christian communities in the Middle East. The following are excerpts from the article(2): "[Egypt] Has a Group Afflicted with the Madness of Blind Extremism and Factionalism"
Three years after the July 7, 2005, jihad terror attacks in London, the jihad in Britain is stronger than ever. It is not proceeding by means of more terrorism, but by stealth and by the preemptive surrender of all too many British officials.
Even though Dhimmi Watch admirably noted the recent attack on the Abu Fana Coptic monastery in Egypt, after just watching a graphic video detailing the affair on the Arabic satellite program Hiwar al-Haq—which makes clear that the raid (ghazwa) was far from being motivated by a “land dispute,” as the Egyptian authorities insist—I figured I’d do a little translating and relaying, thereby giving readers more perspective on the matter:
Violence has erupted in recent weeks between Christians and Muslims in various parts of Egypt, bringing to the forefront an age-old problem in a country considered a leading U.S. ally in the Middle East and where a more moderate – and tolerant – form of Islam is practiced.
The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, was nice about sharia this week. It is not "only about mandating sanctions such as stoning, flogging, the cutting off of hands and death to those who do not comply with the law", he said. And the provisions of sharia "do not include the repression of women".Lord Phillips admitted that he did not claim "special expertise" in the field, but he had been to see some sharia chaps in Oman and they had seemed very civilised.
Mujahideen Monitor U.S. Economy, Attempt to Undermine Dollar
Numerous postings on Islamist websites in the past two years reflect the mujahideen's growing interest in the state of the U.S.rs reflect the mujahideen's growing interest in the state of the U.S. economy. As was argued in a 2007 MEMRI analysis, [1] many of the jihadists and their supporters have come to view their struggle against the U.S. and the West as an economic war.
After the Archbishop of Canterbury, now England’s most senior judge, the Lord Chief Justice Lord Phillips, has given a green light to the growth of sharia law in Britain in family matters and the arbitration of disputes.
The huge spread of sharia finance should cause us the greatest possible concern. It is seen as relatively untroublesome way of reaching out to Muslims while making some people a very great deal of money. So everyone is happy? This couldn’t be further from truth. It fails to understand that this country doesn’t just face Islamic terrorism but an attempt to colonise Britain for Islam through the spread of sharia and the most extreme interpretation of Islam.
On September 30 2003, two days after Ariel Sharon, then the leader of Israel’s opposition Likud Party, went for a walk on Temple Mount, Palestinians mounted a demonstration at Gaza’s Netzarim Junction. A 55-second piece of video footage of that demonstration, transmitted that day by the French TV station France 2, was to cause unprecedented violence in the Middle East and throughout the world.
With fatal terrorist attacks on the decline worldwide and al Qaeda apparently in disarray, it would seem a time for optimism in the global war on terrorism. But the war has simply shifted to a different arena. Islamists, or those who believe that Islam is a political and religious system that must dominate all others, are focusing less on the military and more on the ideological. It turns out that Western liberal democracies can be subverted without firing a shot.
The Supreme Court’s ruling upholding the Second Amendment comes just as it has been revealed that in Iraq, Islamic jihadists have been forcing the Christians remaining in the country to pay jizya -- the tax mandated in the Qur’an for non-Muslims who live under Islamic rule. And in Pakistan’s Northwest Frontier Province, the Taliban has been enforcing Islamic Sharia law by waving automatic weapons, forcing music stores to close down at the point of a gun (music is forbidden in Islamic law).
On May 31, 2008, the monastery of Abu Fana, the oldest of the world, had been attacked by the Bedouins of the area. Located in al-Menya, a small village in Upper Egypt, the monastery has a piece of land, a few acres in total that has been turned into fields of crops planted and taken care of by the monks. Built in the 4th century (A.D.), the monastery, it is told, had gone under attack numerous times, with this recent attack being exceedingly worse.
Conversion to Islam among native Europeans is on the rise. Many converts live at peace within their native societies; some convert only for marriage, and reject neither contemporary culture nor Europe's Judeo-Christian values. A minority, however, embraces radical interpretations of Islam and can pose a security risk. The involvement of Muslim converts in recent terrorist attacks has raised concern in Europe about these "converts to terrorism." While intelligence agencies and security services track international communications and guard borders, such homegrown terrorists pose just as potent a threat to the security of Western democracies. European security services and politicians remain unprepared to handle this growing phenomenon.
Dr. Fadl had laid the intellectual foundation for Al Qaeda’s murderous acts. His defection posed a terrible threat.
Last May, a fax arrived at the London office of the Arabic newspaper Asharq Al Awsat from a shadowy figure in the radical Islamist movement who went by many names.