Muslim Leaders In Washington State Say Rioters Don't Understand Islam

LONDON: In his memoirs 'Diplomatic Channels', Kris Srinivasan, 17 years after he demitted office as foreign secretary, reveals that India's external intelligence agency, RAW, snooped on a telephone conversation between a reputedly pro-Pakistan US assistant secretary of state for South Asia, Robin Raphel, and then US ambassador in Islamabad, which confirmed that the US would not back a draft resolution against India on Kashmir moved by Pakistan at the United Nations, and therefore it would fail to proceed any further.

The book, to be launched in London soon, recounts that Pakistan had provisionally introduced the resolution at the UN general assembly's first committee in September 1994. To counter this, the ministry of external affairs, led by Srinivasan, approached then Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao to instigate the release of Kashmiri dissidents, initiate the process of elections in Jammu & Kashmir, and pave the way for a return of Red Cross to the state.

Thereafter, meeting his counterpart in the US administration Peter Tarnoff, Srinivasan argued "a negative vote against India at the UN would only stimulate militant activity and render futile the democratic steps the Indian government was trying to take".

India soon came to know of the frustration of Raphel — "which we came to hear from a phone intercept," says Srinivasan. She informed her colleague, the US ambassador, that she had pressed for an affirmative vote for the Pakistan resolution, but had been blocked by the "higher-ups".

RAW successfully tapped Raphel's call, despite this being from Washington to Islamabad, and apparently forwarded a tape and transcript to Srinivasan.

Interestingly, as a decoy, India had moved a draft resolution in the UN first committee on the desirability of complete elimination of nuclear weapons — based on various previous public pronouncements by the US, Russia and China — within a fixed time-frame, which had, in fact, found co-sponsors. This alarmed the Americans, who were pressing for a resolution favouring a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. They promptly despatched a senior arms control expert to Delhi to ask India to desist.

South Block withdrew the draft, conveying to Washington that it would reciprocally expect the same attitude when it came to India's concerns. The world's superpower, it would appear, was check-mated. Earlier in 1994, Pakistan had provisionally moved a resolution against India on Kashmir at the UN Commission for Human Rights. This, too, had to be withdrawn after strenuous lobbying by the MEA, for which Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Salman Khurshid earned plaudits.

The book is uncomplimentary about some politicians. About Shankar Dayal Sharma, he says, "He had a mumbling, indistinct manner of speech, causing his scarcely comprehending foreign visitors much bewilderment." On K R Narayanan: "He was a humdrum professional diplomat with leftist inclinations...".

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-09-17/india/33902077_1_pakistan-islamabad-ministry-of-external-affairs

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MP cartoonist recalls 'harassment' for exposing Narendra Modi

 Sep 17 2012

Indore: Against the backdrop of ongoing controversy surrounding arrest and release of cartoonist Aseem Trivedi, an artist from Madhya Pradesh has recalled the police “high-handedness” in putting him behind the bars for “exposing” Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi during his 'Sadbhavna' mission last year.

Harish Yadav, who draws caricatures for eveninger 'Prabhat Kiran' under the pseudonym of 'Mussavir' had drawn a cartoon on Modi's Sadbhavna Mission on September 20, 2011.

Yadav was arrested under section 295 (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings or any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) on a complaint of Mohammad Sharif Khan after 'Prabhat Kiran' carried the cartoon in its edition.

“I was arrested on the same day when the newspaper carried the cartoon of Modi's mission in which I tried to expose him for refusing to wear a skull cap offered by a Maulana,” Yadav said.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/mp-cartoonist-recalls-harassment-for-exposing-narendra-modi/1003684/

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Salman Rushdie feels hurt by rebuffs by India

Sep 17, 2012

NEW DELHI: Salman Rushdie feels "hurt" by the "rebuffs" given to him by India where his books are rejected for university syllabus on the grounds that he was "not really" an Indian writer.

"What kind of rebuff" from India had "hurt him a lot", he was asked during an interview to CNN-IBN ahead of the release of his memoir 'Joseph Anton' on his days in hiding after writing the controversial novel 'The Satanic Verses'.

"I have heard about how my books get rejected for university syllabus as they say I am not really an Indian writer... really? In what sense? Where is the foreign blood?

"And that is insulting. These books have been influential in the development of Indian literature, at least they should be studied," Rushdie said.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Salman-Rushdie-feels-hurt-by-rebuffs-by-India/articleshow/16434359.cms

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Osmania University tense as students clash with police

Sep 17, 2012

HYDERABAD: Tension prevailed on the Osmania University (OU) campus here on Monday after students clashed with police which lobbed teargas shells on protesters indulging in heavy stone-pelting.

Trouble started after scores of students under the aegis of Telangana Vidhyarthi Parishad tried to take out a procession from the OU campus to the state assembly, demanding the state government declare September 17 as 'Telangana Liberation Day'.

They wanted to commemorate the region's freedom from the erstwhile Nizam rule.

Despite repeatedly being told that there was no permission for their rally, protesters argued with police and hurled stones at them near the NCC gate on the OU campus, a senior police officer said.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Osmania-University-tense-as-students-clash-with-police/articleshow/16432977.cms

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US consulate in Chennai shuts down visa section for 2 days following protests over anti-Islam film

Sep 17, 2012

CHENNAI: Faced with protests over the anti-Islam film for the third day, the US consulate here has shut down its visa section for two days from Monday.

"The visa section will be closed for appointments on Monday and Tuesday. Persons with appointments are being notified for rescheduling dates. Emergency services will be offered to American citizens," an advisory posted on the consulate's official website said.

The decision to close the visa section came as the anti-US protests in front of the consulate continued for the third day on Monday with another Muslim outfit planning to hold a demonstration on Tuesday.

A spokesperson of the consulate said the decision to close down the visa section for two days was taken on Sunday and all applicants already given appointment had been informed about the rescheduling.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/US-consulate-in-Chennai-shuts-down-visa-section-for-2-days-following-protests-over-anti-Islam-film/articleshow/16432296.cms

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India, Pakistan commerce secretaries to meet this week

Sep 17, 2012

NEW DELHI: Commerce secretaries from India and Pakistan will meet later this week to chart out the second round of steps to fortify trade and economic ties.

Commerce secretary S R Rao confirmed that he will be flying to Islamabad for the talks scheduled for Sept 20 and 21. He, however, did not discuss the agenda for the meeting, which would be the first since last November. Trade ministers from both sides had met in Delhi in April.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-Pakistan-commerce-secretaries-to-meet-this-week/articleshow/16429062.cms

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Decks cleared for block councils, district panchayat units

 Sep 17 2012

Srinagar : Decks have been cleared to put in place block councils and district panchayat councils in Jammu and Kashmir as part of the state government's commitment to put in place a powerful three-tier Panchayat Raj system, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said.

"A powerful 3-tier Panchayat Raj system is my government's commitment and all decks have been cleared to put in place block councils and district panchayat councils so that Panchayat Raj gets fully established at all levels," Omar said interacting with a deputation of Sarpanches and Panches from Mendhar here yesterday.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/decks-cleared-for-block-councils-district-panchayat-units/1003775/

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BJP wants Centre to give Indian citizenship to Hindu migrants

Sep 17, 2012

JAIPUR At least 208 Hindu migrants from Pakistan, who recently arrived in Jodhpur, are unsure of their future as their pilgrimage Visa is expiring on October 5. After coming to Jodhpur by Thar Express in the past one fortnight, these migrants now want Indian citizenship as they are not in a mood to return to Pakistan. Chief minister Ashok Gehlot has met them twice in the past one week, while BJP MP from Bikaner Arjun Ram Meghwal assured them that he would convey their plight to the Prime Minister.

Meghwal on Sunday said that he will urge the Prime Minister to speak to the Pakistan ambassador to extend Visa of these migrants since they are not in a mood to return to Pakistan. Meghwal also demanded that the Union government consider these migrants as a special case to accord them Indian citizenship.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/BJP-wants-Centre-to-give-Indian-citizenship-to-Hindu-migrants/articleshow/16427927.cms

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Arab World

Syrian rebels tortured and executed detainees: HRW

September 17, 2012

Syrian rebels have committed war crimes including torture and killing of detainees, Human Rights Watch said on Monday, calling on countries which support those fighting Bashar al-Assad's rule to press them to respect humanitarian law.

The New York-based group said it had documented more than 12 cases where rebel fighters had killed their captured opponents, while at least six detainees interviewed by HRW said they had been tortured and mistreated.

"Time and again Syria's opposition has told us that it is fighting against the government because of its abhorrent human rights violations," HRW's deputy Middle East director Nadim Houry said. "Now is the time for the opposition to show that they really mean what they say."

Rights groups have accused Assad's forces of carrying out massacres, summary executions and widespread torture in detention since the outbreak of Syria's uprising 18 months ago.

But video footage of rebel fighters hurling bodies off high buildings and gloating last week over the corpses of 20 uniformed men, their hands bound behind their back, suggest brutality among rebel ranks as well.

Full report at:

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/RestOfAsia/Syrian-rebels-tortured-and-executed-detainees-HRW/Article1-931384.aspx

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Saudi shuts male-staffed lingerie shops

September 17, 2012

Outlets violated decree on ‘feminisation and nationalisation of jobs’

Riyadh: The labour ministry has ordered the closure of around 100 lingerie shops in the Saudi capital for having men on their sales staff, according to a newspaper report.

Al Eqtisadiah quoted a ministry official as saying all shops which violate a decree on the “feminisation and nationalisation of jobs” would be shut down. The measure aims to “provide a safe environment for working women,” he said.

At the start of the year the ministry banned male assistants from working at lingerie shops and demanded women-only sales assistants at cosmetics outlets.

King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz issued a decree in June 2011 limiting work for women at lingerie shops to Saudi nationals only in a bid to reduce high female unemployment in the conservative kingdom.

Unemployment among women in the state is estimated at 30 per cent.

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-arabia/saudi-shuts-male-staffed-lingerie-shops-1.1077328

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Apostolic exhortation tackles Christians’ Mideast exodus

September 15, 2012

By Olivia Alabaster

BEIRUT: The aim of Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to Lebanon is ostensibly to allow him to deliver an “apostolic exhortation” in response to the Middle East Synod in 2010, which was convened to discuss issues facing Christians in the region.

An apostolic exhortation is a recommendation delivered by the pope following a synod, or gathering of church leaders.

The 2010 synod conference gathered Catholic leaders – including 185 bishops, 140 from Eastern Catholic churches – from across the Middle East at the Vatican to tackle the flow of Christians from the region, specifically Palestine and Iraq.

There are around 20 million Christians in the Middle East – including some 5 million Catholics – which account for 5 percent of the region’s entire population.

A century ago Christians made up around 20 percent.

Full report at:

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Local-News/2012/Sep-15/187994-apostolic-exhortation-

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In Lebanon, Pope Laments Strife in Syria, Where the War Rages On

By KAREEM FAHIM

17 September 2012

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Standing near what was once the dividing line of Lebanon’s bygone civil war, Pope Benedict XVI said a prayer on Sunday for the victims of the conflict in Syria, where the end is hard to see.

Syria was a recurring theme in the pope’s three-day visit here. As he arrived, Benedict called for both the Syrian government and its opponents to stop importing arms. Before he left on Sunday, the pope lamented the cost. “Sadly, the din of weapons continues to make itself heard. Violence and hatred invade people’s lives, and the first victims are women and children.

“Why so much horror?” the pope asked, appealing to the region — and the world — to find a solution. “Why so many dead?”

That plea was quickly drowned out on Sunday by news of more killings in Syria. A factory owner in the Qadam neighborhood of Damascus, the capital, said several people, including the 18-year-old nephew of one of his employees, were taken from their homes and executed by soldiers in an apartment. And the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an activist group, said that five children and at least eight other people were killed by shelling in the northern province of Idlib.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/17/world/middleeast/pope-in-lebanon-rues-strife-in-

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Hezbollah calls for week of protests over Islam film

Sep 17, 2012

BEIRUT: Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah called for a week of protests across Lebanon over a film mocking Islam, as symbols of US influence were targeted by angry Muslims in many countries across the world.

In the latest outpouring of anger, around 1,000 Afghans took to the streets of Kabul on Monday, throwing stones at a US base, torching cars and shouting "Death to America", police said.

Two police cars were among those set ablaze on Jalalabad road, where NATO and US military bases are located, Kabul police chief Mohammad Ayoub Salangi told AFP.

Gunmen from the crowd opened fire at police, but no one was hurt, police said. "We have not shot back and we won't," Salangi said.

An AFP photographer said burning tyres sent thick black smoke streaming into the sky and large stones littered the road as shopkeepers in the area hurriedly locked up and ran away.

Nasrallah, the head of Lebanon's powerful Shiite Muslim group, made his call for protests in a televised speech broadcast just hours after Pope Benedict XVI left Lebanon following a historic three-day visit in which he prayed that Middle East leaders would work towards peace and reconciliation.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Hezbollah-calls-for-week-of-protests-over-Islam-film/articleshow/16432904.cms

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Multiple Personalities of the Muslim Rage

September 17, 2012

Dubai. At the height of the latest Islamic rage, one of the Muslim world’s first media-celebrity imams told worshipers they were indeed witnessing a clash of civilizations. But just not the kind you think.

This one also is within Islam, and it helps explain the multiple personalities of the fury.

It’s political: The uncompromising ethos of extremism clawing for any gains against more moderate voices. It’s social: Fed by an explosive blend of economic stagnation, anger over US-led wars and — in some places — frustrations as the soaring hopes of the Arab Spring hit the grinding realities of rebuilding.

And it cuts deeply into questions that have added resonance in a hyper-connected world that moves at the quicksilver pace of the web: How to coexist with the free-speech openness of the West and whether violence is ever a valid response.

Full report at:

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/international/multiple-personalities-of-the-muslim-rage/544855

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Syrian jets hit Lebanese territory near border

September 17, 2012

Missiles fired by Syrian warplanes hit Lebanese territory on Monday in one of the most serious cross-border violations since Syria’s crisis began 18 months ago, security officials in Beirut and Lebanese state media said.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said four missiles fired by two Syrian jets hit a rugged and remote area on the edge of the Lebanese border town of Arsal. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that the warplanes fired three missiles that fell on the outskirts of Arsal about 500 meters (yards) from the border between the two Full report at:

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article3907209.ece

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Stir shows Salafists' rise after Arab Spring

Sep 17, 2012

DUBAI: Protests across the Arab world triggered by a film insulting Islam could reflect the growing strength of Salafists that benefit from a widening freedom in Arab Spring countries, analysts say.

The Salafists, a group of Sunni Muslims who promote a strict lifestyle based on the traditions of early 'pious ancestors', have made a surprising surge in their influence, mainly in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia. Religious TV channels from Saudi Arabia, the homeland of Salafism, are seen as the force behind augmenting the numbers of Salafists across the Arab World over the past 20 years. Salafists are becoming more present in Arab countries where dictators who ruled with an iron fist have been removed by unprecedented uprisings.

In Libya, Salafists dared to destroy Muslim shrines, which they consider in violation of Islamic teachings, after strongman Muammar Gaddafi was toppled.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Stir-shows-Salafists-rise-after-Arab-Spring/articleshow/16429434.cms

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7 killed in attack on Baghdad Green Zone: Officials

Sep 17, 2012

BAGHDAD: A suicide bomber on Monday killed seven people when he blew his vehicle up at an entrance to Baghdad's heavily secured Green Zone, which protects Iraqi government offices and the US embassy, officials said.

The attacker drove to the entrance situated at the July 14 bridge across the Tigris River before triggering the explosives, security officials said.

Medics and security officials put the initial toll at seven dead and at least 24 people injured.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/7-killed-in-attack-on-Baghdad-Green-Zone-Officials/articleshow/16432249.cms

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UNHCR expands services to Syrian refugees in south

September 15, 2012          

BEIRUT: The U.N.’s refugee agency (UNHCR) has expanded its services to Syrian refugees in southern Lebanon and plans to begin registration in the region in the coming weeks, it said in its weekly briefing Friday. There are an estimated 7,500 Syrian refugees in southern Lebanon, and 4,000 have already requested registration appointments, according to the United Nations High Relief Commissioner. UNHCR’s activities have so far been focused in northern and eastern Lebanon. The body Friday announced a weekly increase of nearly 3,000 in the number of refugees it is currently aiding, to 67,960, of which 49,653 are registered. It also highlighted difficulties in funding secondary medical care for refugees. The body is committed to funding health care only until the end of October.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Local-News/2012/Sep-15/188000-unhcr-expands-services-to-syrian-refugees-in-south.ashx#ixzz26XuvbnCt

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Ex-minister slams Iraq PM for tolerating graft

September 15, 2012

By Prashant Rao

LONDON: The first minister to quit Iraqi premier Nuri al-Maliki's unity government criticised the prime minister for turning a blind eye to worsening corruption among his loyalists, in an interview with AFP.

Former communications minister Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi, who resigned on August 27, added he was holding documents pointing to graft within the government, but declined to give details, insisting instead they would be released at an unspecified future date.

He said he was "100 percent sure that the people surrounding al-Maliki, they are corrupt people, very close to him, they are highly corrupt people."

"But definitely, he knows the corrupt people, but those who are loyal to him, he never takes any action. He allows them to be more corrupt, and it is very obvious," Allawi said at his west London home.

Full report at:

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2012/Sep-15/188002-ex-minister-slams-iraq-pm-for-tolerating-graft.ashx#ixzz26XvqZrxc

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Egypt security HQ in Sinai hit by militants

17 September 2012

Suspected Islamist militants have attacked an Egyptian security HQ in Sinai, firing crude rockets and bullets from a nearby building, officials say.

They said the attack in al-Arish set off battles between militants and security forces in surrounding streets.

One policeman was killed and three others were injured in separate clashes nearby.

The violence comes amid a security crackdown in the area after 16 Egyptian soldiers were killed in August.

The BBC's Jon Leyne, in Cairo, says the militants operating in Sinai are usually described as Islamists, but there is no clear idea exactly who they are.

Security experts say they are a combination of Egyptian and foreign Islamist militants, who take advantage of the lack of law and order in Sinai.

Full report at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-19616644

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West's Rebel Worries Leave Syria Strategy Struggling

17 September 2012

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - France may be considering arming Syria's rebels but the U.S. and other Western powers have yet to find opposition figures they genuinely trust as they worry over growing jihadi and sectarian forces.

The attack on the U.S. consulate in Libya's Benghazi that killed its ambassador and anti-American demonstrations elsewhere this week over an obscure video that ridiculed the Prophet Mohammad might have no Syria links but will make nervous governments even more cautious.

Western officials say there is little doubt a growing number of foreign jihadi fighters are entering the fray, although it is far from clear whether any have direct links to Al Qaeda. But It is just one worry amongst many.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2012/09/17/world/17reuters-syria-

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Mideast Unrest Intensifies Debate on U.S. Intervention in Syria

By ROBERT F. WORTH and HELENE COOPER

17 September 2012

DOHA, Qatar — In recent weeks, the growing death toll in Syria pushed that country’s civil war to the top of the Obama administration’s agenda, with some Arab leaders pressing harder for a greater American role in toppling Syria’s leader, Bashar al-Assad.

Then came the protests of the past week in the Middle East — a vivid illustration that the United States’ support for greater democracy in the Arab world during the past two years is no guarantee against the incendiary power of Islamist sentiment and anti-American rage.

The turmoil has only sharpened a painful quandary that had been largely overshadowed by the presidential campaign. Should the United States and its allies remain wary of toppling Mr. Assad, one of the region’s last secular dictators, whose rule, however repressive, has kept the forces of populist Islam in check? Or do the protests underscore the risks of inaction, with a rapidly growing jihadi presence in Syria that is likely to further destabilize the entire region?

Already, the attacks on American and European diplomatic posts, and especially the deaths of an ambassador and three other Americans in Libya, have roused calls in the United States for disengagement from the Arab world and its seemingly endless mayhem. That a shoddy 14-minute video lampooning the Prophet Muhammad can provoke such anger, some say, bodes poorly for any future investment in Arab democracy.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/17/world/middleeast/mideast-turmoil-heats-up-debate-

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Three linked to Qatif riots held

17 September 2012

Saudi Arabia announced yesterday that it has arrested three men including a wanted man in connection with Qatif riots. An Interior Ministry spokesman identified the wanted man as Hussein Muhammad Ali Al-Muslim.

The spokesman said Al-Muslim was wanted for opening fire on a police patrol that resulted in the death of Pvt. Hussein Bawah Ali Zabani and injuries to Pvt. Saad Muteb Al-Shammari. Security officers arrested the man after raiding his residence.

“Police also arrested Hassan Abdul Aziz Al-Darwish and Hassan Ali Al-Mubairek,” the spokesman said, adding that nobody was injured in the operation.

Full report at:

http://www.arabnews.com/three-linked-qatif-riots-held

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NSHR condemns abusive film, calls for peaceful reactions

 17 September 2012

The Saudi National Society of Human Rights (NSHR) Saturday issued a statement condemning the anti-Islam film made “by an irresponsible group in the USA”, describing it as offensive to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

The NSHR strongly condemned who was behind producing, showing and supporting the film. It called upon all countries, humanitarian and rights institutes in the world to work together to stand against the repetition of offensive and abusive practices, prevent them, and convict the doers. The society also called upon the international society to curb the spreading of such practice and the legal pretexts that protect the makers under the “freedom of speech” justification.

Full report at:

http://www.arabnews.com/nshr-condemns-abusive-film-calls-peaceful-reactions

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Australia

Oz Muslims tip off police over radical Islamist text messages

Sep 17 2012

Melbourne : Members of the Muslim community in Australia's New South Wales tipped off police that radical Islamists were sending "inflammatory text messages" seeking support for a protest over a video deemed offensive to Islam.

The rally outside the US Consulate in Martin Place in Sydney on Saturday turned violent leaving two police officers and 17 others injured, according Sydney Morning Herald report.

The paper said that Muslim community tipped off police that inflammatory text messages were going around that were sent by radical Islamists ahead of Saturday's rally.

Six men have been arrested following the weekend clashes that took place between the demonstrators and police.

Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione today said that members of the specially formed Strike Force McAllister were making quick progress in hunting down those responsible for spreading the message, which urged people to join the protest because "we must act now" to "defend (the prophet's) honour".

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/oz-muslims-tip-off-police-over-radical-islamist-text-messages/1003731/

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Behead banners belong in dark ages

SIMON BENSON The Daily Telegraph September 17, 2012

NSW Muslim MP Shaoquett Moselmane has condemned Saturday's violent protests, claiming children holding banners calling for beheadings took the world back 1000 years.

He said he was preparing to take a private members bill to the Labor caucus to expand the NSW racial discrimination laws so they include religion.

NSW is one of the few states in the country that doesn't include religion in anti-vilification laws.

The Labor MP, the first Muslim to be elected to parliament in NSW, was shocked by the violence and said a small group of "hooligans" did not represent the Muslim community.

He also feared their actions could fuel a repeat of the type of anti-Muslim extremism that fuelled the Cronulla riots.

Full report at:

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/behead-banners-belong-in-dark-ages/story-e6freuy9-1226475235894

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NSW Premier asks for probe into boy holding beheading sign at anti-Islamic film protest in Sydney

MARK MORRI, JANET FIFE-YEOMANS, CLEMENTINE CUNEO and ALICIA WOOD

The Daily Telegraph September 17, 2012

THE NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell has asked the Family and Community Services Department to investigate the use of a young child photographed holding an sign calling for the beheading of those who insult the prophet.

"I asked the minister yesterday what can be done," he said on radio this morning.

He expected to have a reply sometime today.

The image of a Muslim mother photographing the little boy with the sign has infuriated the public, including members of the Muslim community.

Do you know the mother of child holding up the beheading placard? Email us at news@dailytelegraph.com.au

Mr O’Farrell was speaking on the Ray Hadley show this morning about the riot in Sydney’s CBD on Saturday.

Full report at:

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/probe-into-boy-holding-beheading-sign/story-e6freuy9-1226475238920

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Pakistan

Pakistan test-fires nuclear-capable Babur missile with 700 km range

Sep 17, 2012

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Monday successfully test-fired the nuclear-capable Babur cruise missile with a range of 700 km that could hit targets deep inside India, with the military saying the launch had consolidated and strengthened the country's deterrence capability.

The "fully automated Strategic Command and Control Support System" of the National Command Authority, which controls Pakistan's nuclear arsenal, was deployed during the test which was conducted at an unspecified location, said a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations.

"The test consolidates and strengthens Pakistan's deterrence capability and national security," it said.

The missile was launched from a multi-tube missile launch vehicle that "significantly enhances the targeting and deployment options" of the Babur system.

The Strategic Command and Control Support System provides decision-makers at the National Command Centre "robust command and control capability of all strategic assets with round the clock situational awareness in a digitised network-centric environment", the statement said.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pakistan-test-fires-nuclear-capable-Babur-missile-with-700-km-range/articleshow/16432147.cms

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Pakistan journalists' choice: Face death, or jail

 Sep 17, 2012

QUETTA (Pakistan): The telephone call to local journalists generally comes in the late evening. The voice on the other end is harsh. He has a statement he wants printed, and he prefaces it with a terse order: "Report our messages without making any changes or we will kill you."

The messages they deliver warn of upcoming violence or assassinations, sometimes naming an intended victim, or claim responsibility for atrocities already committed. The calls come from Sunni militants notorious for violence against minority Shiites or members of secessionist groups that routinely blow up police stations and attack government facilities in the south-western Pakistani province of Baluchistan.

But the late-night calls put the journalists in a bind. If they don't print the messages, they could be killed. If they do print them, they could face three years in prison under Pakistan's anti-terrorism laws. It's no surprise which risk they'd rather run. At least 20 journalists have been killed in Baluchistan the past six years, their bullet-ridden bodies sometimes found stuffed into sacks.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pakistan-journalists-choice-Face-death-or-jail/articleshow/16429794.cms

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UN panel rekindles hopes for relatives of missing Baloch

September 17, 2012

QUETTA: For years, human rights groups had hoped that there might be an international outcry over a little-known epidemic of abductions, torture and murder in the Pakistani province of Balochistan where the local Baloch stand alienated and disillusioned with Pakistan’s establishment.

Now, the relatives of the missing are placing their faith in a visiting UN team to highlight allegations that security forces are waging a campaign of mass disappearances aimed at silencing calls for Baloch independence.

The Pakistani establishment has often blamed a ‘foreign hand’ behind the call for separation and independence but on several occasions its civilian government has accepted its failure to improve the lives of ordinary people in Balochistan while heavily relying on the province’s resources.

Full report at:

http://dawn.com/2012/09/17/un-panel-rekindles-hopes-for-relatives-of-missing-baloch/

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Plea moved for abolishing capital punishment from Pakistan

September 17, 2012

LAHORE: A petition was moved on Monday in the Supreme Court’s Lahore Registry pleading it to take up the earlier moved petition for abolishing death penalty from the country, DawnNews reported.

The petition was filed by Barrister Zafarullah representing ‘Watan party’.

Referring to the Constitution, the petitioner contended that the right to life was a natural right embodied in Article 9, whereas unnatural termination of life was incompatible and inconsistent with the concept of “right to life”.

Full report at:

http://dawn.com/2012/09/17/plea-moved-for-abolishing-death-penalty-in-pakistan/

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Call off anti-polio ban, WHO appeals to militants

By Noorwali Shah

September 17, 2012

PESHAWAR: A top official of the World Health Organisation (WHO) has made an impassioned appeal to militant groups to allow anti-polio vaccination in their areas amid the resurgence of polio in the country.

Saudi Arabia’s former health minister and special adviser to the director general of WHO’s polio eradication programme Dr Hussein al Gezairy, who is on a visit to Pakistan, has asked militant groups in Pakistan to call off the ban on the anti-polio drive so that children could be administered drops in those areas.

“I directly appeal to Hafiz Gul Bhadur in North Waziristan, Maulvi Nazir in South Waziristan, and Mangal Bagh and Lashkar-e-Islam in Khyber Agency, to allow polio teams in their areas,” he said.

Full report at:

http://tribune.com.pk/story/437833/call-off-anti-polio-ban-who-appeals-to-militants/

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Pak Interior, religious, IT ministries recommend ban on YouTube

September 17, 2012

The Interior, Religious and Information Technology Ministry have recommended a complete ban on YouTube in the wake of the recent blasphemous film that has caused protests to erupt across the Muslim world, Express News reported on Monday.

The ministries also recommended that the summary by an inter-ministrial committee on the matter should also be forwarded to the prime minister.

Earlier during the day, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), following the Supreme Court’s orders, blocked 753 links leading to the anti-Islam film on YouTube. The director general of PTA said that almost 100 new clips of the anti-Islam film are proliferated on YouTube every day.

The recently film on YouTube has sparked violent anti-US protests across the Muslim world.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/437959/anti-islam-film-interior-religious-it-ministries-recommend-ban-on-youtube/

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PTA blocks 753 anti-Islam film YouTube links

 September 17, 2012

ISLAMABAD: Following the Supreme Court’s orders, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) on Monday blocked 753 links to a recently released anti-Islam film on YouTube that has sparked anti-US protests across the Muslim world, Express News reported.

The chief justice had directed PTA to take down all sacrilegious material that disrespects Islam or Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in any way and had directed the Director-General PTA to submit a report.

The DG PTA said that almost 100 new clips of the anti-Islam film are proliferated on YouTube every day.

Full report at:

http://tribune.com.pk/story/437929/cj-orders-pta-to-block-blasphemous-videos-on-youtube/

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Malik Riaz contempt case: Bench scrutinises AG’s role as prosecutor

September 17, 2012

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday formally initiated contempt of court proceedings against property tycoon Malik Riaz of Bahria Town, DawnNews reported.

A two-judge bench of the apex court headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan began the proceedings against Riaz on charges of levelling harsh allegations against Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry at a press conference.

During the hearing, Attorney General Irfan Qadir submitted a list of witnesses which included the names of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Supreme Court Registrar Dr Faqir Hussain and Arsalan Iftikhar.

Justice Khan inquired of the attorney general as to what connection did the witnesses had to the contempt of court case.

The judge moreover remarked that the attorney general should have reviewed the list of witnesses, adding that, the name of an important witness was not on the list.

Full report at:

http://dawn.com/2012/09/17/sc-initiates-contempt-proceedings-against-malik-riaz/

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SC orders blocking of blasphemous content

September 17, 2012

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulation Authority (Pemra) and the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) to block blasphemous content on a social media website, DawnNews reported.

The apex court issued the order after taking a suo motu notice of blasphemous content on the website.

The court had taken a suo motu notice of the blasphemous film and ordered the registrar office to prepare a notice on it.

Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry said that Pemra and PTA should exercise greater caution regarding the material that is present on the Internet.

Moreover, the chief justice remarked that the PTA chairman would be summoned to court.

Justice Khilji Arif Hussain also remarked that the non-removal of blasphemous content from the website was unfortunate.

The court’s decision came in the wake of widespread protests in Pakistan and other countries with sizeable Muslim populations against an anti-Islam film available on the Internet.

http://dawn.com/2012/09/17/sc-orders-blocking-of-blasphemous-content/

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Protests against anti-Islam film leave one dead, two injured in KP

Zahir Shah

September 17, 2012

PESHAWAR: One person was killed and two others were injured, on Monday, as a result of police gunfire during protests against the anti-Islam film “Innocence of Muslims” in the Upper Dir district of Khyber Pakhtunkhawa (KPK) province.

Rallies against the sacrilegious film were held across the northwestern province, leading to violent protests and gunfire from the police who were trying control the mobs.

Police fired on the mob in the Wari area of Upper Dir district when protestors torched the Wari Press Club building and offices of local magistrate besides other government buildings.

One person was killed and two others were injured in the firing, which turned the protestors furious and they pelted stones at the police and set ablaze other buildings as well.

The lawyers’ community of the KPK observed a ‘black day ‘and boycotted court proceedings on the call of Khyber Paktunkhawa Bar Council and businesses remained suspended for the day in the high court and other courts across KPK.

Full report at:

http://dawn.com/2012/09/17/gunfire-leaves-one-dead-in-anti-islam-film-protests-in-kp/

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Rimsha case: Court directs police to submit charge sheet

September 17, 2012

ISLAMABAD: The court of the additional session’s judge in Islamabad directed the police to submit a charge-sheet of the blasphemy case against Rimsha Masih by Sept 21, DawnNews reported.

 The court said that the witnesses of the case should not be intimidated.

The investigation police officer of the case asked for some time to present the charge sheet in the case and told the court that the police’ s inspector general (IG) had constituted an investigative team headed by a senior superintendent of police (SSP) and that the case’s investigation had been completed.

Counsel of the petitioner pleaded that the bail of the girl should be annulled and requested the court not to allow more time to police to submit the challan.

Full report at:

http://dawn.com/2012/09/17/hearing-on-rimsha-case-resumes/

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Imran Khan warns of bloodshed if upcoming elections are rigged

Sep 17 2012

Islamabad : Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan has warned that there could be bloodshed if the next general elections are rigged.

"The people of Pakistan want to vote out the ruling junta. Anarchy will prevail if rigging is committed in the polls," The News quoted Khan, as saying.

Khan said the interim setup should be put in place in consultation with all political parties.

"We will protest if the government makes any unilateral decision in this regard," he said.

Khan, commenting on his upcoming rally to Waziristan, said: "The rulers don''t bother to inquire about the plight of the tribal people. We will take the international media and human rights activists to Waziristan to inform the international community about atrocities being perpetrated against the tribals."

"We will arrange meetings of human rights activists and journalists with relatives of those killed in the drone attacks to belie the claims being made by the rulers that terrorists are getting killed in the drone strikes. Innocent people are being killed and we will expose the assertions made by the U.S.," he added.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/imran-khan-warns-of-bloodshed-if-upcoming-elections-are-rigged/1003807/

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80 spots along Pak border vulnerable to tunnelling

 September 17, 2012

Taken by surprise over a tunnel used by terrorists to burrow into Jammu and Kashmir, India's security agencies have conducted a detailed survey of the border with Pakistan, particularly in the Jammu region, and identified at least 80 spots vulnerable to tunnelling from the other

side.

They have now mooted security measures to counter attempts by terrorists trying to infiltrate into the border state.

A top Border Security Force (BSF) officer told IANS in New Delhi that the survey was carried out with the help of the Geological Survey of India (GSI), which has the technology for the purpose.

A GSI team had visited the spot in Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir soon after the 400-metre-long and 25-metre-deep tunnel was found by chance by security agencies after the earth caved in along the border close to the BSF's Chillayari outpost following heavy rains in late July.

Full report at:

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/80-spots-along-Pak-border-vulnerable-to-tunnelling/Article1-931375.aspx

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One killed in Pakistan protests over anti-Islam film

Sep 17, 2012

PESHAWAR, Pakistan: A protester was shot dead on Monday as rallies in Pakistan over an anti-Islam film intensified, with thousands taking to the streets, burning US flags and an effigy of President Barack Obama.

About 800 people demonstrated in the northwestern town of Warai, in Upper Dir district, setting fire to a magistrate's house and the local press club before one protester was killed in an exchange of gunfire with police.

Up to 3,000 university students, teachers and employees marched in Peshawar, the main city of the militant-plagued northwest, chanting anti-US slogans and demanding a ban on the "Innocence of Muslims" movie.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/One-killed-in-Pakistan-protests-over-anti-Islam-film/articleshow/16433786.cms

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Young poet self-publishes Writing Words With Fire

 September 16, 2012

KARACHI: Taha Kehar began writing poetry when he was just 15 years old. Now, at the age of 20, Kehar has published an anthology of his poems titled Writing Words With Fire while simultaneously pursuing a law degree at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). To celebrate an occasion that Kehar described as “an attempt to revive poetry” in Pakistan, a small crowd gathered at T2F last week to welcome the young writer’s first published work.

“I wouldn’t let ideas gestate for too long,” he told the audience, adding that he is a “moody writer”. “If there is a creative burst, I write.” His poems focus primarily on imagery, but the collection is divided into two parts; the first talks about nature and the second about unpleasant realities. “I have a keen interest in politics,” Kehar said, when asked about the dark, political verses in his poem “Aristocratic Pride”. He describes the collection as one “that puts a match to a series of social and political themes”.

“When I’m writing poetry, I’m wearing many hats; I am sceptical, critical and I edit my work,” confessed Kehar, who like many other creative minds, is most critical of his own writing.

Full report at:

http://tribune.com.pk/story/437567/young-poet-self-publishes-writing-words-with-fire/

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South Asia

Audacious Raid on NATO Base Shows Taliban’s Reach

By ALISSA J. RUBIN

17 September 2012

KABUL, Afghanistan — An audacious Taliban attack on a heavily fortified base in southern Afghanistan did far more damage than initially reported, destroying or severely damaging eight attack jets in the most destructive single strike on Western matériel in the 11-year war, military officials said Sunday.

While other attacks have caused greater loss of life, the assault late Friday at Camp Bastion in Helmand Province, one of the largest and best-defended posts in Afghanistan, was troubling to NATO because the attackers were able to penetrate the base, killing two Marines and causing more than $200 million in damage. “We’re saying it’s a very sophisticated attack,” said a military official here. “We’ve lost aircraft in battle, but nothing like this.”

The complex attack, which NATO officials said was conducted by three tightly choreographed teams of militants wearing American Army uniforms, was a reminder that the Taliban remain capable of serious assaults despite the “surge” offensive against them. Now the offensive is over, and nearly 10,000 American Marines have left Helmand Province, a critical stronghold for the Taliban, over the past several months.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/17/world/asia/green-on-blue-attacks-in-afghanistan-

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NATO ‘killed Afghan women’ on black weekend

September 17, 2012

KABUL: NATO was accused of killing eight women Sunday, capping a weekend which saw six soldiers shot dead by presumed Afghan colleagues and a Taliban assault cause unprecedented losses on one of the biggest military bases in the country.

The US-led International Security Assistance Force initially said an air strike targeted about 45 insurgents, but later extended its “deepest regrets and sympathies” over “civilians who died or were injured” in Laghman province.

Such incidents have strained ties between the United States and Afghan President Hamid Karzai. In June, Isaf ordered an end to air strikes on homes, except as a last resort.

Sunday’s attack came shortly before dawn, in Alingar district in the province east of Kabul, as women set off to collect fire wood, said a local official.

“In this raid, eight women are killed and another eight women are wounded,”provincial spokesman Sarhadi Zwak told AFP.

Full report at:

http://dawn.com/2012/09/17/NATO-killed-afghan-women-on-black-weekend/

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Protest against anti-Islam film turns violent in Kabul

Sep 17, 2012

KABUL: A demonstration on Monday against an anti-Islam movie made in the US turned violent with clashes between police and protesters in eastern part of the Afghan capital Kabul, Xinhua said.

A police official said the demonstration was peaceful in the beginning, but the demonstrators later set on fire several vehicles and damaged several shops besides attacking police with stones.

Additional police personnel were deployed to stop the demonstrators from trying to break through the barricades on the road leading to US embassy and several Afghan ministries. A thick black smoke rose in the area.

The controversial film allegedly insulted Prophet Mohammed.

Similar demonstrations broke out in several Afghan cities Friday to condemn the film and the protestors urged the Afghan government to sever ties with the US.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/Protest-against-anti-Islam-film-turns-violent-in-Kabul/articleshow/16431426.cms

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Bangladesh officially condemns anti-Islam movie, security for Embassies tightened

HAROON HABIB

September 17, 2012

As Bangladesh officially condemned the controversial movie that sparked angry protests in many countries, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged the U.S. government to immediately stop sales and screening of the film.

Urging the U.S. government for exemplary punishment to the filmmaker, she remarked, “No Muslim can tolerate such defamation of Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (SM).” She said they were devoted to serving Islam and would not accept any activity undermining its spirit.

Full report at:

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article3904578.ece

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Afghan president raps US over Bagram prison transfer

September 16, 2012

The US handed over the high-security prison and around 3,000 suspected Taliban fighters to Afghan control over a six-month period. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE

KABUL: Afghan President Hamid Karzai accused the United States on Sunday of breaching a pact to hand over the main US military prison at Bagram Airbase and its inmates to Afghan control, after meeting Washington’s top envoy to the region.

In a row which could complicate already thorny negotiations over the future US military presence in the country, Karzai told US Special Envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan Marc Grossman any delay to the handover was “a serious violation” of a strategic agreement between the allies.

Full report at:

http://tribune.com.pk/story/437777/afghan-president-raps-us-over-bagram-prison-transfer/

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Karzai Denounces Coalition Over Airstrikes

By MATTHEW ROSENBERG

17 September 2012

KABUL, Afghanistan — Two of the most contentious issues dividing the United States and President Hamid Karzai’s administration re-emerged as the Afghan leader condemned American-led forces for killing eight women in airstrikes on Sunday and denounced his American allies for continuing to hold hundreds of Afghan prisoners.

After the coalition initially said that it needed time to investigate Afghan reports of the deaths, by evening it confirmed that the civilians had died in airstrikes launched early Sunday in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan. It said the strikes were carried out “solely with the intent of countering known insurgents,” and offered its sympathies to the families of those slain. It did not give a number of dead; Afghan officials said eight women who were out collecting firewood had died.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/17/world/asia/karzai-denounces-coalition-over-

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Mideast Asia

Turkey PM Erdogan says Kurdish PKK takes 500 casualties

17 September 2012

Turkey's Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, says 500 Kurdish rebels have been "rendered ineffective" by Turkish forces in the space of a month.

The government often uses the term "rendered ineffective" to mean killed.

Mr Erdogan said 123 militants were killed over the past 10 days near the south-eastern border with Iraq.

The surge in deaths follows a recent escalation in attacks by the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) on Turkish targets.

Dozens of Turkish troops and civilians, including children, have been killed in recent bombings blamed on the group.

Full report at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-19624080

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Iran Nuke Chief Harshly Criticizes Atomic Agency

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

17 September 2012

VIENNA (AP) — Iran's nuclear chief warned Monday that "terrorists and saboteurs" might have infiltrated the International Atomic Energy Agency in an effort to derail his country's atomic program, in an unprecedentedly harsh attack on the integrity of the U.N. organization and its probe of allegations that Tehran might be striving to make nuclear arms.

Fereydoun Abbasi also rebuked the United States in comments to the IAEA's 55-nation general conference, reflecting Iran's determination to continue defying international pressure aimed at curbing its nuclear program and nudge it toward cooperation with the IAEA inspection.

As such, it was bound to give a greater voice to hardline Israel leaders who say that both diplomatic efforts and economic penalties have failed to move Iran, leaving military strikes as the only alternative to stopping it from developing nuclear weapons.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a direct appeal to American voters on Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2012/09/17/world/middleeast/ap-iran-nuclear.html?ref=middleeast

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Iran fatwa 'prologue' to ongoing anti-US protests: Salman Rushdie

Sep 17 2012

London : Controversial Brit-Indian author Salman Rushdie has said that the fatwa against him was the ‘prologue’ to the current anti-American protests sweeping the Middle East.

Rushdie was forced to go into hiding after Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for his death in 1989 following the publication of his book The Satanic Verses.

"I always said that what happened to me was a prologue and there will be many, many more episodes like it," the Telegraph quoted him, as saying at the launch of his memoir, Joseph Anton.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/iran-fatwa-prologue-to-ongoing-antius-protests-salman-rushdie/1003695/

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Yemeni students hold anti-US rally, reject Marines

Sep 17, 2012

SANAA: Hundreds of Yemeni students demonstrated on Monday calling for the expulsion of the US ambassador and condemning the deployment of US Marines to protect the American embassy.

"Leave slave of the devil, leave ambassador of the Americans," chanted the protesters at Sanaa University. "You coward American, the Prophet of God cannot be insulted."

"Express your anger and resentment by boycotting American products," a banner read in the latest protest linked to a movie produced in the United States mocking Islam.

"We reject any US military presence on Yemeni ground regardless of the excuse," a statement read out by an organiser said.

On Thursday, an angry mob of protesters tried to storm the embassy grounds and clashed with Yemeni security forces, leaving four dead. The embassy has since suspended all consular services for two weeks.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Yemeni-students-hold-anti-US-rally-reject-Marines/articleshow/16434188.cms

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U.N. nuclear agency says to hold more talks with Iran

Sep 17, 2012

VIENNA: The U.N. atomic watchdog will hold further talks with Iran aimed at clarifying concerns about its nuclear programme, despite the lack of progress so far, its chief Yukiya Amano said on Monday.

The International Atomic Energy Agency is "firmly committed" to intensifying dialogue with the Islamic state, Amano told the IAEA's annual member state gathering.

He gave no date for a possible new round of talks that began in January between IAEA officials and Iran aimed at allaying concern Tehran may be developing nuclear weapons capability, a charge Iran denies. The last meeting was in August.

Iran's atomic energy chief, Fereydoun Abbasi-Davani, was due to address the IAEA meeting later on Monday.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/U-N-nuclear-agency-says-to-hold-more-talks-with-Iran/articleshow/16433655.cms

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Iran will pursue makers of anti-Islam film: Vice-President

Sep 17, 2012

DUBAI: Iran's government will "track down" those responsible for making an amateurish film clip mocking the Prophet Mohammad, a senior official said, Iranian media reported on Monday.

The video made in California and posted on YouTube portrayed the Prophet Mohammad as a womanizer and a fool. It has ignited a week of violent protests across the Muslim world.

"The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran condemns...this inappropriate and offensive action," first Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi said, according to the Mehr news agency.

"Certainly it will search for, track, and pursue this guilty person who ... has insulted 1.5 billion Muslims in the world."

The Islamic Republic's founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, condemned to death the Indian-born British novelist Salman Rushdie in 1989 for his novel "The Satanic Verses," saying its depiction of the Prophet Mohammad was blasphemous.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Iran-will-pursue-makers-of-anti-Islam-film-Vice-President/articleshow/16435314.cms

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Israeli Leader Makes Case Against Iran on U.S. TV

By STEVEN LEE MYERS

17 September 2012

WASHINGTON — Having been rebuffed privately by President Obama last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel took to the airwaves in the United States on Sunday to warn that Iran was only six or seven months from having “90 percent” of what it needed to make an atomic bomb.

Mr. Netanyahu received sharp criticism at home and abroad for similar remarks last week, which were widely seen as an effort to put pressure on Mr. Obama to act more forcefully against Iran. And yet, less than two months before Election Day, he turned to the weekly platform for American politics — the Sunday morning political talk shows — to make his case more urgently and specifically than ever to a wider American audience.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/17/world/middleeast/netanyahu-says-iran-is-20-yards-

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Gaza Court Convicts 4 for Italian Activist's Murder

17 September 2012

GAZA (Reuters) - A Gaza military court convicted four Palestinians on Monday for kidnapping and murdering an Italian man in 2011, a case that shocked Palestinian sympathizers around the world.

Vittorio Arrigoni, a pro-Palestinian activist, was abducted by a Jihadist Salafi faction, which shares the radical ideology of al Qaeda and is a rival of the Hamas Islamist movement that controls the Gaza Strip.

The group had hoped to force Hamas to release a Salafist leader, Hisham al-Saidni. Hamas police said the kidnappers killed Arrigoni before a deadline they had set for Saidni's release had expired.

Arriogni's killing horrified international pro-Palestinian activists and tested Hamas's authority in the enclave, which it seized from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's allies in a brief civil war in 2007.

Saidni was recently freed without charge after pledging not to disturb public order, Hamas said.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2012/09/17/world/middleeast/17reuters-palestinians-

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Southeast Asia

Malaysia's 'gay' parade: free Biryani to men in V-necks

Sep 17 2012

Kuala Lumpur : Two ethnic Indians in Malaysia are offering free 'Biryani' meals to the first 15 men who walk into their restaurant in V-necks and sling bags, after a parenting seminar created quite a stir by citing such a dressing among indications of homosexuality.

The seminar held last week listed out a set of guidelines for parents and teachers to help them spot signs of homosexuality in children.

The guidelines included tendencies of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders, which it said could be spotted among boys wearing tight-fitting V-neck T-shirts and carrying large sling bags, and girls who enjoyed the company of their own gender.

The seminar left some people bewildered and others amused.

"When the guidelines came out, we thought it was ridiculous," said Herukh and Kubhaer Jeswant who run the 'Fierce Curry House'.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/malaysias-gay-parade-free-biryani-to-men-in-vnecks/1003872/

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SBY Urges UN and OIC to Issue Regulations Against Religious Defamation

Jakarta Globe | September 17, 2012

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono urged the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation on Monday to issue edicts against religious defamation in the wake of global protests ignited by a film insulting the Prophet Muhammad.

“I call on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the UN to mull over international protocol to prevent such things like this from happening again,” Yudhoyono said, referring to the anti-Islam film “The Innocence of Muslims.”

The president said that religious defamation should be condemned because it hurts the hearts of religious people, disturbs the peace and can trigger bloody conflicts, in a speech before a national meeting of the Nahdlatul Ulama in Cirebon, West Java,

The controversial film has been blocked in Indonesia at the behest of the Indonesian government. The film, which was produced by a self-proclaimed Coptic Christian American, set off a wave of anti-US protests across the Middle East and Indonesia and reportedly inspired an attack on the US Embassy in Libya that resulted in the death of US Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans.

Full report at:

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/sby-urges-un-and-oic-to-issue-regulations-against-religious-defamation/544891

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Malaysia: Google blocks anti-Islam film

September 17, 2012

KUALA LUMPUR: Google has begun barring access in Malaysia to an anti-Islamic film that has sparked fury across the Muslim world after the country's Internet regulator lodged an official complaint.

The low-budget movie, entitled "Innocence of Muslims", has angered followers of Islam for its mocking, and for portraying Muslims as immoral and gratuitously violent.

A spokesman for video-sharing site YouTube, owned by internet giant Google, told on Monday that it began restricting access to clips of the privately-produced film Sunday, in line with its community guidelines.

"When videos breach those rules, we remove them. Where we have launched YouTube locally and we are notified that a video is illegal in that country, we will restrict access to it after a thorough review," he said.

Full report at:

http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-68033-Malaysia:-Google-blocks-anti-Islam-film

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Four FPI Members Detained for Violent Protest at US Embassy

Lenny Tristia Tambun | September 17, 2012

Four members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) were arrested by Jakarta police over the violent protest in front of the United States embassy on Monday.

“It is true that four people have been detained,” Jakarta Police Deputy Chief Brig. Gen. Suhardi Alius said on Monday. “They were caught with slingshots, marbles as the projectiles as well as Molotov cocktails — this violates the law. If [they] do it again, we’ll arrest them again.”

Hundreds of people from several organizations joined the demonstration at the US embassy in protest of an anti-Islam film. After protestors became violent, police sprayed tear gas and used water canons.

Full report at:

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/four-fpi-members-detained-for-violent-protest-at-us-embassy/544931

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Indonesian Protesters Trample US Flag, Throw Eggs in Medan

September 17, 2012

About 50 Indonesian students trampled the American flag and threw eggs at a US diplomatic mission in Indonesia on Monday to protest an anti-Islam film, an AFP reporter at the scene said.

Police outside the consulate in the city of Medan, capital of the North Sumatra province, pushed back the protesters from the Indonesian Muslim Student Action Union (Kammi) when they tried to enter the mission.

“We condemn the film that insults the Prophet Muhammed, and which is hurtful to Muslims around the world. Crush America,” a protester told the crowd, who shouted “Allahu akbar!” (God is greater).

Some demonstrators carried banners reading “death to the filmmaker” and “America is a terrorist that threatens world peace.”

The low-budget movie, entitled “Innocence of Muslims,” has sparked fury across the Islamic world for mocking the Prophet Mohammed, and for portraying Muslims as immoral and gratuitously violent.

Full report at:

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/indonesian-protesters-trample-us-flag-throw-eggs-in-medan/544894

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North America

Virginia mosque vandalized as violence rages in Muslim world over film about Muhammad

September 16

HARRISONBURG, Va. — A mosque in Virginia has been vandalized amid angry protests in the Muslim world over a film produced in the United States denigrating the Prophet Muhammad.

On Friday, worshippers at the Islamic Center of the Shenandoah Valley in Harrisonburg arrived at their weekly prayer service to find graffiti on their building.

The Daily News-Record reports (http://bit.ly/PuRGAL ) that police believe the mosque vandalism is connected to similar graffiti at a local Christian school around the same time period.

The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations is calling for an FBI investigation.

On Saturday, The Washington Post reported that about 30 cars parked on streets surrounding the Dar al-Hijrah mosque in Falls Church had windows smashed. Police later said the vandalism appeared to be random and scattered over a large area.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-mosque-vandalized-as-violence-rages-in-

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CAIR Releases Arabic Video Appeal on Anti-Islam Film Protests

9/15/12

(WASHINGTON, D.C., 9/15/12) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today released a video appeal in Arabic to those protesting an anti-Islam film, portions of which have been circulating on the Internet.

In the video, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad tells viewers in the Middle East that ordinary Americans and the U.S. government should not be blamed for the religious hatred expressed in the film.

[NOTE: In 2011, Awad was included on the "Power 500" list compiled by Arabian Business Magazine. In 2009, he was recognized among the world's "500 Most Influential Muslims" by the Jordan-based Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Center.]

He explains that the low-quality production was designed to provoke religious sensitivities and to distract from the positive efforts being undertaken to improve newly-free societies in the wake of the Arab Spring.

Awad's appeal notes that the controversy over the film distracts from more important issues such as the struggle for freedom in Syria, the need for justice for the Palestinian people and ongoing killings of Muslims in Burma.

He quoted a verse in the Quran, Islam's revealed text, which states that no soul will carry the burdens of another and asked viewers to emulate Islam's Prophet Muhammad, who did not retaliate in kind to personal abuse. He also urged protesters to put their energies into rebuilding their societies.

Awad's video appeal was filmed against a backdrop of a verse from the Quran, which states: "A goodly word (is) like a goodly tree, whose root is firmly fixed and its branches (reach) to the heavens." (14:24)

It ends with the recitation of a verse from the Quran: "You have indeed in the Messenger of God [Muhammad] a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in God and the Final Day, and who engages much in the Praise of God." (33:21)

Earlier this week, CAIR condemned the killings of American diplomats in Libya and said that extremists must not be allowed to control the political and religious discourse worldwide.

CAIR made that statement at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., at which representatives of CAIR and other Muslim organizations condemned both the killings of the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other diplomats in that nation and the attack on the American embassy in Egypt.

CAIR had previously called on Muslims in the Middle East to ignore the distribution of the "trashy" anti-Islam film that resulted in the attacks in Libya, Egypt and other nations throughout the Muslim world.

CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

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U.S., Allies in Gulf Naval Exercise as Israel, Iran Face Off

17 September 2012

DUBAI (Reuters) - The United States and its allies have launched a major naval exercise in the Gulf that they say shows a global will to keep oil shipping lanes open as Israel and Iran trade threats of war.

Publicly announced in July, the operation, known as IMCMEX-12, focuses on clearing mines that Tehran, or guerrilla groups, might deploy to disrupt tanker traffic, notably in the Strait of Hormuz, between Iran and the Arabian peninsula.

The start of the event, with a symposium for officers from more than 30 navies, came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told U.S. television viewers on Sunday that Tehran was close to being able to build a nuclear bomb; his words fuelled talk of an Israeli strike, and of Netanyahu pressuring President Barack Obama to back Israel as Obama battles for re-election.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2012/09/17/world/middleeast/17reuters-iran-nuclear-

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US, Libya differ on accounts of US consulate attck in Benghazi

 September 17, 2012

Top US and Libyan officials have offered starkly different accounts about the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi that left the ambassador and three other Americans dead. The US ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, said Sunday it began with a spontaneous protest over the

anti-Islamic video that had already set off similar protests in Egypt, leading to the storming of the US embassy there.

"People gathered outside the embassy (consulate) and then it grew very violent and those with extremist ties joined the fray and came with heavy weapons, which unfortunately are quite common in post-revolutionary Libya and that then spun out of control," Rice told Fox News Sunday.

"But we don't see at this point signs this was a coordinated plan, premeditated attack. Obviously, we will wait for the results of the (FBI) investigation and we don't want to jump to conclusions before then."

Full report at:

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/Americas/US-Libya-differ-on-accounts-of-Benghazi-attack/Article1-931193.aspx

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Africa

Nigerian bishops voice concern over terrorist activities

 By Lekan Otufodunrin

14 September, 2012

(ENInews)--Worried by the activities of Islamic fundamentalist groups, the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria has

called for more vigilance by the federal government to check the rising wave of terrorism.

"Being more vigilant especially at the borders would help the country checkmate any foreign sponsors of terrorist activities in Nigeria," the Catholic Bishops said in a communique issued on 14 September at the end

of their conference in Umahia in eastern Nigeria.

The Nigerian government has been battling the radical Islamic group popularly known as Boko Haram, which has been responsible for various terrorist attacks in the northern parts of the country in which hundreds

of persons, especially Christians, have been killed and many churches destroyed.

The bishops' call comes on the heels of spirited efforts by the federal government to prevent the spread of anti-U.S. protests by Muslims over a film said to have insulted the Prophet Muhammad.

Noting that many Nigerians were living in fear due to the terrorist attacks, the communique called on security agencies and the government to "wake up to their duties to protect and defend the life and dignity

of everybody in the country." It was signed by the President and Secretary of the conference, bishops Ignatius Kiagama and Alfred Martins.

"The patient response by Christians in the face of sustained attacks on Christians and churches  is not borne out of cowardice but  due to universal Christ-like love, religious maturity and genuine patriotism,"

the bishops stated in the communique titled "Promoting authentic development in Nigeria."

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Tunisia death toll rises to four in U.S. embassy attack

September 15, 2012

TUNIS: The death toll from Friday's attack on the U.S. embassy in Tunis, provoked by a film that mocks the Prophet Mohammad, rose to four, with 46 people injured, a hospital official said.

Police fought hundreds of protesters who smashed windows, hurled petrol bombs and stones at police from inside, and started fires in the embassy. A Reuters reporter saw police open fire on protesters forcing their way into the embassy building.

"The death toll is four dead - three were killed from gun shot wounds, the other was hit by two police cars," Nourredine Hard, a senior official at the Mongi Slim hospital in Tunis said on Saturday. He said 46 were injured.

Full report at:

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2012/Sep-15/188046-tunisia-death-toll-rises-to-four-in-us-embassy-attack.ashx#ixzz26XwnKNUb

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U.S. consulate attack 'planned,' 'meticulously executed': Libya assembly chief

September 15, 2012

BENGHAZI, Libya: The deadly attack on the U.S. consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi was planned and "meticulously executed," the country's assembly chief told AFP on Saturday.

"I don't want to talk about what happened in other countries but as for Libya, the operation was meticulously executed," Mohammad al-Megaryef said of the wave of protests across the world over a U.S.-produced film mocking Islam.

"There was planning. It was not a peaceful protest which degenerated into an armed attack or aggression. That's how it was planned," he said.

US ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed Tuesday when suspected Islamic militants fired on the consulate in the eastern Libyan city with rocket-propelled grenades and set it ablaze.

Full report at:

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2012/Sep-15/188044-us-consulate-attack-

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Libya attack was spontaneous, says US Ambassador

September 17, 2012

A deadly assault on a U.S. consulate in Libya was a spontaneous reaction to an anti-Muslim video, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said even as Libya’s President insisted the attackers spent months preparing and carefully choosing their date, the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Unnerved by the rapidly escalating raid on Tuesday that claimed the life of the U.S. Ambassador to Libya and three other Americans, the Obama administration last week launched an investigation into whether terrorist groups had exploited outrage over an anti-Muslim video to trigger an attack long in the works.

But Ambassador Susan Rice said on Sunday that evidence gathered so far shows no indication of a premeditated or coordinated strike. She said the attack in Benghazi, powered by mortars and rocket-propelled grenades, appeared to be a copycat of demonstrations that had erupted hours earlier outside the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, spurred by film excerpts posted on YouTube.

“It seems to have been hijacked, let us say, by some individual clusters of extremists who came with heavier weapons,” Ms Rice said, adding that such weaponry is easy to come by in post-revolutionary Libya.

Full report at:

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article3906618.ece

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Somalia President Is Inaugurated Four Days After Assassination Attempt

17 September 2012

GALKAYO, Somalia (AP) — Somalia’s new president, Hassan Sheik Mohamud, was inaugurated Sunday amid tight security in the capital, Mogadishu, four days after he survived an assassination attempt.

Mr. Mohamud, a teacher and activist, was elected by lawmakers last week in a contest against Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, who led the transitional government.

The attempt on Mr. Mohamud’s life just after his election highlighted the security challenges he faces as he takes the helm of a volatile country that has not had a stable government for more than two decades. Mr. Mohamud acknowledged the difficulties, saying in his inauguration remarks that security was the nation’s paramount issue. He promised to be an advocate for democracy and to create “an effective justice system” that serves all Somalis.

He also said that his government would “deliver a new democratic beginning.” His predecessor, Mr. Ahmed, said in his remarks that he was happy that a degree of security had returned to Mogadishu. He wished Mr. Mohamud success.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/17/world/africa/hassan-sheik-mohamud-inaugurated-as-

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Producer of Gay Play in Uganda Granted Bail

17 September 2012

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — A Ugandan court releases on bail a British producer who was jailed for staging a play about a gay businessman.

Lawyer Francis Onyango said Monday that David Cecil, who spent the weekend in a prison near the Ugandan capital, was granted bail by a magistrate who kept his passport.

This means that Cecil cannot leave the East African country until his case is decided. Officials charge that he disobeyed the orders of the Uganda Media Council when he staged "The River and the Mountain" in Kampala theaters last month. Cecil will return to court on Oct. 18, according to Onyango.

He faces two years in jail if convicted.

The play's main character is a young Ugandan businessman who loses friends and then is murdered after revealing he's gay.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2012/09/17/world/africa/ap-af-uganda-gays.html?ref=africa&gwh=DDC4B1C451690233454CD00A5C7A53F0

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Julius Malema barred from addressing South Africa miners

17 September 2012

Firebrand politician Julius Malema has been barred by police from addressing striking miners at South Africa's Marikana mine.

Some 2,000 miners had gathered at a stadium near the mine, some 60 miles (100km) north-west of Johannesburg.

After arguing with police, Mr Malema was escorted away by a special police protection unit.

Strikes have already halted production at several gold and platinum mines in the resource-rich country.

Last week, the government warned it would act "swiftly" against the incitement and threats of violence crippling the mines.

Some have accused Mr Malema, who was expelled from the African National Congress (ANC) earlier this year, of political opportunism amid seething anger over last month's deaths at Marikana mine.

Full report at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-19626608

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