French Mosque Smeared With Excrement in New Vandalism on Muslim Places of Worship
New Age Islam News Bureau
14 Sept 2012
India
• Muslims Object to Illustrations in NCERT Class XI History Textbook
• Kashmir Mufti asks US citizens to leave Kashmir
• In Kashmir, conspiracy theories find a market
• Diplomat of an Unspecified Embassy (In Nepal) Involved In 1999 Hijack: Terrorist
• US consulate targeted in Chennai over anti-Prophet Muhammad film
• Anti-Islam film: Separatist leaders under house arrest in Srinagar
• Assam ethnic trouble far from over: Shinde
• IC-814 hijack suspect to be sent to Joint Interrogation Cell
• Protests in Kashmir against anti-Islam film
Southeast Asia
• 'Don't Overreact' to Anti-Islam Movie: Indonesian Muslim Leaders
• Malaysia holds seminars to help teachers spot 'gay children'
• Indonesia Police Nab Pakistan-Trained Terror Suspect in Maluku
• Indonesian Protesters Say Anti-Islam Film Declares War
• YouTube, Facebook link Filipino terrorists to al-Qaeda, global jihad
• Duchess of Cambridge visits Malaysian mosque after being told of topless pictures
• Shootings in Malaysia human rights violation: Migrant Care
• 21 Missing and Feared Dead in Kalimantan Boat Mishap
• Study of Islamophobia in the Netherlands now available
Pakistan
• Pakistani Shia cleric: I feel sad on the Sunni killing as much as I feel sorrow on Shia killing
• Pakistan National Assembly condemns offensive movie, peaceful protests likely on Friday
• Pak blocks Youtube access to controversial film
• Karachi violence claims seven lives
• Change of Pakistan's blasphemy laws unlikely
• Pak's fear about Indian influence in Afghan unfounded: experts
• Ex-Pak PM Gilani's son arrested; gets bail
• Court bails Pakistan fire factory owners
• Mastung killings: Complete shutter down strike in Quetta in protest
Mideast Asia
• Ahl Ul-Bayt: Denounces the Blasphemous Movie by Satanic America
• 75 Kurdish rebels killed in clashes: Officials
• Muslim-Christian relations clouded in new Middle East
• Grand Shia Cleric Makarem Shirazi Urges Muslims to Respond to US-Zionist Plots
• Turkish authorities begin blocking Syrian borders
• Israel leader says US may not act against Iran
• Four Yemenis die as anti-US protests spread
• Yemen, Egypt, Iran: Anti-US anger over film spreads
• Yemen security forces block US embassy area, protesters gather
• Yemenis around presidential office, demand Saleh prosecution
• Turkish PM Predicts End to Assad's Regime
South Asia
• Maldives cracks down on men and women dancing together
• Thousands protest in Bangladesh over anti-Islam film
• US special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan may broach safe passage for Afghan Taliban
• Maldives’ new defence policy rests on “Islam and national unity”: President Waheed
• Afghan bus collides with oil tanker, 50 dead: Officials
• Sri Lankan minister seeks increase in Haj pilgrim quota
• OIC establishes office in Myanmar for humanitarian assistance
North America
• Mystery deepens: Coptic Christian behind anti-Prophet film?
• US Senator moves bill to strip aid to Pakistan, Egypt and Libya
• Qaida posts online video of two 9/11 hijackers
• US powerless to act against anti-Islam inciters, hints Hillary Clinton
• US braces for more violence over anti-Islam film
• Obama sends marines, warships to hunt killers
• Protest tsunami hits US missions
• US identifies anti-Islam filmmaker
• Attack on Benghazi consulate an act of war: Gingrich
• US powerless to act against anti-Islam inciters
Arab World
• Shiite Militia threatens US in Iraq after film on Prophet
• Egypt constitution talks stumble on role of Islam
• Syrian army jets, helicopters batter Aleppo
• Saudi condemns anti-Islam film, attacks on US missions
• Saudi steers citizens away from Syrian "jihad"
• Fury in Muslim Countries from Anti-Islam Film, Calls for Protests on Friday
• Saudi- Mashair train service ready to serve Hajis
• Pursuing an independent Judicial system in Egypt
• Lebanon Christians Feel under Siege; Find Hope in Pope
• Pope Benedict arrives in Lebanon at time of Christian-Muslim tension
• As Violence Spreads in Arab World, Google Blocks Access to Inflammatory Video
• Foundation gets 900 Haj applications
Africa
• Two former Navy SEALs also died in Libya attack
• In Mombasa, Islamic radicalism on rise
• The 'Angel of Mogadishu' who raised a hospital from the ruins of war
• Northern Mali situation "alarming", Red Cross says
• Islamic scholars propose new Sharia board model
• Anti-Islam film: German and UK embassies in Sudan attacked
• South Africa police face torture-death investigation
Europe
• Scotland Yard issues fresh appeal in Imran Farooq murder case
• Tajikistan Agrees Russian Base Deal to Curb Militant Threat
• UN appeals for calm as 'hateful' film sparks violence across Arab
• British troops may return from Afghanistan earlier: Minister
• Britain’s Hague says Assad regime ‘doomed’
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
Photo: French Mosque Smeared With Excrement in New Vandalism on Muslim Places of Worship
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/french-mosque-smeared-with-excrement/d/8669
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French Mosque Smeared With Excrement in New Vandalism on Muslim Places of Worship
September 13, 2012
PARIS — The outside of a mosque in a French city has been smeared with excrement, the latest in a series of vandalism incidents involving Muslim places of worship in the country.
The Interior Ministry said Wednesday that police are seeking the culprit or culprits, adding in a statement that “to attack a religion is to attack the (French) Republic.”
The Limoges mosque in central France was vandalized in July with Nazi symbols scrawled on its doors. In the latest incident, excrement was smeared on the doors and elsewhere before dawn.
In August, two pigs heads were hung on two pillars outside a mosque in the south-western town of Montauban.
The French Council of the Muslim Faith asked the faithful for calm vigilance in the face of what it says is rising Islamophobia.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/french-mosque-smeared-with-excrement-in-
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India
Muslims Object to Illustrations in NCERT Class XI History Textbook
September 14, 2012
Shahi Imam of Fatehpuri mosque demands withdrawal of textbooks
Even as the controversy over political cartoons in school textbooks is yet to subside, the Muslim community here has objected to two illustrations and the text of a chapter in the Class XI history book published by the National Council of Educational Research and Training under the National Curriculum Framework-2007.
Shahi Imam of the Fatehpuri mosque Mohammad Mukarram Ahmed has written to HRD Minister Kapil Sibal, demanding immediate withdrawal of the textbook and an apology from the NCERT.
The controversy relates to a chapter on ‘The Central Islamic Lands’ that has two illustrations. One of them on page 79 depicts a medieval painting of Archangel Gabriel (Jibril) who brought messages to Muhammad. The caption reads: “The first word he spoke was ‘recite’ (iqra) from which has come the word Quran. In Islamic cosmology, angels are one of the three intelligent forms of life in the universe. The other two are human and jinn.”
The other illustration, on page 80, depicts pilgrims at the Kaaba taken from a 15th century manuscript. It reads: “A pilgrim touches the black stone (hajr al-aswad) while angels watch.”
When contacted by The Hindu, the NCERT spokesperson said the illustrations and the text had been taken from well-known books on Islamic history and Islamic art. This particular chapter was prepared in consultation with the well-known medieval historian Najaf Haider of Jawaharlal Nehru University.
The illustration on page 79 was taken from Bernard Lewis’s book Islam, published by Thames and Hudson in 1992, while the other was reproduced from Barbara Brend’s Islamic Art brought out by the British Museum Press, 1991.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3893752.ece
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Kashmir Mufti asks US citizens to leave Kashmir
Sep 14, 2012
SRINAGAR: The top clergyman in Srinagar, Mufti Azam Bashiruddin, on Thursday asked US citizens to leave the Kashmir valley immediately to avoid public wrath in the wake of video clips on the web that disparage Prophet Mohammed.
Speaking to the TOI, the Mufti, the self-appointed chief justice of the 'shariat' (Islamic) court in Kashmir, asked people to observe complete strike on Friday in protest against the film.
"I strongly condemn the act and appeal to Kashmiris to register their protest against the film and even attack US citizens if they are seen anywhere in the Valley from tomorrow," the Mufti Azam said.
Interestingly, the Mufti only recently nominated his son Nasirul Islam as his successor. Nasirul, too, visited the US in January this year for about a month, a sources told the ToI.
The Jammu & Kashmir government, too, strongly denounced the act of desecration saying such acts are aimed at causing discord among the people of different faiths.
The official spokesman said, "Such a video causes great anguish among the peace loving people. Posting such clips on social media sites is not acceptable. The government is making every effort to ensure that such blasphemous clips are blocked and removed from the cyberspace."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Kashmir-Mufti-asks-US-citizens-to-leave-Kashmir/articleshow/16394853.cms
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In Kashmir, conspiracy theories find a market
Randeep Singh Nandal
Sep 14, 2012
SRINAGAR: Are films just glamorized prostitution? Is the best gift on Teacher's Day from a Muslim to a non-Muslim giving him the help to overcome the "moral dirt in his natural environment"? Was 9/11 attack an excuse to restart the Crusades? Or was it an attack by Freemasons using black magic to signify the destruction of the Kaaba and prepare grounds for the return of the anti-Christ to kill Muslims?
Welcome to the world of English mainstream media in Kashmir. Starting from September 3 until September 11, readers of English dailies here have been offered a feast of bigotry and conspiracy theories.
In the first week of September, one of Kashmir's premier news websites published an article by one of its reporters which soon went viral. Cinema, it said, was nothing but glamorized prostitution, a "nanga naach" where actors' roles promote adultery, nudity and worse.
"How does one define an actress who was caressed by an actor years later plays the role of a mother to the same actor? Isn't that incest?" It would be funny if it weren't very serious.
When Teacher's Day came two days later on September 5, one of Kashmir's largest English newspapers listed on its edit page the various challenges before a teacher today, foremost being the anti-Islam component of the curriculum. Then came unveiled female teachers. And the gateway to all evil: co-education, "an evil that creates a mansion of evils like dancing, immodesty and sex scandals".
The author is generous towards non-Muslim students who, he says, should be protected from secularism because "only Islam can provide them with the spiritual protection from the moral dirt they have acquired in their own environments".
This piece of advice so impressed the Delhi-educated owner of yet another English daily in Srinagar that it was republished two days later. Not to be left behind, two other newspapers squared up accounts on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The piece on the edit page was pretty straightforward. Titled '9/11: A Muslim Tragedy', it first laid up the normal conspiracy theory that the American establishment itself was behind the attacks. Why? To re-launch the Crusades. "The United States of America got the mother of all excuses to wage a war against Muslims. It was, in fact, a war of terror, a war on Islam and Muslims."
Another English newspaper took to exposing the secret sect, the Illuminati (which features in Dan Brown's 'The Da Vinci Code') based on the "Jewish black magic Kabala". The author then educates readers on how number 11 is the number of Satan. From the date 9/11 to the flight number of the first aircraft to hit the north tower (Flight 11) to the fact that "New York is the 11th city added to the Union", the article works up a grand finale: "The architect who planned the trade towers said he was deeply influenced by the architecture of the Kaaba, so 9/11 should act as a hint to all Muslims that they are planning to destruct (sic) the Muslim holy places".
These aren't the rants of anonymous bloggers nor the work of mad pamphleteers. These have been written by educated and respectable members of society, and published in the Valley's largest circulating newspapers, edited by respected journalists.
And they aren't talking to deaf ears. A cross section of society in Kashmir believes a lot of these theories. From Arshad, a shopkeeper who believes that 9/11 was a CIA-Mossad joint operation, to the Kashmir University students who block music shows because they are "Haram"; from Hina, the housewife who believes that the Mumbai attacks were a handiwork of RAW to silence police officer Hemant Karkare, to the doctor who believes that al-Qaida is a CIA front.
It's a strange cocktail of defensiveness and victimhood, where any story, no matter how outlandish, finds an audience if it helps deflect any soul searching. There are many in Kashmir who reject these theories, but only in private, leaving the stage to those who espouse them. So, in a couple of schools in Srinagar, male teachers and some students staged a walkout in a dance performance by 10-year-old girls. In the same Kashmir, where everyone is addicted to films, cinema halls haven't got a hope in hell of opening.
The ones who don't believe in conspiracy theories are frightened into silence. They listen quietly when someone describes Lashkar supremo Hafiz Saeed as a social worker. They read their morning paper and shake their heads, making a mental note to pull their children out of Kashmir.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/In-Kashmir-conspiracy-theories-find-a-market/articleshow/16390340.cms
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Diplomat of an Unspecified Embassy (In Nepal) Involved In 1999 Hijack: Terrorist
Sep 14, 2012
SRINAGAR/JAMMU: Intelligence sources called the arrest of Mehrajuddin Wani alias Javed Dand —one of the terrorists who arranged logistics for the Kandahar hijackers—a big catch, and the terror suspect appeared to conform to that billing when he, according to the J&K police, disclosed that the diplomat of an unspecified embassy (in Nepal) was closely involved in the 1999 hijacking plot. "We are investigating all this," said Dilbagh Singh, IGP of Jammu.
Intelligence sources in Delhi said that he could shed new light on hijackers, who had killed one young Indian traveller, Rupen Katyal, and how they managed to pull off the audacious hijacking.
The hijacking, in which the then Taliban regime had colluded, resulted in the release of three terrorists, including Maulana Masood Azhar, Mustaq Ahmed Zargar and Omar Saeed Sheikh, in exchange of hostages of the ill-fated aircraft. Azhar had set up one of deadliest terror outfits Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), while Sheikh ended up kidnapping and murdering the Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl in Pakistan in 2002.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Diplomat-involved-in-1999-hijack-Terrorist/articleshow/16389121.cms
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US consulate targeted in Chennai over anti-Prophet Muhammad film
Daniel P George
Sep 14, 2012
CHENNAI: Muslim protesters pelted stones and footwear at the US consulate in Chennai on Friday. A rally protesting the depiction of Prophet Mohammed in a movie turned violent near the consulate.
Window panes of the inquiry counter and a police booth near the entrance of the consulate were damaged. Police resorted to lathi-charge to disperse the protesters. Twenty-five people suffered minor injuries.
India likely to ban film
India is likely to ban on Internet a controversial film deemed offensive to Islam that has sparked anti-US protests.
The home ministry has forwarded a request of the Jammu and Kashmir government to block all webpages where the film is available to director general of Computer Emergency Response Team India for urgent action.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/US-consulate-targeted-in-Chennai-over-anti-Prophet-Muhammad-film/articleshow/16397437.cms
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Anti-Islam film: Separatist leaders under house arrest in Srinagar
Sep 14, 2012
SRINAGAR: Several Jammu and Kashmir separatist leaders were placed under house arrest here on Friday ahead of a protest against the film " Innocence of Muslims", a trailer of which was uploaded on YouTube.
Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, Muhammad Yasin Malik, Shabir Ahmad Shah and Muhammad Nayeem Khan were placed under house arrest in this state summer capital. Protests against the film, which depicts Prophet Mohammed in a poor light, were planned for the afternoon after Friday prayers.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Anti-Islam-film-Separatist-leaders-under-house-arrest-in-Srinagar/articleshow/16393923.cms
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Assam ethnic trouble far from over: Shinde
Sep 13, 2012
NEW DELHI: The Assam government has been warned that the situation arising out of the ethnic strife between Bodos and Muslims "is far from normal" and there was fear the communal tension may spread to other districts around the Bodo areas, said Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde.
Shinde conveyed the assessment to the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at his Race Course Residence here Thursday, said informed sources.
The meeting was convened to mainly discuss the Assam violence witnessed since July 19 that has claimed 97 lives and left 4.8 lakh people in relief camps.
Shinde gave an overall assessment of the Assam violence and the situation prevailing in the Bodo Territorial Autonomous District (BTAD) areas of Kokrajhar, Chirang, Baksa and Udalgiri.
The home minister's assessment, according to the sources, was that Bodos' fear of becoming a minority in their own land was the reason for the troubles in the state.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Assam-ethnic-trouble-far-from-over-Shinde/articleshow/16385783.cms
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IC-814 hijack suspect to be sent to Joint Interrogation Cell
Sep 14 2012
Jammu : Top militant Mehrajuddin Wani, suspected to be involved in the 13-year-old Kandahar hijack case will be sent to the Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC) for thorough questioning to know more about his role in various terror attacks besides the IC-814 hijack.
"Top militant Mehrajuddin Wani alias Javed Dand arrested by police in Kishtwar will be sent to Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC) for thorough interrogation to know further details about various cases, including the hijack", a senior police officer said.
He is likely to be shifted to JIC in Jammu by tomorrow. Police has also registered case against him.
"He is a store house of information and knows of various terror acts in Jammu and Kashmir and outside - and also about top Pakistan-based terrorists", he said.
On specific information that he was travelling from Nepal to Kashmir, Mehrajuddin was arrested in Kishtwar district, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Jammu Zone, Dilbagh Singh told reporters here.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/ic814-hijack-suspect-to-be-sent-to-joint-interrogation-cell/1002567/
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Protests in Kashmir against anti-Islam film
Sep 14 2012
Srinagar : Protests against the controversial anti-Islam film, made in the US, rocked several parts of Kashmir today but there was no violence reported from anywhere in the Valley even as authorities placed top separatist leaders under preventive detention to maintain law and order.
Protests were held after Friday congregational prayers outside many mosques and shrines in the Valley against the blasphemous video, uploaded on social networking site Youtube recently, officials said.
Shouting slogans against the filmmaker, hundreds of protesters took to streets in Maisuma, Budshah chowk, Court Road, Lal Chowk and Jamia Masjid areas, police said.
Meanwhile, the Imams (priests) during sermons in the mosques appealed to people not to indulge in vandalism of public property while they protest against the blasphemy.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/protest-in-kashmir-against-antiislam-film/1002605/
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Southeast Asia
'Don't Overreact' to Anti-Islam Movie: Indonesian Muslim Leaders
Jakarta Globe | September 14, 2012
The Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) on Friday asked Muslims here not to be provoked by the anti-Islam movie “Innocence of Muslims,” but at the same time demanded that legal action be taken against the producer.
Amid increasing violent anti-US protests in response to the movie in the Middle East, MUI deputy chairman Amidhan said Muslims should stay cool-headed and advised against conducting rallies to protest it.
“Don’t overreact,” Amidhan said in Jakarta on Friday, as quoted by the Indonesian news portal tempo.co, adding that Muslims should not be affected by the movie.
But he added that the MUI nevertheless condemned the movie and demanded that legal action be taken against the producer.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/dont-overreact-to-anti-islam-movie-indonesian-muslim-leaders/544367
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Malaysia holds seminars to help teachers spot 'gay children'
14 September 2012
Light-coloured clothes and large handbags for boys listed as signs, as government forges ahead with anti-gay agenda
The Malaysian government has begun holding seminars aiming to help teachers and parents spot signs of homosexuality in children, underscoring a rise in religious conservatism in the country.
So far, the Teachers Foundation of Malaysia has organised 10 seminars across the country. Attendance at the last event on Wednesday reached 1,500 people, a spokesman for the organisation said.
"It is a multi-religious and multicultural [event], after all, all religions are basically against that type of behaviour," said the official.
The federal government said in March that it is working to curb the "problem" of homosexuality, especially among Muslims who make up over 60% of Malaysia's population of 29 million people.
Full report at:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/sep/14/malaysia-seminars-spot-gay-children
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Indonesia Police Nab Pakistan-Trained Terror Suspect in Maluku
Farouk Arnaz | September 14, 2012
The National Police's anti-terror squad has arrested a man suspected of being a Pakistan-trained terrorist, a spokesman said on Friday.
"The arrest of the man whose initials are WD took place on Thursday [in Southeast Maluku] and was a result of the six previous arrests," National Police spokesman Brig, Gen. Boy Rafli Amar said on Friday.
He was referring to the six terror suspects who were arrested during a raid on a house in Ambon, Maluku, on Sunday.
“Therefore we are now investigating seven people, two of whom we have sufficient evidence on, Sukri and Jummu,” he added.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/indonesia-police-nab-pakistan-trained-terror-suspect-in-maluku/544379
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Study of Islamophobia in the Netherlands now available
September 14, 2012
Since 11 September 2001 – and especially since the murder of Theo van Gogh – Muslims and Islam have frequently been unfavourably portrayed at the heart of public debate.
(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Manifestations of Islamophobia can be found on the Internet, in comments by the PVV, and in acts of violence committed against mosques. Dutch anti-discrimination policies are coming under pressure now that this ideology has forced its way to the centre of the political stage.
How do negative connotations about Muslims come about? Where are the acts of violence taking place? Is the Netherlands the front line in the 'clash of civilisations', as has been claimed by politicians, opinion formers and others in the international arena? Or is it all about an exclusion mechanism?
Full report at:
http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&Id=347089
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YouTube, Facebook link Filipino terrorists to al-Qaeda, global jihad
by Maria Ressa
09/11/2012
(Editor's note: This is the first part of a Rappler series and includes excerpts of Maria Ressa’s upcoming book, "10 Days, 10 Years: From Bin Laden to Facebook." Set to be published in October, it includes research done for the International Center for Political Violence & Terrorism Research in Singapore and the Naval Postgraduate School’s CORE Lab in the US.)
MANILA, Philippines - On Nov 6, 2011, a Filipino man with long hair uploaded a three-minute, 20-second video on YouTube, the world’s second largest search engine. It was a video of himself, wearing a camouflage jacket and a mask covering his face and head. He was speaking in Arabic and asking Muslims around the world to support and contribute to the jihad in the Philippines.
Full report at:
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/blogs/insights/09/11/12/youtube-facebook-link-filipino-terrorists-al-qaeda-global-jihad
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Duchess of Cambridge visits Malaysian mosque after being told of topless pictures
By Gordon Rayner
14 Sep 2012
Wearing an elegant designer headscarf, the Duchess of Cambridge made her first ever visit to a mosque this morning in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.
Showing no outward signs of strain after being informed that topless pictures of her were about to appear in a French magazine, the Duchess, was shown around the country’s largest place of worship, the Assyakarin Mosque, which can accommodate 12,000 people for Friday prayers.
Neither the Duke of the Duchess of Cambridge had visited a mosque anywhere in the world before today, and both were clearly fascinated by the building and its history as they were given a guided tour by the imam, Ustaz Saiful.
In accordance with Islamic law, the Duchess covered her head with a veil designed to match her pale grey dress by Beulah London. The hemline of her skirt fell below the knee and she wore flesh coloured tights on her feet, having taken off her LK Bennett shoes before entering.
The Duke told Datuk Che Mat Bin Che Ali, the director of the Islamic religious department of Malaysia: “This is our first time in Kuala Lumpur. It's very nice isn't it."
Full report at:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/kate-middleton/9542726/Duchess-of-Cambridge-
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Shootings in Malaysia human rights violation: Migrant Care
Sita W. Dewi and Fadli
September 13 2012
Migrant Care director Anis Hidayah deplores the shootings of five Indonesians by Malaysian police in Perak, Malaysia, over the weekend, calling it a human rights violation.
Five Indonesians were killed in a shootout with the Malaysian police last Friday. An Indonesian official said that the five were illegal workers and had criminal records in the neighboring country.
The five — identified as Jhoni, Ostnan, Hamid, Diden and Mahno -- were allegedly members of the Baju Hitam (Black Clothes) gang that specialized in burglary of luxurious homes in Penang.
“Whatever documents they had—or didn’t have—the incident which caused their death, was a human rights violation. International standards clearly stipulate that the police are not allowed to shoot anyone dead, not even a criminal,” Anis told The Jakarta Post Digital on Thursday.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/09/13/shootings-malaysia-human-rights-violation-migrant-care.html
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Indonesian Protesters Say Anti-Islam Film Declares War
September 14, 2012
More than 350 Muslim fundamentalists and their supporters staged an anti-US demonstration in Jakarta on Friday, spewing anger at America over an anti-Islam film.
Outside the US embassy in the Indonesian capital, the protesters — men and women with children in tow — carried banners that read "We condemn the insult against Allah's messenger," and the Koranic verse "There is no God but Allah."
A speaker from the pro-Caliphate organisation Hizb ut-Tahrir that organized the protest, told the crowd: "This film insulted our prophet and we condemn it. The film is a declaration of war."
The crowd shouted back: "Allahu akbar!" (God is greatest), while police clad in riot gear stood guard nearby.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/indonesian-protesters-say-anti-islam-film-declares-war/544424
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21 Missing and Feared Dead in Kalimantan Boat Mishap
September 14, 2012
At least 21 passengers of a ferry that sunk in the Mahakam River in East Kalimantan continued to be missing and are feared dead, police said on Friday.
The KM Surya Indah, which had 98 people on board based on the latest information, capsized in the Kutai Barat district area late on Thursday evening. So far, one body has been recovered and 76 survivors rescued, district police chief of detectives Adj. Comr, Suparno said, according to the Antara news agency.
The whereabouts of another 21 people who had been on board the unfortunate ship remained unknown the day aftery the incident and they are believed to have all drowned, Suparno said.
Rescue teams composed of police members and local soldiers and residents, are combing the river to find survivors or bodies, he said, adding that the skipper and other crew members of the ship were among the survivors.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/update-21-missing-and-feared-dead-in-kalimantan-boat-mishap/544370
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Pakistan
Pakistani Shia cleric: I feel sad on the Sunni killing as much as I feel sorrow on Shia killing
September 14, 2012
(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - The Main Speaker of the Mosque of Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamat Qazi Nisar and a Friday Imam of Main Imamia Mosque Gilgit Syed Rahat Hussain ul Hussaini have strongly condemned jointly the collective and individual incidents of terrorism within and outside in Gilgit-Baltistan and said that, the school of thoughts of Ahle Sunnat and Shiites are the sects of Islam and to protect their dignity and honor is Islamic obligation. Therefore, killing each other on the basis of creed is un-islamic and non-islamic.
This was announced by two Speakers in a ceremony in their honor organized by the Parliamentary Peace Committee and the Board of Mosques in Chinnar Bagh. Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan Mehdi Shah, Speaker of Legislative Assembly Wazir Baig, Provincial Ministers, Members of Legislative Assembly and a Parliamentary Peace Committe, Members of the Mosque Board including Senior government officials also attended the function.
Addressing the function Friday Imam of Imamia Mosque Gilgit Allama Syed Rahat Hussain ul Hussaini said that, Allah Almighty has given us the strength to get together, to strengthen the Nation and to improve the bad situation so this can bring the Peace to the region and everyone can perform their religious duties.
Full report at:
http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&Id=347189
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Pakistan National Assembly condemns offensive movie, peaceful protests likely on Friday
ANITA JOSHUA
September 14, 2012
Pakistan’s National Assembly on Thursday unanimously adopted a resolution against the anti-Islam film that has already triggered a wave of violence in the Arab world even as Islamabad strengthened security around the U.S. Embassy and diplomatic missions belonging to major Western countries in fear of retaliation, particularly after Friday’s juma prayers.
The resolution was moved by the federal Law Minister. The Pakistan Government, on Wednesday, late at night, condemned the airing of the defamatory film and said: “Such abominable actions, synchronized with commemoration of atrocious events like 9/11, provoke hatred, discord and enmity within societies and between peoples of various faiths.’’
Full report at:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article3893582.ece
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Pak blocks You tube access to controversial film
Sep 14 2012
Islamabad : Pakistani authorities blocked access to a clip of an anti-Islam movie that has triggered protests across the Muslim world even as hardline groups like the Jamaat-ud-Dawah announced plans to organise demonstrations against it.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority blocked pages on YouTube and other video sharing websites that had a clip from the controversial movie.
PTA officials said they had been directed by the Information Technology Ministry this afternoon to block the video.
Action was taken to block every Internet link that features the offensive video, the officials said.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pak-blocks-you-tube-access-to-controversial-film/1002505/
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Karachi violence claims seven lives
September 14, 2012
KARACHI: Various incidents of violence during the past twenty four hours claimed seven lives in Karachi, DawnNews reported on Friday.
One man was killed and six others injured in a grenade and firing attack at a roadside eatery in New Karachi area near Allahwali chowk.
Police sources said that the motive behind the attack seemed to be extortion related.
One person died of gunshot wounds near Meena Bazaar in Pir Colony area of the city.
One person was killed and another injured when unknown gunmen opened fire on them near Bait-ul-Mukarram mosque in Karachi’s Gulshan e Iqbal area.
Separate incidents of gun firing claimed another two lives in the city’s Khokhrapar and Ayub Goth areas.
Saddar Police claimed to have killed two suspected bike-snatchers after an encounter near Capri cinema in Saddar area.
The suspects were fleeing after snatching a motorcycle from the area, according to police sources who added that a stolen motorcycle and arms were recovered from the suspects.
A ten-day-old body was found in a nallah in Pak Colony area.
http://dawn.com/2012/09/14/karachi-violence-claims-seven-lives-2/
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Mastung killings: Complete shutter down strike in Quetta in protest
September 14, 2012
QUETTA: A complete shutter down strike was called in several areas of Balochistan, including Quetta in protest against the killing of ten labourers in the Mastung district of the province, DawnNews reported.
The strike was called by the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) with support from the two factions of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, JUI-F and JUI-I, and Awami National Party (ANP).
Anjuman-i-Tajran Balochistan also lent their complete support to the strike.
The strike brought all economic and social activities in the affected areas to a complete halt.
Banks did not engage in any transactions, adversely affecting the normalcy in the strike affected areas of the province. The traffic also remained less than normal.
During the strike in Quetta, Liaquat Bazaar, Abdul Sattar Road, Meezan Chowk, Kandhari Bazaar, Jinnah Road, Masjid Road and all other commercial centres in the adjacent areas remained completely closed.
Furthermore, the strike has adversely affected the daily wage labourers who have to experience serious difficulties in making ends meet due to the lack of economic activity on most days.
To avoid any untoward incidents in the strike affected areas, strict security arrangements have been made by stationing various units of Frontier Corps, Balochistan Constabulary and the police with special focus on the most sensitive areas.
http://dawn.com/2012/09/14/mastung-killings-complete-shutter-down-strike-in-quetta-in-protest/
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Change of Pakistan's blasphemy laws unlikely
Sep 14 2012
Islamabad : The apparent collapse of a case against a Christian girl accused of burning pages of a Quran has given a dim ray of hope to critics of Pakistan's blasphemy laws, some of the harshest in the Muslim world.
The girl was believed to be mentally impaired, and a Muslim cleric from her neighborhood was eventually arrested for planting evidence to incriminate her. As the tables turned on her accusers, the girl was recently released on bail and whisked away in a military helicopter with her family to safety.
It was a remarkable turn of events in a country where people accused in even the flimsiest of cases of defiling Islam's holy book or the Prophet Muhammad have few defenders. Those accused of blasphemy can be sentenced to death if convicted -- assuming they are not killed first by vigilantes.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/change-of-pakistans-blasphemy-laws-unlikely/1002576/
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Pak's fear about Indian influence in Afghan unfounded: experts
Sep 14 2012
Washington : Pakistan's fear that the Indian presence in Afghanistan threatens its national security is unfounded, top American experts have told lawmakers.
Speaking at a Congressional hearing on the Haqqani network, they ruled out the possibility of India ever mounting an invasion of Pakistan from Afghanistan.
Instead, the American experts told the lawmakers that there is no evidence of Indian effort in Afghanistan undermining Pakistan's national security.
"I don't think that we have seen any evidence of efforts by India to directly undermine Pakistani national security. This is something that the Pakistanis fear but I don't think that we should let US policy be driven by Pakistani fear," Lisa Curtis of the Heritage Foundation said in response to questions from lawmakers who raised Pakistani concerns in this regard.
"I think we should point out that if Pakistan is worried about Afghanistan getting too close to India then it needs to take steps to build its own relationship with Afghanistan because what Pakistan is doing by supporting militants it's not currying favour with the Afghan people. So if it wants to have a better relationship with Afghanistan, it needs to engage in normal state activities that allow that," Curtis said.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/paks-fear-about-indian-influence-in-afghan-unfounded-experts/1002557/
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Ex-Pak PM Gilani's son arrested; gets bail
Sep 14, 2012
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's former premier Yousuf Raza Gilani's son Ali Musa was on Friday arrested and briefly detained by the army-run Anti-Narcotics Force in connection with alleged irregularities in the import of the controlled drug Ephedrine before he was granted bail by the apex court.
Ali Musa was arrested at the gates of the Supreme Court when he arrived this morning to seek pre-arrest bail. He was taken to an ANF office in Rawalpindi and detained in a room.
Following his arrest, a three-judge bench headed by Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk directed the ANF to produce Ali Musa within half an hour.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Ex-Pak-PM-Gilanis-son-arrested-gets-bail/articleshow/16394838.cms
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Court bails Pakistan fire factory owners
14 September 2012
Three factory-owners facing murder charges over the deaths of 289 people in a huge fire in Karachi handed themselves in to court on Friday to request pre-arrest bail, their lawyer said.
Workers burned to death or suffocated in the massive blaze that engulfed Ali Enterprises clothing factory, which made ready-to-wear clothes for export to Western retailers, on Tuesday evening.
Police registered a murder case over the fire on Thursday, saying the owners — Abdul Aziz, Mohammad Arshad and Shahid Bhaila — had shown ‘utter negligence’ about workers’ safety.
The trio, who have not been arrested, appeared in the high court in Larkana, 450 kilometres (300 miles) north of Karachi and were granted ‘protective bail’ for eight days, their lawyer Aamir Mansoor Qureshi told AFP.
He said they went to the Larkana court as they feared for their lives in Karachi, the metropolis of 18 million people which came to a standstill on Thursday as a mark of respect for the victims of Pakistan’s worst ever industrial fire.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-
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Mideast Asia
Ahl Ul-Bayt: Denounces the Blasphemous Movie By Satanic America
September 14, 2012
Ahlul Bayt News Agency: Declaration of the Ahl ul-Bayt(‘a) World Assembly on denouncing the blasphemous movie to the holy Prophet (‘s) by satanic America.
In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
Indeed, you cannot make the dead hear, nor can you make the deaf hear the call when they turn their backs. (Quran, Name, verse 80)
Once more the helplessness of enemies of humanity in the wake of awakening of Muslim community has made them to show their respite towards Islam. Receiving much money from mercenaries, this time a Zionist director has made a blasphemous movie about the holy prophet Muhammad(s) and Islam.
With the collaboration of Zionist Jews, Coptic refugees in America and the crazy American priest, this movie that has been made in American soil desecrated the holy prophet so that we cannot talk about it.
Full report at:
http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&Id=347359
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75 Kurdish rebels killed in clashes: Officials
Sep 14, 2012
ANKARA, Turkey: Officials say Turkish security forces have killed 75 Kurdish rebels in weeklong clashes in southeast Turkey.
The governor's office for Hakkari province says the clashes in the town of Sendinli, near the border with Iraq, also claimed the lives of four soldiers.
The rebels are fighting for self-rule in southeast Turkey. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people since 1984.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/75-Kurdish-rebels-killed-in-clashes-Officials/articleshow/16394545.cms
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Muslim-Christian relations clouded in new Middle East
Tom Heneghan
September 12, 2012
ISTANBUL (Reuters)- When Middle Eastern Christians and Muslims meet to discuss religion and the region's future, it can sometimes seem like they are talking about two different places and using divergent meanings for the same words.
The Christians, worried by the rise of Islamists since last year's Arab Spring democratic uprisings, usually speak of reforms they want to see so they and other religious minorities can live as full and equal citizens with the majority Muslims.
Faced with the protesters' grassroots demands for more individual rights, the Muslims often cite the tolerance and co-existence that marked the region's multicultural past as useful guideposts for interfaith relations going forward.
Some meetings, such as one held in Istanbul last weekend, end with declarations supporting national unity and respect for religious diversity. But the words can have such different shades of meaning that it's not clear how much progress is made.
Full report at:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns-rt-us-pope-lebanon-interfaithbre88b0xo-20120912,0,1376230.story
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Turkish PM Predicts End to Assad's Regime
September 14, 2012
YALTA, Ukraine (AP) — Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad is about to come to an "inevitable end."
He urged regional leaders to unite in order to prevent the Syrian conflict from further destabilizing the Middle East.
Erdogan told an international conference in the Ukrainian city of Yalta that "we must say a vocal 'no' to this drama of humankind, not let the flame engulf the whole region."
Turkey is concerned that Kurdish rebels could exploit the power vacuum in neighboring Syria and has warned it would not tolerate any rebel threats from Syrian territory.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2012/09/14/world/middleeast/ap-ml-syria.html?hp&gwh=07504EFB28FCA06CC8EF5DE137094924
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Grand Shia Cleric Makarem Shirazi Urges Muslims to Respond to US-Zionist Plots
September 14, 2012
An Ayatollah in the central province of Qom urged the Muslims around the world to give a knockdown response to the anti-Islam plots made by the US and the Zionist regime.
(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - An Ayatollah in the central province of Qom urged the Muslims around the world to give a knockdown response to the anti-Islam plots made by the US and the Zionist regime.
In a message, Ayatollah Nasser Makarem Shirazi condemned both the US and the Zionist regime over the production of the anti-Islam movie, describing it as an insult to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
He then praised reactions to this film made by the awakened Muslims in several Islamic countries.
The Ayatollah said this disgraceful action taken by the US and the Zionist regime showed they are afraid of the development of the Islamic Awakening movement around the world.
In response to the anti-Islam film, the Libyan and Egyptian people protested against the action for two consecutive days on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Basij-e Mostazafin Organization (Mobilization of the Oppressed) also announced Thursday it is ready to hold nationwide demonstrations Friday in protest to the insulting movie.
The organization said the demonstrations would aim at showing unity among the Muslims all over the world.
http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&Id=347240
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Turkish authorities begin blocking Syrian borders
September 14, 2012
Turkish authorities have begun taking steps to stop Syrian refugees and rebels coming and going freely across the border with the conflict-torn country.
"Police have come knocking on our door," said a man named only as Hassan, an illegal Syrian immigrant in the border town of Reyhanli, where he lives with about 20 fighters "on leave", wounded people and refugees.
All of them, living on what he calls "apartment rest", have crossed the border illegally, mostly at night, through a hole in the fence.
Their presence in Reyhanli in Hatay province along with hundreds of other illegal Syrians was until recently tolerated by the authorities, which took a rather benevolent attitude towards the rebels and refugees.
But things are changing.
"Police gave us 24 hours to leave," he said. "Those who don't have a visa, papers that are in order, must go to the refugee camps. Or else go back to Syria," said Hassan, who did not give his full name.
Full report at:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9542533/Turkish-authorities-begin-blocking-Syrian-borders.html
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Israel leader says US may not act against Iran
By Daniel Estrin
September 14, 2012
JERUSALEM (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has suggested that Israel cannot rely on the U.S. to act against Iran's suspect nuclear program.
In an interview published Friday, Netanyahu hinted Israel may have to strike Iran even without U.S. support to prevent Tehran from building a nuclear weapon.
The comments indicate Netanyahu is not backing down from his thinly-veiled criticism of the Obama administration, despite a phone call from the U.S. president this week that was meant to smooth over their differences.
In the interview in Israel Hayom, a daily that is a staunch backer of the premier, Netanyahu says he has heard those "who say we should wait until the last minute."
Then, he asks: "But what if the U.S. doesn't act?"
Iran denies it is seeking a nuclear bomb.
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2012-09-14/israel-leader-says-us-may-not-act-against-iran
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Four Yemenis die as anti-US protests spread
September 14, 2012
CAIRO: The US boosted security at its embassies amid fears that more anti-American violence sparked by a film mocking Islam could erupt after Friday’s Muslim prayers across the Middle East and North Africa.
Four people died in the Yemeni capital Sanaa on Thursday as police fired live rounds and tear gas to try to disperse an angry crowd of hundreds of protesters trying to storm the US mission.
The protests came as US and Libyan officials probed an attack on the consulate in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi that killed the ambassador and three other US officials on Tuesday, amid growing speculation it was the work of extremist militants rather than just demonstrators.
Two of the four Americans killed in the assault were former members of the elite Navy SEALs officials identified as Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty. The harrowing attack also left Ambassador Chris Stevens and Sean Smith, an information management officer, dead.
The US embassy in Cairo was under siege for a fourth day after protests spread to several countries and territories, including Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Israel and the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Kuwait, Sudan and Tunisia.
Washington sought to keep a lid on the demonstrations by spelling out that the controversial film that set off the violence was made privately by a small group of individuals with no official backing.
Full report at:
http://dawn.com/2012/09/14/four-yemenis-die-as-anti-us-protests-spread/
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Yemen, Egypt, Iran: Anti-US anger over film spreads
Sep 14, 2012
SANA (YEMEN): Turmoil in the Arab world linked to an American-made video denigrating the Prophet Muhammad spread on Thursday to Yemen, where hundreds of protesters attacked the American embassy, two days after assailants killed four Americans in Libya, including the ambassador, and crowds tried to overrun the embassy compound in Cairo.
Yemeni police on Thursday shot dead a protester and wounded five others when they opened fire on a crowd attempting to storm the US embassy in Sanaa.
Reports also spoke of protests in Tehran, where around 500 Iranians chanting "Death to America" tried to converge on the Swiss embassy, which handles US interests in the absence of formal diplomatic relations with Washington.
Hundreds of police officers held the crowds back from the diplomatic compound, witnesses said. For a third consecutive day at the American embassy in Cairo, protesters scuffled with police officers firing tear gas, witnesses said, and the state news agency reported that 13 people were injured.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Yemen-Egypt-Iran-Anti-US-anger-over-film-spreads/articleshow/16391477.cms
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Yemen security forces block US embassy area, protesters gather
Sep 14, 2012
SANAA: Yemeni security forces blocked the streets surrounding the U.S. embassy in Sanaa on Friday as demonstrators against a film deemed blasphemous to Islam gathered nearby, a day after the heavily fortified compound was stormed in protest at the film.
Around 20 to 30 people stood in a road to the north of the embassy, carrying signs saying "Anything but the Messenger of God", a Reuters witness said.
At least one person died and 15 were injured at Thursday's demonstration, which started as a peaceful march but quickly turned violent when protesters threw stones and signs before attacking the security offices and the compound.
No US embassy staff were hurt. Yemen's President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi condemned the attack and said Yemen would be launching an investigation.
The embassy in Yemen told US citizens it expected more protests against the film, which depicts the Prophet Mohammad in terms seen as blasphemous by Muslims, and that it would be closing its consular services on Saturday.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Yemen-security-forces-block-US-embassy-area-protesters-gather/articleshow/16394443.cms
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Yemenis around presidential office, demand Saleh prosecution
September 14, 2012
Tens of thousands of Yemenis have gathered outside the presidential compound in the capital to demand the prosecution of former ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh.
(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Yemenis want to bring Saleh and his aides to justice over the killing of demonstrators during a year of anti-regime demonstration against his rule. The demonstrators also denounced the growing levels of violence in Yemen and accused Saleh of being behind deadly terrorists attacks in the country.
Saleh, who ruled Yemen for almost 33 years, resigned on November 23, 2011 in return for amnesty after months of street protests against his rule.
"Terrorism and al-Qaeda are Ali Saleh and his sons," Yemeni protesters chanted in Sana'a on Wednesday.
Full report at:
http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&Id=347125
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South Asia
Maldives cracks down on men and women dancing together
Agence France Presse
September 14, 2012
Colombo: The Maldives on Thursday moved to limit dancing in public between men and women, an official and a report said, amid signs of the growing influence of the nation's hardline religious party.
The Islamic affairs ministry sent a circular "to all government institutions banning the holding of any mixed-gender dance events", the private Minivan newspaper said, quoting guidelines issued today.
The ministry also ordered a ban on events where adolescent girls were required to dance, the report said, adding that the directives were intended for both state bodies and individual citizens.
It was not immediately clear if the move was legally enforceable under existing regulations, and Minivan said there were exemptions.
'Events such as children's activities, performances exhibiting military skills, parades, playing the national anthem, boy scouts and girl guides performances... were acceptable forms of entertainment," it said.
Full report at:
http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/maldives-cracks-down-on-men-and-women-dancing-together-267269
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Thousands protest in Bangladesh over anti-Islam film
September 14, 2012
DHAKA: About 10,000 protesters in Bangladesh burnt American and Israeli flags and tried to march to the US embassy on Friday to demonstrate against an anti-Islam film that has infuriated the Muslim world
Chanting “God is Great”, “Smash the black hands of Jews” and “We won’t tolerate insult to our great prophet”, the protesters held rowdy demonstrations outside the Baitul Mokarram Mosque, the country’s largest, after Friday prayers.
Hundreds of police and rifle-wielding elite Rapid Action Battalion, Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) and water cannons followed the rally and blocked them miles from the heavily-fortified US embassy.
Full report at:
http://tribune.com.pk/story/436581/thousands-protest-in-bangladesh-over-anti-islam-film/
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US special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan may broach safe passage for Afghan Taliban
By Kamran Yousaf
September 14, 2012
ISLAMABAD: US special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan Marc Grossman is due to arrive in the capital city today (Friday) on a day-long trip amid gradual improvement in the otherwise troubled ties between Washington and Islamabad.
Grossman will be the first high-ranking civilian American official to visit Pakistan since the reopening of vital land routes for foreign forces stationed in Afghanistan, in early July.
President Barack Obama’s point-man for the region will meet Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar and the senior civil and military leadership to discuss the Pak-US cooperation, a Foreign Office official said on condition of anonymity.
He added that the discussions were expected to focus on reviving the strategic dialogue and the Afghan reconciliation process.
Grossman, the official said, has now been primarily focusing on efforts to bring the Taliban on the negotiating table.
Full report at:
http://tribune.com.pk/story/436422/grossman-may-broach-safe-passage-for-afghan-taliban/
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Maldives’ new defence policy rests on “Islam and national unity”: President Waheed
By Daniel Bosley | September 13th, 2012
President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan yesterday described the Maldives’ first ever National Defence Policy as “the main axis of civil protection”, resting on a bedrock of Islam and national unity.
Waheed’s comments came during the official launch of the policy white papers at the Islamic Centre in Male’, yesterday morning.
In his speech, Waheed described the policies as “institutionalised embodiments of civil protection” which ought to be respected by all government bodies.
“Contained [within] are also important policies which protect individual, social and economic freedoms, and promote environmental conservation in conjunction with strategies for sustainable development,” said Waheed.
The President stressed that civil protection was not just the responsibility of a few institutions, highlighting the importance of “sharing common objectives, so as to facilitate adherence to a well-determined course of action.”
Full report at:
http://minivannews.com/politics/maldives-new-defence-policy-rests-on-islam-and-national-unity-president-waheed-43811
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Afghan bus collides with oil tanker, 50 dead: Officials
Sep 14, 2012
GHAZNI, Afghanistan: An Afghan bus collided with a fuel tanker in Afghanistan on early Friday, killing 50 people and injuring several others, with women and children among the victims, officials said.
The incident happened in the Spin Band area of Ab Band district of Ghazni province, which straddles the main highway from Kabul to Kandahar, the capital of the south.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Afghan-bus-collides-with-oil-tanker-50-dead-Officials/articleshow/16394213.cms
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Sri Lankan minister seeks increase in Haj pilgrim quota
MOHAMMED RASOOLDEEN
13 September 2012
RIYADH: A senior minister from the Sri Lankan government arrived in Jeddah early this week to ask for an increase in the quota of Haj pilgrims from Colombo.
Sri Lankan senior minister for urban development, Abdul Hameed Mohamed Fowzie said, “I came to make a personal request to Haj Minister Bandar Al-Hajar to increase our quota to 6,245 pilgrims, since the existing quota of 2,800 does not satisfy the demand,” he told Arab News.
Minister Fowzie who handles Sri Lankan Haj affairs said with the end of the ethnic conflict on the island, more Muslims are free to travel and want to perform Haj this year. “If the additional quotas are issued now, we can start processing their travel papers for the upcoming Haj season,” he said.
Full report at:
http://www.arabnews.com/sri-lankan-minister-seeks-increase-haj-pilgrim-quota
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OIC establishes office in Myanmar for humanitarian assistance
NADIM AL-HAMID
Friday 14 September 2012
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation has signed an agreement with the government of Myanmar to establish an office for the distribution of humanitarian assistance among the Rohingya Muslim population, OIC official spokesman Ambassador Tariq Bakheet announced Wednesday.
“The fact-finding mission dispatched by Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu signed in Naypyidaw on Tuesday an agreement with the Myanmar government for the establishment of the office. This is an important and positive development that we appreciate and warmly welcome,” he told a press conference at the headquarters of the organization in Jeddah.
The spokesman revealed that arrangements were currently being made with the government of Myanmar for a visit by Ihsanoglu. “These moves are within the efforts of the organization to implement the resolution of the fourth extraordinary Islamic summit held in Makkah during the last days of Ramadan on the Rohingya people,” he added.
Full report at:
http://www.arabnews.com/oic-establishes-office-myanmar-humanitarian-assistance
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North America
Mystery deepens: Coptic Christian behind anti-Prophet film?
Sep 14, 2012
WASHINGTON: The man described by the Israeli government as an "unspeakable idiot" who made what critics say is an unwatchable anti-Islam film is now trying to be untraceable. Media hounds initially turned up with zilch in a search of public records for 'Sam Bacile', whose crude celluloid caricature of the Prophet sparked off violence in the Libya and Egypt.
But the AP zeroed in on a man named Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, who, while denying he was Sam Bacile, acknowledged a role in managing and providing logistics for the production of the film 'Innocence of Muslims' which has agitated Islamists for ridiculing the Prophet and Islam.
While Bacile's associates said he variously spelled his last name as Basil, Basilee etc, federal court papers showed Nakoula's aliases included Nicola Bacily, Erwin Salameh and other names that sounded like Bacile. Tthe cellphone number where it found 'Bacile' for his first interview had the same address in Los Angeles where Nakaoula was traced.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Mystery-deepens-Coptic-Christian-behind-anti-Prophet-film/articleshow/16391559.cms
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US Senator moves bill to strip aid to Pakistan, Egypt and Libya
Sep 14, 2012
WASHINGTON: An influential American Senator has moved a Congressional amendment to strip all US aid to Pakistan, Egypt and Libya - totaling about $4 billion per annum - and divided the fund equally for veterans jobs bill and deficit reduction programme.
Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky, who has been trying to strip Pakistan of all US aid till Dr Shakil Afridi is released from jail, made another attempt by introducing a new amendment to the veterans jobs bill.
"I'm not saying don't have relations with Pakistan. Many in Pakistan have been sympathetic to our country. Many in Pakistan have helped our country. But many in Pakistan with a wink and a nod look at us, take our money and laugh at us. They cash our check and they laugh at us," Senator Paul said moving his amendment to the Veterans Jobs Bill.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-Senator-moves-bill-to-strip-aid-to-Pakistan-Egypt-and-Libya/articleshow/16392664.cms
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Qaida posts online video of two 9/11 hijackers
Sep 14, 2012
DUBAI: Al-Qaida on Thursday posted an online video of two plane hijackers of the September 11, 2001 suicide attacks, which they said were part of a war to drive US forces out of the Arabian Peninsula.
Salim al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdar, two of the 19 extremists who hijacked the four airliners, appeared reading their wills, in the video titled 'The Emerging Sun of Victory Over the Victorious Ummah and the Vanquished Crusades' produced by As-Sahab media arm of al-Qaida and provided by the US-based SITE Monitoring Services.
Mihdar, dressed in a military jacket and white turban, with a machinegun to his left, said he was reading his will on 21 Safar 1422, on the Islamic calendar, which was April 26, 2001. Mihdar is believed to have landed in the US in January 2000. "Arab leaders... have gone far in betraying their nation and have permitted Christian Americans into the land of the two holy sites" of Mecca and Medina, he said.
The operation was "part of jihad campaign against the US and its supporters," said Hazmi. "It is to restore dignity for Muslims and to drive you out of the Arabian Peninsula," said Hazmi, who appeared with a patchy beard, wearing a brown thawb garment and a black turban.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/Qaida-posts-online-video-of-two-9/11-hijackers/articleshow/16391592.cms
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US powerless to act against anti-Islam inciters, hints Hillary Clinton
Sep 14, 2012
WASHINGTON: As anti-American protests erupt in the Muslim world, the United States is powerless to act against those who incited the violence due to the freedoms enshrined in its cherished constitution.
The catalyst for the conflagration, which is spreading across the Middle East and North Africa, was a privately-made film denigrating the Prophet Mohammed linked to evangelical and Coptic Christians in the United States.
The suspected producer is Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, a 55-year-old Copt living in California. It was promoted on the websites of two other Americans, extremist Christian pastor Terry Jones and another Copt, Washington-based lawyer Morris Sadek.
"I know it is hard for some people to understand why the United States cannot or does not just prevent these kinds of reprehensible videos from ever seeing the light of day," secretary of state Hillary Clinton said on Thursday.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-powerless-to-act-against-anti-Islam-inciters-hints-Hillary-Clinton/articleshow/16394800.cms
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US braces for more violence over anti-Islam film
Sep 14, 2012
WASHINGTON: The Obama administration braced for another potential eruption of violent demonstrations in parts of the Muslim world after Friday's weekly prayers -- traditionally a time of protest in the Middle East and North Africa -- in the wake of the Sept 11 attack against the US Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that killed the ambassador and three other Americans.
Angry demonstrations over an anti-Islam video already have occurred in Egypt and Yemen, and officials theorize that well-armed Libyan extremists hijacked a similar protest in Benghazi, where several Libyan security guards also were killed. The US put all of its diplomatic missions overseas on high alert, and secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton delivered an explicit denunciation of the video as the administration sought to pre-empt further turmoil at its embassies and consulates.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-braces-for-more-violence-over-anti-Islam-film/articleshow/16393764.cms
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Obama sends marines, warships to hunt killers
Sep 14, 2012
WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama directed warships, drones, and marines towards the troubled Arab regions amid a developing US assessment that the Islamist assault on the consulate in Benghazi that killed the American ambassador to Libya was a pre-planned assault to mark 9/11, and not a spontaneous protest against an anti-Islam film.
Amid growing pressure from hard-line critics at home and politicization of the handling of thecrisis in an election-season, Obama promised to bring the killers to justice. The pledge, ominous for the killers in the light of Washington's relentless pursuit and success in nailing Osama bin Laden and the Lockerbie bombers, came even as more protests erupted in Yemen, where the US embassy was also stormed.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Obama-sends-marines-warships-to-hunt-killers/articleshow/16391532.cms
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Protest tsunami hits US missions
September 14, 2012
CHANTING “ death to America”, hundreds of protesters angered by an anti- Islam film stormed the US embassy compound in Yemen’s capital Sanaa and burnt the American flag on Thursday, the latest in a series of attacks on American diplomatic missions in West Asia.
Yemen’s President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi apologised to his US counterpart Barack Obama and the American people for the acts of a mob and ordered a probe into the attack, Saba state news agency said.
In Sanaa, protesters smashed windows as they breached the embassy perimeter and reached the compound grounds, although they did not enter the main building housing the offices.
Angry young men brought down the US flag in the courtyard, burnt it and replaced it with a black banner bearing Islam’s declaration of faith — “ There is no God but Allah.” All protesters who breached the fence of the US mission in Sanaa were ejected by security forces, who used water cannons and fired warning shots.
Full report at: Mail Today
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US identifies anti-Islam filmmaker
September 14, 2012
Federal authorities identified a Southern California man who is on federal probation for financial crimes as the key figure behind an anti-Muslim film that has spawned mob violence against American embassies across the Mideast, a US law enforcement official told The Associated Press on
There was no sign of Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, at his family's home Thursday in Cerritos outside Los Angeles, as details slowly began to emerge about his checkered past, his connections among Southern California's right-wing Christian organizations and his central role in the production of the film.
Excerpts from the movie, which the filmmaker said was called "Innocence of Muslims," enraged Islamic protesters in Egypt, Libya and Yemen over its portrayal of the prophet Muhammad.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/Americas/US-identifies-anti-Islam-filmmaker/Article1-929700.aspx
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Attack on Benghazi consulate an act of war: Gingrich
September 14, 2012
Republican leadership has intensified its attack on the Obama Administration's handling of the current volatile situation in the Middle East with one of its top leaders arguing that the attack on the US Consulate in Benghazi was "an act of war" and not "senseless violence." "These are not
acts of senseless violence. These are acts of war," Newt Gingrich, former Speaker to the US House of Representatives and a former Republican presidential candidate, said in an op-ed to Politico magazine.
Gingrich alleged that the US ambassador to Libya and three other Americans were not killed by a senseless mob, but by a purposeful group of men armed with sophisticated weapons.
"These killers had tracked Ambassador Chris Stevens down to the US consulate in Benghazi, where he was much more vulnerable to attack and had less protection. They waged a coordinated, military-style assault," Gingrich said.
Senator John McCain said that the US is paying a heavy price for Obama's "feckless" foreign policy.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/Americas/Attack-on-Benghazi-consulate-an-act-of-war-Gingrich/Article1-929745.aspx
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US powerless to act against anti-Islam inciters?
September 14, 2012
As anti-American protests erupt in the Muslim world, the United States is powerless to act against those who incited the violence due to the freedoms enshrined in its cherished constitution.
The catalyst for the conflagration, which is spreading across the Middle East and North
Africa, was a privately-made film denigrating the Prophet Mohammed linked to evangelical and Coptic Christians in the United States.
The suspected producer is Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, a 55-year-old Copt living in California. It was promoted on the websites of two other Americans, extremist Christian pastor Terry Jones and another Copt, Washington-based lawyer Morris Sadek.
"I know it is hard for some people to understand why the United States cannot or does not just prevent these kinds of reprehensible videos from ever seeing the light of day," secretary of state Hillary Clinton said on Thursday.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/Americas/US-powerless-to-act-against-anti-Islam-inciters/Article1-929662.aspx
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Arab World
Shiite Militia threatens US in Iraq after film on Prophet
September 13, 2012
A Shiite militant group is threatening US interests in Iraq as part of the backlash over an anti-Islam film it has described as "heinous."
The leader of the Iranian-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq said in an interview on Thursday that the amateurish video that ridicules Prophet Muhammad
The militia leader, Qais al-Khazali, told The Associated Press that the video "will put all the American interests Iraq in danger."
The US Embassy in Baghdad remains the world's largest American diplomatic mission, with an estimated 15,000 employees.
Asaib Ahl al-Haq led deadly attacks against US troops before the American military withdrew from the country in 2011. It is funded and armed mainly by Iran.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/RestOfAsia/Militia-threatens-US-in-Iraq-after-film-on-Prophet/Article1-929432.aspx
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Egypt constitution talks stumble on role of Islam
Tamim Elyan
September 12, 2012
CAIRO (Reuters) - A proposal by ultraconservative Salafis to give Egypt's main Islamic institution the final say on whether the law of the land adheres to Islamic laws threatens to bring the already painfully slow process of drafting the new constitution to a grinding halt.
The proposal would give the revered Al-Azhar power similar to a supreme court by making it the arbiter of whether a law conforms with the principles of sharia, already cited in the constitution of ousted leader Hosni Mubarak as Egypt's "main source" of legislation.
Opponents say the move would only exacerbate Egypt's volatile politics and make it harder to heal social tensions in a country where one tenth of the population is Christian.
The argument is also diverting energy away from other essential points of law - the balance of power between president and parliament, the influence of the army, defense of personal freedoms and an independent judiciary.
"Lack of trust is so deep-seated now in Egypt," said Shadi Hamid, a political analyst at the Brookings Doha Center. "Anything in the constitution will be interpreted through this lens of mistrust."
Full report at:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns-rt-us-egypt-constitutionbre88b0vb-20120912,0,230051.story
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Saudi steers citizens away from Syrian "jihad"
By Asma Alsharif and Amena Bakr
Sep 12, 2012
(Reuters) - Loath to foster a new generation of militant Islamists, Saudi Arabia is trying to stop its citizens from joining what some of them see as a holy war against the Syrian government.
The Saudi public has grown incensed at the bloody images continuously broadcast of Syria's violence alongside reports of government forces massacring civilians, and $140 million was raised for Syrian refugees in the first two weeks of a government-organized campaign in August.
Riyadh has backed the rebels battling President Bashar al-Assad, publicly calling on the international community to "enable" Syrians to protect themselves, while sources in the Gulf, Syria and Turkey have said it is secretly funneling money and arms to the Free Syrian Army.
But mindful of the blowback it previously suffered after Saudi nationals returned home from foreign conflicts politically fired up and ready to wage war on their own government, Riyadh has moved to prevent volunteers from going to fight in Syria.
Full report at:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/12/us-saudi-syria-jihad-idUSBRE88B0XY20120912
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Fury in Muslim Countries from Anti-Islam Film, Calls for Protests on Friday
September 14, 2012
(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Arab and Islamic capitals witnessed Wednesday massive protests condemning the anti-Islam film which offended Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), and which was produced in the United States by American-Israeli real-estate developer.
Calls for protests on Friday were also released in most of the Arab and Islamic countries to express rejection to the West's immoral acts that contradict human rights.
In the Egyptian Capital, thousands of Egyptians took to the streets condemning the film, as the Muslim Brotherhood called for another protest on Friday.
Secretary General of the Muslim Brotherhood Movement in Egypt, Mahmoud Hussein, was quoted as saying that the movement called for organizing peaceful demonstrations in rejection of offending the religious believes and Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), and that is after the Friday prayers from the main mosques in all the Egyptian provinces.
For its part, the Egyptian government demanded the Egyptian people to have self control.
Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Qandil said that the film was a complete moral disgrace, stressing that "all the Egyptian people, Muslims and Christians, express their fury and rejection to this offense."
Full report at:
http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&Id=347238
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Saudi- Mashair train service ready to serve Hajis
September 14, 2012
Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs Prince Mansour bin Miteb will inspect the Mashair Railway project on Sunday, Al Madinah reported yesterday. It was quoting undersecretary of the ministry Habib Zain AlAbideen, who is supervisor of the central projects at the holy sites.
(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs Prince Mansour bin Miteb will inspect the Mashair Railway project on Sunday, Al Madinah reported yesterday. It was quoting undersecretary of the ministry Habib Zain AlAbideen, who is supervisor of the central projects at the holy sites.
He said during the visit, the minister would check if the train is ready to transport pilgrims during the upcoming Haj season, tour the three main stations, and follow up the train's operational plan during Haj. Zain AlAbideen said the ministry was considering using buses to transport pilgrims from faraway camps to the train stations. The company that operates the train has already started experimental operation, which will continue until Oct. 1. During this period, the company will carry out maintenance work at the stations.
Full report at:
http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&Id=347191
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Pursuing an independent Judicial system in Egypt
September 13, 2012
Anwaar Abdalla
CAIRO, September 13, 2012 - Lately, Egypt has witnessed several disputes round the drafting of a new constitution. Perhaps the most alarming issues were drafting a new emergency law and applying Sharia law as the basis of the Egyptian constitution.
In 1986, during the era of Hosni Mubarak, Counsellor Ahmed Mekki, the current minister of Justice, participated in the First Justice Conference in which he was the General Secretary; he also was one of the pioneer judges who established a movement for the Independence of Judicial system. Additionally, counsellor Mekki called for cancelling the emergency law .During the Egyptian revolution of January 25th, 2011; Counsellor Mekki renewed his call for an Independent Judicial system. However, a few weeks ago, the media in Egypt quoted Mekki as calling for the drafting of a new emergency law .
Counsellor Ahmed Mekki provided Anwaar Abdalla of the Communities The Washington Times with insight concerning the current constitution
Anwaar Abdalla: Cancelling the emergency law was one of the demands of January 25th, 2011 revolution; but we heard that there is a new emergency law or an amendment to the current law, in progress. Are you preparing a draft for an emergency law? Tell us about the new emergency law and why the government thought it was important?
Full report at:
http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/egypt-pyramids-and-
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Syrian army jets, helicopters batter Aleppo
September 14, 2012
Regime forces used fighter jets and helicopter gunships to pound the city and province of Aleppo on Friday, a day after violence killed at least 125 people across Syria, a watchdog said. The fighter jets bombarded the rebel-held towns of Al-Bab and Marea near Aleppo city, while fierce
battles raged around the military airport at Minnigh, also in Aleppo province, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Rebels have staged multiple attacks on military airports in recent weeks, focusing on the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, Idlib in the northwest, and Aleppo, the key battleground province of northern Syria.
As the army has increasingly employed fighter jets and helicopters in its attacks, the rebel Free Syrian Army has made military airports a strategic target, an FSA spokesman told AFP on Thursday.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/RestOfAsia/Syrian-army-jets-helicopters-batter-Aleppo/Article1-929791.aspx
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Saudi condemns anti-Islam film, attacks on US missions
September 13, 2012
Saudi Arabia, home to Islam's holiest sites, on Thursday condemned the release of an amateur movie mocking Islam and the deadly attacks against US missions over the film.
The kingdom "condemned the violent reactions in several countries against US interests," the official news
agency SPA said, and "the production by an irresponsible group in the United States of a film insulting the Prophet Mohammed."
Saudi Arabia "offers its condolences to the United States on the victims of the violence that targeted the US consulate in (the Libyan city of) Benghazi," it said.
The ultra-conservative kingdom also "affirms its rejection of all acts that insult religions and religious symbols."
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/RestOfAsia/Saudi-condemns-anti-Islam-film-attacks-on-US-missions/Article1-929495.aspx
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Pope Benedict arrives in Lebanon at time of Christian-Muslim tension
By Babak Dehghanpisheh
September 14
BEIRUT- Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Lebanon for a three-day visit on Friday, showing support for Christians across the region at a time of great turmoil.
The pope’s visit, his fourth to the Middle East, comes as Christians in Syria, Egypt and Lebanon are expressing fears of a threat from conservative Muslims emboldened by the sweeping changes brought about by the Arab Spring.
Those fears have been heightened this week as violent protests spurred by a film mocking the prophet Muhammad — a film being promoted by radical members of the Coptic Christian community — have rocked Egypt, Yemen and Libya.
The pontiff’s arrival is likely to resonate deeply with Christians in neighboring Syria, who have tried to stay on the sidelines of the brutal conflict, increasingly seen as a sectarian civil war, but have been dragged in nonetheless and even directly targeted at times.
In anti-government protests in western Syria earlier this year, some hard-line Sunni Islamists reportedly chanted “Alawites to the grave, Christians to Beirut,” — a chant which rhymes in Arabic. Syrian President Bashar al Assad, and many members of his inner circle, are part of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam.
Full report at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/pope-benedict-visiting-lebanon-at-time-of-christian-
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As Violence Spreads in Arab World, Google Blocks Access to Inflammatory Video
By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER
September 14, 2012
SAN FRANCISCO — As violence spread in the Arab world over a video on YouTube ridiculing the Prophet Muhammad, Google, the owner of YouTube, blocked access to it in two of the countries in turmoil, Egypt and Libya, but did not remove the video from its Web site.
Google said it decided to block the video in response to violence that killed four American diplomatic personnel in Libya. The company said its decision was unusual, made because of the exceptional circumstances. Its policy is to remove content only if it is hate speech, violating its terms of service, or if it is responding to valid court orders or government requests. And it said it had determined that under its own guidelines, the video was not hate speech.
Millions of people across the Muslim world, though, viewed the video as one of the most inflammatory pieces of content to circulate on the Internet. From Afghanistan to Libya, the authorities have been scrambling to contain an outpouring of popular outrage over the video and calling on the United States to take measures against its producers.
Google’s action raises fundamental questions about the control that Internet companies have over online expression. Should the companies themselves decide what standards govern what is seen on the Internet? How consistently should these policies be applied?
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/14/technology/google-blocks-inflammatory-video-in-
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Lebanon Christians Feel Under Siege; Find Hope in Pope
September 14, 2012
BEIRUT (Reuters) - In 1510, Pope Leo X thanked Divine Providence for having preserved the Maronite Christians through the hardest of times, "planted among infidels, schismatics and heretics as in a field of error".
He described them as a "rose among thorns, an impregnable rock in the sea, unshaken by the waves and fury of the thundering tempest".
Today, more than five centuries later, Pope Benedict will reassert this message of survival in a hostile environment in a three-day visit to Lebanon.
His visit comes at a time when Christians in the region feel their existence threatened by the rise of political Islam. It also coincides with violent protests in Libya and Egypt against film, made in the United States, that is insulting to Islam.
In this small country where, uniquely in the Arab world, Christians have held the political reins since independence in 1943, the Christian communities feel menaced.
Across the Arab world, Christians feel like a species facing extinction, threatened by Islamist fanatics, driven by a lack of opportunity at home to seek better lives abroad, and now fearful of the post-revolution order which in some countries has brought Islamists to power.
Christians now make up about 5 percent of the Middle Eastern population, down from 20 percent a century ago. If current pressures and their low birth rates continue, some estimates say their 12 million total could be halved by 2020.
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2012/09/14/world/middleeast/14reuters-pope-lebanon-
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Foundation gets 900 Haj applications
14 September 2012
The Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation has received applications under its annual programme to sponsor 600 UAE nationals and 400 other people from outside the country for this year’s Haj.
Ateeq Ahmad Al Muhairi, foundation’s Head of Fixed Programmes Department, announced that the three-day time limit for sending applications ended in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.
The citizens from the emirates of Sharjah, Ajman, Fujairah, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, Western Region and Al Ain sent applications under a specific programme of the foundation.
He explained that the relevant committees have received about 900 applications from all over the state including 190 from Abu Dhabi, while the number of applications of citizens in the emirates of Sharjah, Ajman, Fujairah, Umm Al Quwain and Ras Al Khaimah and in the Western Region and the city of Al Ain were 769. He added that the Haj committee has begun sorting out these applications.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-
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Africa
Two former Navy SEALs also died in Libya attack
Sep 14 2012
Washington : The United States on Thursday identified two additional victims of this week's deadly attack on the US Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, as former Navy SEALs who died trying to protect their colleagues.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty died in Tuesday's assault on the Benghazi consulate, which also killed US Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and Sean Smith, a State Department information management officer.
Our thoughts, prayers, and deepest gratitude are with their families and friends. Our embassies could not carry on our critical work around the world without the service and sacrifice of brave people like Tyrone and Glen, Clinton said in a statement.
The statement identified both Woods and Doherty as former Navy SEALS with lengthy experience in Iraq and Afghanistan. It did not say in what capacity they were working in Benghazi.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/two-former-navy-seals-also-died-in-libya-attack/1002508/
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In Mombasa, Islamic radicalism on rise
By Tom Odula
September 12, 2012
MOMBASA, Kenya — Hard-line Muslim clerics. Young people who feel marginalized. Suspicions that police are responsible for the killings and forced disappearances of extremists.
Those elements created a combustible mixture that exploded into rioting Aug. 27, after Aboud Rogo Mohammed, a Muslim preacher accused of links to an Islamist terrorist group in neighboring Somalia, was riddled with bullets as he drove his wife to a hospital for a checkup.
Observers say the events underscore growing fundamentalism in Mombasa, dividing people in a city established centuries ago by Muslim traders from the Arabian Peninsula. Kenya’s second-largest city is now home to many people of Arab descent and Somalis.
No one has been arrested in the killing that happened in broad daylight but Mr. Mohammed’s wife, who was wounded in the leg, immediately suspected the police.
“It is you policemen who have killed him. We don’t want a post-mortem or any help from you,” Khaniya Said Sagar told police officers who came to assist her.
Mr. Mohammed was the fifth suspected Muslim extremist who has been killed or who has disappeared in the past four months.
Full report at:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/sep/12/in-mombasa-islamic-radicalism-on-rise/
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The 'Angel of Mogadishu' who raised a hospital from the ruins of war
DANIEL HOWDEN
14 SEPTEMBER 2012
As fighting was at its fiercest, doctor Aisha Omar Ahmed returned to her homeland to salvage the wreckage on the front line
Reopening the San Martino hospital in the Somali capital Mogadishu has been a largely thankless task for Dr Aisha Omar Ahmed. Instead of earning a tidy living as a consultant obstetrician in Europe, the hospital director has been working mostly unpaid and in appalling conditions.
Since quitting her medical career in Rome to return home to a city and country at war, the 44-year-old has been threatened, beaten and shot at. So far she has chosen to stay.
"I was watching Somalia for 20 years in the headlines. I saw the [wounded] children brought to Italy for treatment. I was always thinking about this country," she says.
Full report at:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/the-angel-of-mogadishu-who-raised-a-hospital-from-the-ruins-of-war-8135739.html
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Northern Mali situation "alarming", Red Cross says
By Stephanie Nebehay
Sep 13, 2012
(Reuters) - More than half a million people in northern Mali, occupied by Islamist fighters, need aid to cope with rising food prices, collapsed public services and a lack of health care, the International Committee of the Red Cross said on Thursday.
The independent agency said it is in regular contact with the militants to facilitate its aid deliveries in the north and has raised the issue of amputations carried out in what rebels say is the application of Islamic sharia law.
"The (humanitarian) situation is more and more alarming for the population, both the displaced and residents who have stayed put," Yasmine Praz Dessimoz, head of ICRC operations for North and West Africa, told a news conference in Geneva.
Mali was plunged into chaos in March when soldiers toppled the president, leaving a power vacuum that enabled Tuareg rebels from the north to seize nearly two thirds of the country.
The Tuareg rebellion has since been hijacked by Islamist militants who have began imposing sharia, Islamic law, in the northern regions of Gao, Kidal and Timbuktu under their control.
"Public services practically no longer function, basic health services are not provided and supplying clean drinking water is difficult. Needs are huge," Praz Dessimoz said.
Full report at:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/13/us-mali-aid-idUSBRE88C0PI20120913
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Islamic scholars propose new sharia board model
By Bernardo Vizcaino
Sep 13, 2012
(Reuters) - A group of Islamic scholars is proposing a fresh solution to charges that banks' sharia boards are open to conflicts of interest: create partnerships between the boards and Muslim depositors, to insulate the boards from pressure exerted by bank managements.
Sharia boards, composed of experts in Islamic financial law, supervise Islamic banks' activities and products to make sure they conform to religious principles, such as bans on interest and pure monetary speculation.
Traditionally, banks appoint prestigious scholars to their sharia boards and pay them handsome fees and retainers. This has left the system vulnerable to charges of conflict of interest: the scholars are being paid by the institutions which they are supposed to be supervising impartially.
Full report at:
http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/09/13/islamic-finance-scholars-idINL6E8JU8VU20120913
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Anti-Islam film: German and UK embassies in Sudan attacked
Sep 14, 2012
Protesters angered by a film mocking Islam have attacked the German and British embassies in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.
Demonstrators started fires and tore down the German flag, raising an Islamist banner in its place.
Protests are taking place across the Middle East and North Africa.
In Cairo, police firing tear gas pushed about 500 protesters back from the US embassy. There were also clashes in the Yemeni capital Sanaa.
Full report at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-19602177
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South Africa police face torture-death investigation
Sep 14, 2012
South Africa police are being investigated for allegedly torturing a man to death in the capital, Pretoria.
The country's Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) said a 28-year-old man was allegedly taken from his parent's home on Wednesdsay.
It is not known why he was arrested, but he was allegedly tortured at a police station, IPID said.
He was then taken to a hospital in an unmarked vehicle but was not admitted as he was already dead.
Full report at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/19598128
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Europe
Scotland Yard issues fresh appeal in Imran Farooq murder case
September 14, 2012
LONDON: The Metropolitan Police Service London (MPS) also known as Scotland Yard issued a fresh appeal for assistance in the Imran Farooq murder investigation on Friday, DawnNews reported.
Days before the second death anniversary of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s leader, the police appealed again to the people to come forward with any information that may lead to the identification, arrest and prosecution of those involved in the murder and has offered a reward of £20,000 in this regard.
Detectives from the MPS’s Counter Terrorism Command probing the murder of believe that Farooq may have been building his independent political profile months before he was murdered in London.
The police claimed to have knowledge that Farooq had setup a Facebook account in July 2010 and had amassed a large number of contacts using the social networking website.
The Scotland Yard team also believes that Farooq may have been poised to renew his political career and said that they would want to speak to anyone who was in contact with him over his political ambitions.
Full report at:
http://dawn.com/2012/09/14/scotland-yard-issues-fresh-appeal-in-imran-farooq-murder-case/
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Tajikistan Agrees Russian Base Deal to Curb Militant Threat
September 14, 2012
DUSHANBE (Reuters) - Russia has negotiated a deal to extend its lease on a military base in Tajikistan for more than 20 years in exchange for discounted weaponry and training for the Central Asian state's armed forces, two sources close to the talks said on Friday.
The lease extension will end recriminations over a delayed deal to reinforce Russia's military presence on the southern fringes of the former Soviet Union before NATO troops begin withdrawing from next-door Afghanistan in 2014.
More than 6,000 Russian soldiers are stationed across three towns in Tajikistan, an impoverished former Soviet republic with an economy heavily reliant on money sent home by around 1 million migrant workers in Russia.
The 201st base is Russia's largest troop deployment abroad and is viewed by the Kremlin as a bulwark against the potential spillover of Islamist militancy into a region it still regards as its sphere of influence.
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2012/09/14/world/asia/14reuters-tajikistan-russia-
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UN appeals for calm as 'hateful' film sparks violence across Arab
September 14, 2012
UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon on Thursday appealed for calm in North Africa and the Middle East after a film deemed insulting to Islam sparked riots across the Arab world and an attack that killed the US envoy to Libya.
In a statement issued by the UN press office ahead of
Friday prayers and further planned demonstrations in some Muslim nations, Ban reiterated his condemnation of the attack that killed US ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens and three other Americas in Benghazi on Tuesday.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/worldsectionpage/World/UN-appeals-for-calm-as-hateful-film-sparks-violence-across-Arab/Article1-929659.aspx
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British troops may return from Afghanistan earlier: Minister
Sep 14, 2012
LONDON: British defence secretary Philip Hammond is considering bringing some British troops back from Afghanistan earlier than expected, he said in an interview.
"I think that the message I am getting clearly from the military is that it might be possible to draw down further troops in 2013," Hammond told The Guardian in an interview at Camp Bastion in Helmand province.
Hammond said that six months ago the military was privately pushing "for keeping force levels as high as possible for as long as possible".
But he said "I think there is a bit of a rethinking going on about how many troops we do actually need - there may be some scope for a little bit more flexibility on the way we draw down."
The British government has said it intends to pull out all its 9,500 combat troops by the end of 2014.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/British-troops-may-return-from-Afghanistan-earlier-Minister/articleshow/16391849.cms
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Britain’s Hague says Assad regime ‘doomed’
(AFP) / 13 September 2012
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Thursday during his first visit to the Iraqi capital that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime is “doomed” and should not survive.
Hague also accused Iran of providing “active assistance” to Assad in his crackdown in Syria, which began in March 2011 and has escalated into a bloody civil war between opponents and supporters of his regime.
“We believe that the Assad regime is doomed, that it is not possible for it to survive, and so many crimes (have been) committed that it should not survive,” Hague said at a joint news conference with his Iraqi counterpart Hoshyar Zebari.
Hague said they had discussed “the need for a transition to a more democratic and stable Syria. That is the only way to avoid protracted civil war, or the collapse of the Syrian state, or an even greater flow of refugees and loss of life.”
“The sooner this conflict in Syria is resolved and brought to an end, the better it will be for the people of Iraq, and for the whole region,” Hague said.
“We believe in the creation of a transitional government which would be able to bring peace and stability to Syria again,” he added.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-
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