Iranian authorities seize thousands of Bibles
Egypt’s Coptic Christians protest, demand divorce rights
French businessman sets up fund to pay burqa fines
Imam at Toronto mosque charged with sexual assault
Ramadan: Muslims Charged To Be Faithful To Allah
Presbyterian Church criticises Order over 'jihad' comment
World Uyghur Congress condemns Chinese policies that led to violence in East Turkestan
Militants kill anti-Taliban tribal elder, son in Bajaur
Syria holds hundreds in stadium; UN eyes tribunal
Syria's Assad says military operations 'stopped'
No Israeli apology to Turkey over raid
US drone kills four in Miranshah
Death toll in US drone strikes in Pak rises to 475 in 2011: report
Gunfire in Syrian coastal city; 35 dead in 4 days
Samjhauta case: NIA to re-examine blast samples
China cracks down on terror in Xinjiang
Fighting for animal rights in the Islamic world
Endgame for Gaddafi?
Egypt Air hostesses fight for hijab right
A child's killing freeze-frames Syria's tragedy
Six lost lives as violence continues in Karachi
PESHAWAR: Domestic violence: 13 killed over family disputes
Chopper reports baseless: Pakistan
Iranian snipers reportedly being deployed in Syria
30 killed as heavy rains cause flood in Pakistan
Pakistan: Boy forgets to feed dog, beaten to death
Motorcycle bomb explodes in southern Afghan market
Liberal intellectuals are frightened of confronting Islam's honour-shame culture
Saudi Scholar: Yes to Sex Ed if it Protects Children from Abuse
Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood condemns military trials
Education key to fighting extremism and terrorism: Pak PM
Norway Attacks Reinforce Need for United Stand Against Intolerance
Fasting helps Muslims appreciate our blessings
Indonesia cuts prison sentence of terrorist who was added to US blacklist earlier this week
Controversial Georgia Mosque Wins Approval
Take political initiative in J&K, Tarigami urges Manmohan
Hackers attack 200 websites
Former Balochistan chief minister Mir Humayun Marri accuses forces of plotting to kill him
80 Pak prisoners get pardon by UAE ruler
Israel feeling US heat over Turkey crisis
Australia must fight calls for sharia law
Mladic could face two trials for alleged Bosnian war crimes
Iran is the biggest threat to Iraq's security, says Pentagon official
Despite ties to the Aga Khan, Perry has avoided broadly embracing Islam
Teheran ready to resume nuclear talks: Iranian FM
China denies Pakistan gave it helicopter access
Pak no longer feels threatened by India: Diplomats
Pak military's intentions towards India overrated: Khar
US slaps sanctions on 3 leaders of LeT-linked group
Timeline: Fighting al Qaeda
Akbar Bugti case: Interior ministry says Musharraf cannot be extradited
For the first time in conflict, Gaddafi forces fire Scud: US
Religious leaders Mohamed Al-Darsani react to Pastor Jones's move
UN tribunal releases Hariri indictment
‘Punishment of the guilty policemen will be the real compensation’
Rivals suspected in attack on Filipino governor
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/iranian-authorities-seize-thousands-bibles/d/5270
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Iranian authorities seize thousands of Bibles
August 17, 2011
Iranian authorities have seized 6,500 copies of the Bible in northwest of Iran.
According to Iranian news agency, Mohabat News, Dr Majid Abhari, adviser to the social issues committee of the parliament in Iran, said "these missionaries with reliance on huge money and propaganda are trying to deviate our youth".
Mohabat News says that, in an interview with a government news agency (Mehr), Abhari added: "With regard to the activities of these Christian missionaries to deceive people specially youngsters, they have begun a huge campaign by spending huge sums and false propaganda for deviating the public."
Abhari did not present any more details about the seizure of 6,500 gospels but he did say: "These books were made with the best paper in the world in pocket size."
He added: "The important point in this issue that should be considered by intelligence, judicial and religious agencies is that all religions are strengthening their power to confront Islam, otherwise what does this huge number of Bibles mean?"
Mohabat News stated that in November of 2010, police officers and revolutionary guards seized 300 bibles from a bus after its inspection and "in a shameful action, burned them all in the village of Darishk".
According to Mohabat News, "Insulting the Christian Bible is a continuation of an organised campaign by agencies that view anti-Christian propaganda on the top of their agenda."
The news agency explains: "There have always been major concerns among Islamic republic officials about conversions to Christianity among people. This is after three decades of expensive Islamic propaganda and a generation that has been grown up in Islamic teaching and is facing this change in thought."
The agency report concludes: "Islamic republic considers itself the responsible guide for people's thoughts. So what is their fear of the importation and distribution of non-Islamic religious books?"
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/iranian.authorities.seize.thousands.of.bibles/28455.h
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Egypt’s Coptic Christians protest, demand divorce rights
Luiz Sanchez
Aug 17, 2011
CAIRO: Roughly 100 Coptic Christians demonstrated outside Cairo’s Abbasyia Cathedral demanding that Pope Shenouda III consider their demands on second marriage rights in Orthodxy. The demonstrators are threatening to convert to another Orthodox group if the divorce crisis is not resolved.
Demonstrators clashed with the Cathedral security when they tried to enter the cathedral after they believed the Egyptian Clerical Council resumed work as normal.
The demonstrators are unhappy with the current law, which does not allow one to remarry within the church.
“We tried to contact the Church clergymen to reach a solution, but no one listened to us. I live with my wife whom I separated with for 6 years,” one of the demonstrators Nader al-Soufi told reporters.
“When I didn’t live with her, the church justified my situation as adultery since there is no divorce for Catholics. In the end, Coptic Christians are changing their sect to leave their spouses.”
Al-Soufi also said that there may well be a collective conversion from Orthodoxy as there are roughly 3,000 Coptic Christians who will be sending judicial notifications to the church on the subject of conversion.
An Egyptian court hearing would, ironically, be judged in accordance with Islamic Sharia Law, which is related to the law for personal statutes for non-Muslims. This means that the demonstrators will have the right to get married and divorce without having to change their religion. But not within the Coptic Church, which forbids divorce.
Late last month the Pope said he would not cave in to pressure to accept the 1938 regulations that would permit 9 reasons for divorce. Ikram Lamie, a spokesman for the Evangelical Church in Egypt warned the church that they would be forcing many Coptic Christians to convert to Islam in order to achieve what they want
http://bikyamasr.com/39568/egypts-coptic-christians-protest-demand-divorce-rights/
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French businessman sets up fund to pay burqa fines
Aug 18, 2011
BRUSSELS: A French businessman paid fines on Wednesday for two women in Belgium who wore full-face veils in public and said he would take Belgium and France to court over laws banning Muslim niqabs and burqas.
Property dealer Rachid Nekkaz has set up $1.4 million fund to cover fines and paid the first $72.38500 penalties imposed in Belgium on two women in Brussels.
"France and Belgium have decided to forbid the possibility and the liberty of women to wear what they want," he said.
The two fined women, both wearing niqabs, were also present. "It's not acceptable that European governments vote in laws that don't respect individual rights."
Belgium's law banning any covering of the face in public came into effect late last month. France was the first country to introduce a ban in Europe in April. Nekkaz said he planned a legal challenge in both countries. "I will pursue the states in their national courts and then in the European Court of Human Rights so that they are sanctioned for violating individual liberties."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/French-businessman-sets-up-fund-to-pay-burqa-fines/articleshow/9641871.cms
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Imam at Toronto mosque charged with sexual assault
Aug 18 2011
Toronto : Police have charged an imam at a Toronto mosque with 13 counts of sexual assault and say there may be more victims in other countries.
Det Karen Armstrong said today Mohammad Masroor, 48, abused his position of authority when he taught the Quran to students at the Baitul Mukarram Islamic Society and in private homes in Toronto since arriving in Canada in 2008.
Armstrong says Masroor also worked and lived in France, Germany, Bangladesh, Hungary, Singapore, Sri Lanka and most recently in Florida and Michigan in the United States.
Armstrong says they are appealing to the public to assist in finding other victims.
She says the charges involve five victims both male and female and that the investigation is ongoing.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/imam-at-toronto-mosque-charged-with-sexual-assault/833652/
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Ramadan: Muslims Charged To Be Faithful To Allah
18 Aug, 2011
Muslims in the country have been advised to submit themselves to the will of Allah, as they engaged themselves in the holy month of Ramadan with fasting and prayer.
The Chief Imam of Federal Polytechnic Ede, Osun State, Sheik (Dr) Taofeek Hammed cautioned Muslims against acts capable of undermining their faith.
Imam Hammed gave the charge in Osogbo at the turbanning ceremony of Alhaja Nusirat Asunke Lawal as Otun Iya Sunna of Nawar-ud-deen Society of Nigeria, Osogbo Branch.
Delivering a lecture on the topic “Turbanning, Its Significant in Islam”, Sheikh Hammed stated that it was very unfortunate that Muslims had failed in their primary role of being callers to goodness.
He lamented that Muslims had been carried away with frivolities on earth, such as excessive leisure and love for materials things.
The Imam enjoined the Muslims to embrace the virtues of the holy Prophet Mohammed (SAW), as attributed in the fear of God, humility, honesty, selflessness, service to humanity and submission to the will of Allah.
According to the Islamic Scholar, who drew inspiration from the Hadith, good character makes one successful in this life and beyond, for anyone that believes in Allah”.
He said, “Islamic organizations are not reaching to the people again in the propagation of Islam, which constitutes the greatest challenge facing Muslims across the country and that Muslims must strive to overcome”.
“The most painful aspect of the situation in the country now was that most Islamic faithful had forgotten the purpose they had been sent to this world and also forgotten that they would account for all their deeds to Almighty Allah on the day of Judgment and this is in fact, the greatest challenges facing Islam in Nigeria”.
Sheikh Hammed, who is also a lecturer at the Polytechnic maintained that Muslims Umah should ensure that they abstain themselves from anything evil and distance from a place that would not make them listen to the world of Allah.
He then advised Muslims to belong to one Islamic society or the other with the fear of Allah, in order to join hands with other Muslims to fight the current rot in the religion and spread the gospel of Islam.
Responding after her installation, Alhaja Lawal maintained that she would use her new position for the development and progress of Islam, promising that she would not let down the society that deemed it fit to bestow on her the honour.
http://www.osundefender.org/?p=19138
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Presbyterian Church criticises Order over 'jihad' comment
18 Aug, 2011
The Presbyterian Church has criticised as "unacceptable" an Orange Order statement in which one of its own ministers was quoted.
In April, the Parades Commission told Orangemen to play only Abide With Me while passing a nationalist area.
Ballymacarrett District Lodge, of which the Reverend Mervyn Gibson is chaplain, accused the commission of waging a "jihad" or holy war against them.
The church has now responded to criticism of those comments.
The lodge's statement at the time said the commission's ruling was "an action worthy of the Taliban religious police" and described the commission members as "Mullahs".
The words were not attributed to Mr Gibson but he was quoted as saying the commission was "fanning the flames of division".
In a highly unusual move the Parades Commission then wrote to the Presbyterian Church claiming the language used was "inappropriate" as well as "intemperate and inflammatory".
Full report at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-14534598
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World Uyghur Congress condemns Chinese policies that led to violence in East Turkestan
18 Aug, 2011
Statement by WUC President Rebiya Kadeer about Kashgar attacks
The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) unequivocally condemns Chinese government policies that have caused another outbreak of violence in East Turkestan. Without a substantial change to policies that discriminate against Uyghurs economically, culturally and politically the prospect of stability in East Turkestan is remote.
According to Chinese and overseas media reports, incidents of bloodshed on the streets of Kashgar occurred between July 30 and 31, 2011. The tragic events over the weekend in Kashgar took place less than two weeks after a day of violence in the southern city of Hotan. Due to the tight control of information and the imposition of a street curfew, the WUC is unable to confirm the accuracy of information from Chinese state media of events in Kashgar. The latest reports conflict in the number of dead and injured from the alleged series of attacks in Kashgar. Chinese state media has accused Uyghur individuals of carrying out the attacks. There is no doubt that without providing any substantive evidence, the Chinese government will accuse these individuals of links to international terror organizations. Without independent verification of such accusations, the WUC must remain skeptical.
Full report at:
http://www.uyghurcongress.org/en/?p=9640
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Militants kill anti-Taliban tribal elder, son in Bajaur
18 Aug, 2011
KHAR: Militants crossed over from Afghanistan and shot dead an anti-Taliban tribal elder and his son in the Bajaur tribal region on Wednesday, a Pakistani official said.
Tariq Khan said Afsar Khan and his son Sher Alam were standing guard at a border post manned by members of a citizens’ militia in the tribal region when around 15 insurgents attacked them.
Police official Fazal Rabbi said Afsar Khan had been among volunteers who had burned the homes of a militant faction some two months ago.
The Pakistani army has fought militants in the tribal belt for years, but militants still mount attacks there.
In recent months, several of the attacks have originated from across the porous border in Afghanistan.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/08/17/militants-kill-anti-taliban-tribal-elder-son-in-bajaur.html
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Syria holds hundreds in stadium; UN eyes tribunal
Aug 18, 2011
AMMAN: Syrian troops held hundreds of people in a stadium in Latakia, residents said, while the UN human rights chief was expected to propose that the Hague war crimes tribunal review Syria's crackdown on protesters.
Residents said Syrian forces raided houses in a Sunni district of the besieged port city, arresting hundreds of people and taking them to a stadium after a four-day tank assault to crush protests against President Bashar al-Assad.
Assad's forces attacked al-Raml, a seafront area named after a Palestinian refugee camp built in the 1950s, at the weekend as part of a fierce campaign to crush a five-month-old uprising.
Some Palestinians have joined in demonstrations against Assad, even though Syria hosts exiled leaders of the Islamist Palestinian Hamas movement and other Palestinian groups.
Latakia is of particular significance to Assad, from Syria's minority Alawite community. The 45-year-old president, a self-declared champion of the Palestinian cause, comes from a village to the southeast, where his father is buried. The Assad family, along with friends, control the city's port and its finances.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Syria-holds-hundreds-in-stadium-UN-
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Syria's Assad says military operations 'stopped'
Aug 18, 2011
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has told UN chief Ban Ki-moon that military operations against protesters have "stopped", a UN spokesman said.
He was responding to a demand from Mr Ban during a phonecall that "all military operations and mass arrests must cease immediately," the UN's Farhan Haq said in a statement.
Mr Assad has come under mounting international pressure to end his violent crackdown on demonstrators.
Hundreds have been killed since March.
'Excessive force'
In the latest assault, Syrian forces fired on parts of the port city of Latakia, killing dozens and driving some 5,000 Palestinian refugees from their camps.
"The secretary general expressed alarm at the latest reports of continued widespread violations of human rights and excessive use of force by Syrian security forces against civilians across Syria," the UN statement said.
Mr Ban "emphasized that all military operations and mass arrests must cease immediately. President Assad said that the military and police operations had stopped."
Mr Assad took over power in 2000 following the death of his father, Hafez.
The protests began following the toppling of Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak early this year.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-14569087
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No Israeli apology to Turkey over raid
18 August 2011
JERUSALEM — Israel will not apologize to Turkey over a raid on a Gaza-bound protest aid ship last year in which nine Turkish pro-Palestinian activists were killed, Israel’s foreign minister said Wednesday.
On May 31 last year, Israeli commandos sent to stop a flotilla of protest ships from reaching Gaza clashed with activists armed with knives, clubs and iron rods aboard a Turkish vessel as the Israelis tried to take over the ship. Israel says soldiers acted in self defense after the activists assaulted them on deck, while the activists say they were defending themselves from an Israeli attack.
The flotilla was trying to break an Israeli blockade of Gaza. Activists charged that Israel was depriving Gaza’s Palestinians of vital supplies. Israel said the blockade was necessary to keep weapons away from Gaza’s Hamas rulers, calling the flotilla a political provocation.
Ties between Israel and Turkey, once close allies, deteriorated dramatically over the bloody raid. Each side blamed the other. Since then, Turkey has also moved closer to Israel’s arch-enemy Iran, further souring relations.
Turkey initially said it would reconcile with Israel only if it apologizes and compensates the families of those killed.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle08.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2011/August/
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US drone kills four in Miranshah
Aug 17, 2011
DERA ISMAIL KHAN: A suspected US drone fired missiles at a house in northwest Pakistan before dawn on Tuesday, killing four militants in the country’s main sanctuary for Taliban and al Qaeda fighters near the Afghan border, Pakistani intelligence officials said. The house was located in a bazaar in Miranshah, the main town in the North Waziristan tribal area, said the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. Initial reports indicate two foreigners were among the dead, but their precise nationalities were not known, said the officials. The attack also injured two suspected militants, they said. The US has repeatedly demanded that Pakistan launch an offensive in North Waziristan since militants use the area to stage cross-border attacks against foreign troops in Afghanistan. Pakistan has refused, saying its troops are stretched too thin by operations in other parts of the semiautonomous tribal region along the Afghan border. But analysts believe Pakistan is reluctant to target Afghan Taliban militants with whom it has historical ties and could be useful allies in Afghanistan after foreign troops withdraw. As a result, the Obama administration has dramatically increased the number of drone attacks in the tribal region, especially in North Waziristan.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\08\17\story_17-8-2011_pg1_5
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Death toll in US drone strikes in Pak rises to 475 in 2011: report
Aug 17 2011
Islamabad : The overall death toll in the Central Intelligence Agency-operated drone attacks in Pakistan’s tribal areas has risen to around 475 since January this year.
Tuesday’s drone strike in North Waziristan pushed up the total number of predator attacks to 55 during the same time span.
According to the available data, a total of four US drone attacks have taken place during the first two weeks of August, in which as many as thirty-two people have been killed, The News reports.
According to Conflict Monitoring Centre (CMC), an Islamabad-based independent research centre, a total of fifty-one drone strikes took place from January to July this year, killing 443 persons.
During the year 2010, the CIA had carried out 132 attacks inside Pakistan, and only nine of them were in South Waziristan.
The CMC research said that every second day (1.77) of the last quarter of 2010 saw a drone attack in Pakistan, and that each attack killed 6 people on an average.
Killings in drone attacks constitute over one fourth (26.48 %) of the total casualties in armed conflicts in Pakistan. As such, every fourth person killed in violence in Pakistan was targeted in a drone attack.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/death-toll-in-us-drone-strikes-in-pak-rises-to-475-in-2011-report/833265/
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Gunfire in Syrian coastal city; 35 dead in 4 days
Aug 17, 2011
BEIRUT — Heavy machine-gun fire erupted across the besieged Syrian city of Latakia on Tuesday as the death toll rose to 35 from a military assault now in its fourth day, residents and activists said.
President Bashar Assad has dramatically escalated the crackdown on a 5-month-old uprising since the start of the holy month of Ramadan. Despite broad condemnation, the regime is trying to retake control in rebellious areas by unleashing tanks, ground troops and snipers.
Assad has launched military operations in the opposition stronghold of Hama, the eastern city of Deir el-Zour, the central city of Homs and now the port city of Latakia.
Most of the shooting early Tuesday was in Latakia’s impoverished al-Ramel, al-Shaab and Ein Tamra areas. Al-Ramel is home to a crowded Palestinian refugee camp where many low-income Syrians also live.
The U.N. agency that aids Palestinian refugees has said more than 5,000 refugees have fled the camp after Assad’s forces shelled the city in an operation that began Saturday.
Syria has denied firing from gunboats, despite widespread witness accounts. The regime insists its crackdown is aimed at rooting out terrorists fomenting unrest in the country.
State-run news agency SANA said Tuesday that troops were pursuing “armed terrorists” from al-Ramel, arresting a number of gunmen and dismantling explosives and mines they had planted.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2011/August/middleeast_August383.xml§ion=middleeast&col=
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Samjhauta case: NIA to re-examine blast samples
Aug 17 2011
Panchkula : A special court here today allowed the National Investigation Agency to re-examine the Samjhauta Express blast samples after the NIA pleaded it wants to compare them with the explosions at other places such as in Malegaon, Hyderabad and Ajmer.
The court given its order while hearing the charges against Swami Assemanand and four others in the 2007 Samjhauta Express blast case.
As the proceedings in the case are held in-camera, defence counsel Manveer Rathi later told reporters outside the court that they had opposed the application from the NIA.
After a four-year-long probe, the NIA had on June 20 charged Aseemanand, Sunil Joshi (now dead), Lokesh Sharma, Sandeep Dange and Ramchandra Kalasangra alias Ramji with triggering explosions in the cross-border Samjhauta Express that left 68 people dead, mostly Pakistanis.
Rathi said they opposed the NIA's plea before the court when the agency contended that it wants to re-examine the material of the blasts, which are kept sealed, to make some comparisons with blasts that took place at other places.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/samjhauta-case-nia-to-reexamine-blast-samples/833281/
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China cracks down on terror in Xinjiang
ANANTH KRISHNAN
Aug 17, 2011
China has begun enforcing a two-month “strike hard” in its far-western Xinjiang region, putting in place 24-hour patrols, street searches and identity checks on citizens to crack down on violent terrorism and “extreme religious thought”.
The regional government said in a statement on Tuesday that the campaign had begun last Thursday — less than two weeks after violent attacks in the cities of Hotan and Kashgar left at least 20 people dead.
The “strike hard” campaign, which would last till October 15, aimed “to curb the momentum of frequent terrorist activities”, and ensure the security of a China-Eurasia trade fair, which was to start on September 1, said authorities.
“This special campaign aims to eliminate violent terrorist groups, arrest terrorist criminals, root out the behind-the-scenes organizers and curb the momentum of frequent terrorist activities,” state media reported.
Full report at:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article2362758.ece
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Fighting for animal rights in the Islamic world
Joseph Mayton
17 August 2011
CAIRO: It was a crisp night last fall. Downtown Cairo was its usual self; immensely crowded, with people attempting to maneuver the narrow streets engulfed by seas of two-legged creatures. The crack of the whip could be heard nearly one block away. Looking back, a donkey was struggling to move past a bump in the road. The lashes kept coming, one after another, until finally an Egyptian woman attempted to intervene on the donkey’s behalf.
“What are you doing to this animal? It is too much weight. Stop hitting it,” the woman screamed. The load, she was right, was probably some 5 feet high, causing the aging animal to lumber back and forth in failed efforts to arrive on the other side of the little hump in its way. The owner, however, was defiant, screaming back at the woman to mind her own business.
“The animal belongs to me and I will do what I want with it,” he screamed.
Eventually, a group of passersby intervened and attempted to force the man to lighten what the donkey was carrying. It was a harrowing attempt by the woman to intervene on behalf of another creature, a working animal, who has long been forgotten in the Islamic world as a living being capable of compassion, empathy and suffering. They have become tools for humanity’s use.
Full report at:
http://bikyamasr.com/39689/fighting-for-animal-rights-in-the-islamic-world/
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Endgame for Gaddafi?
Aug 17, 2011
The battle to control Libya has entered its final phase when Muammar Gaddafi must make a choice: to seek a negotiated exit or to defend his capital to the last bullet. Rebels with support from NATO warplanes have, over the past 48 hours, taken key towns around Gaddafi’s stronghold in
Tripoli in a dramatic series of advances which cut the city off from supplies of fuel and food.
Rebel offensives have, in the past, turned into headlong retreats. But if they hold their ground, the end of Gaddafi’s 41-year rule will be closer than at any time since the conflict began six months ago.
A U.S. official said that for the first time in the conflict, government forces on Sunday fired a Scud missile — an act that was pointless from a military point of view but signalled the desperation of pro-Gaddafi forces.
“The Libyan regime may or may not collapse forthwith but it now looks like it will happen sooner or later,” said Daniel Korski, a fellow at the European Council for Foreign Relations.
He added: “The manner of its collapse, however, and the method of the rebel takeover will be just as important as the conduct of the war.”
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Endgame-for-Gaddafi/Article1-734086.aspx
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Egypt Air hostesses fight for hijab right
SyndiGate.info
August 17th, 2011
Two stories on Arab airlines and women: Egypt Air brought to you by Egyptian Gazette and Air Saudi from Arab News.
Some have justified such a non-constitutional rule as originating in instructions of the former First Lady Suzanne Mubarak, who did not wear the hijab herself.
Accordingly, all female broadcasters in State TV were banned from wearing the hijab and anyone daring to violate the rule would be prevented from appearing on-screen.
Similarly, EgyptAir hostesses, who decided to wear the hijab were forbidden to board any flight and were transferred to administrative work in the company’s different booking offices.
However, after the January 25 revolution, the female State TV and EgyptAir employees started calling for freedom to wear the hijab at work.
“I’ve been working as an air hostess for some five years. Five months ago, I decided to wear the head scarf but I was forced to take it off on getting onto the plane,” said Heba Hassan Abbas to al-Gomhuria Arabic newspaper.
Ms Abbas wonders what is the cause of the company’s insistence on banning the head scarf on its flights while other airlines such as the Emirate, Saudi, Malaysian and even British airlines allow Muslim hostesses to wear hijab.
Full report at:
http://www.albawaba.com/editorchoice/egypt-air-hostesses-fight-hijab-right-over-1000-women-applicants-air-saudia-388769
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A child's killing freeze-frames Syria's tragedy
By Joe Sterling and Arwa Damon
August 17, 2011
(CNN) -- One video showed the tiny face of the slain girl wrapped in a shroud.
Someone pulled back a bandage to show her bloodied right eye. Her mouth was frozen, slightly ajar. Her vacant face and lifeless head conjured the image of an alabaster bust.
Another more gruesome video showed the girl before she was cleaned for burial. She lay sprawled on a pavement, bloodied and disheveled, like a crime victim caught in a tabloid snapshot.
The images surfaced Sunday and Monday in Syria, where more than 2,000 people have died in five months of bloody conflict between security forces and anti-government demonstrators.
The victim was O'laa Jablawi, a 2 1/2-year-old girl from the besieged port city of Latakia, shot in the eye and killed when she and her parents attempted to flee the besieged city on Sunday in a car that came under fire, activists said.
Syrian child caught in crossfire Violence in Syria claims life of child
They were among those who fled as security forces cracked down on al-Ramel, a Latakia neighborhood that has been the center of anti-government demonstrations.
Full report at:
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/08/16/syria.video.girl/index.html?iref=NS1
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Six lost lives as violence continues in Karachi
Aug 17, 2011
KARACHI: Six more people lost their lives as incidents of target killings continued overnight in Karachi, DawnNews reported.
Police on Wednesday found bodies of six men, stuffed in gunny bags, from different parts of the metropolis. All the victims were shot at from point blank range, added police officials.
Three bodies were found in the city’s PECHS (Pakistan Employees Cooperative Housing Society) area while one each from the Soldier Bazar, Saddar and Gulbahar areas.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/08/17/six-l...n-karachi.html
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PESHAWAR: Domestic violence: 13 killed over family disputes
August 17, 2011
PESHAWAR: At least 13 people, among them women and children, were killed in two separate incidents of firing in Peshawar on Tuesday.
An Afghan refugee, Abdul Ghafar, killed eight people, including his own wife and in-laws, over a family dispute in the Ghari area in the remits of Khazana police station, a police official told The Express Tribune.
He said that Ghaffar had married a girl in his family and left for London some time after the marriage. There had been little contact between the couple since. However, when he returned to Pakistan he tried to take his wife forcibly to London but his in-laws refused.
Ghaffar failed to convince his in-laws despite repeated attempts. “On Tuesday Ghaffar again went to his in-laws before dawn to convince them. A brawl ensued and Ghaffar opened fire and killed at least eight people,” the official said.
The dead were identified as Ghaffar’s father-in-law Siddiqullah Khan, his wife Gulona, his daughters Maryam Bibi and Habiba Bibi and his sons Zabiullah Khan, Irfanullah Khan, Rafiullah Khan.
Full report at:
http://tribune.com.pk/story/233262/domestic-violence-13-killed-over-family-disputes/
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Chopper reports baseless: Pakistan
ANITA JOSHUA
Aug 17, 2011
The Pakistan Army on Monday night rejected reports in a section of the international media about Islamabad granting Chinese engineers access to the wreckage of the stealth helicopter used by the U.S. in the operation against Al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad on May 2.
Reacting to the reports quoting an unnamed U.S. official, military spokesman Athar Abbas said the assertion made in the media was not true. He also saw the report in line with the “malicious campaign” launched against Pakistan's security organisations in a section of the foreign press.
“Kite flying”
The Financial Times and The New York Times had over the weekend published reports quoting an American intelligence official as saying the Pakistani Army had allowed Chinese engineers to survey the wreckage and also take samples of the stealth' skin that allowed the helicopter to evade Pakistan's radars.
Expressing surprise at the extent of “kite flying” some sections of the foreign press were indulging in, Maj. Gen. Abbas said they should first verify and cross check instead of relying on “unnamed officials”. This is not the first time that the Army has criticised the foreign media so openly.
Full report at:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article2362901.ece
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Iranian snipers reportedly being deployed in Syria
Bikya Masr Staff
Aug 17, 2011
News reports on Tuesday indicated that Iranian snipers were being deployed in Syria against protesters calling for the removal of President Bashar al-Assad. According to the London’s Telegraph, secret police have said Iran has sent snipers into Syria to help quell the unrest.
The officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he had beaten prisoners and fired on protesters in Damascus.
He added that he knew of Iranian troops on the ground in Syria during the past few months.
“We knew they were from Iran because we were not allowed to speak to them and they were kept well away from us,” he told London’s Telegraph newspaper.
His account confirmed other reports that Syria has turned to its closest ally for help in putting down the protests directed at the Assad family’s 41 years in power.
According to Christopher Gunnes, spokesman for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), thousands have fled a Palestinian refugee camp in the coastal city of Latakia, some under orders from authorities and some due to gunfire.
“Between 5,000 and 10,000 have fled, we don’t know where these people are so it’s very worrying,” he said. “We have a handful of confirmed deaths and nearly 20 injured.”
Jordan has also called for a halt to the violence in Syria, adding to the ever growing diplomatic pressure on Damascus by their neighboring countries.
Since protests began on March 15, over 2,000 people have been killed as the Syrian government continues to use tanks and military action against peaceful protesters in the country.
http://bikyamasr.com/39604/iranian-snipers-reportedly-being-deployed-in-syria/
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30 killed as heavy rains cause flood in Pakistan
Aug 17, 2011
ISLAMABAD: At least 30 people were killed and one million people affected as floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains have devastated parts of southern Pakistan.
Chief minister Qaim Ali Shah of the southern Sindh province said the rains and breaches in canals had affected about one million people in six districts.
Thirty people had died in the affected areas, he told the media in Karachi last night.
The deluge inundated villages and destroyed crops in areas of Sindh that were among the worst-hit by last year's unprecedented floods, which affected 21 million people and caused losses of billions of rupees across Pakistan.
Badin district has been hit hardest by monsoon rains and some parts of it are under four to five feet of water. Eighty per cent of crops in the district have been destroyed and hundreds of villages have been submerged due to a breach in Asia's biggest saline nullah.
The region, which received 475 mm of rains, was visited by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday.
However, residents living in the open have complained that they are yet to receive any relief.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/30-killed-as-heavy-rains-cause-flood-in-Pakistan/articleshow/9638200.cms
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Pakistan: Boy forgets to feed dog, beaten to death
Aug 17, 2011
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani woman clubbed to death her 12-year-old servant for not serving a meal to her dog . Sadia Asif, a resident of Val'ncia Town, beat Taqi Usman to death after he failed to serve food to her pet.
She had asked Usman to feed the dog before going to market a few days ago, an investigator said. She was arrested after Usman's relatives filed a complaint.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Boy-forgets-to-feed-dog-beaten-to-death/articleshow/9631307.cms
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Motorcycle bomb explodes in southern Afghan market
Aug 17, 2011
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan: An Afghan official says a bomb has exploded in a vegetable market in southern Afghanistan, killing eight people.
Uruzgan provincial council director Amanullah Otaq says the explosives had been stowed in a parked motorcycle. He says the bomb was detonated in a busy market area of Uruzgan’s Dihrawud district Tuesday just as the sun was setting and people were breaking their fast for the holy month of Ramadan.
Otaq says eight people were killed in the blast and dozens wounded.
Uruzgan provincial spokesman Hamid Milad Mudasir confirmed the blast. He says there were deaths but that he does not have figures because family members have taken bodies home and have not reported all of those who died.
http://arabnews.com/world/article489551.ece
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Liberal intellectuals are frightened of confronting Islam's honour-shame culture
By Richard Landes
Aug 17, 2011
Politeness is not saying certain things lest there be violence; civility is being able to say those certain things and there won’t be violence.
A recent series of polls indicate that European public opinion is substantially concerned by the increasingly aggressive Islam that their substantial immigrant populations have taken to expressing. To quote Soeren Kern, Senior Fellow for Transatlantic Relations at the Madrid-based Strategic Studies Group:
The findings – which come as Europeans are waking up to the consequences of decades of mass immigration from Muslim countries – point to a growing disconnect between European voters and their political masters regarding multicultural policies that encourage Muslim immigrants to remain segregated rather than become integrated into their host nations.
The survey results mirror the findings of dozens of other recent polls. Taken together, they provide ample empirical evidence that scepticism about Muslim immigration is not limited to a “right-wing” political fringe, as proponents of multiculturalism often assert. Mainstream voters across the entire political spectrum are now expressing concerns about the role of Islam in Europe.
Full report at:
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/richardlandes/100101297/liberal-intellectuals-are-frightened-of-confronting-islams-honour-shame-culture/
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Saudi Scholar: Yes to Sex Ed if it Protects Children from Abuse
Aug 17, 2011
Saleh Al-Wanyan, imam of Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Mosque, raised the issue in a Friday sermon calling for citizens to be more open about the controversial and taboo subject. He also called on people to put an end to a so-called “culture of shame” by talking about these issues.
Scholars and literate people have long demanded the introduction of sex education into the curriculum. But conservative sections of society have always been vocal in their opposition to the initiative. Their opposition is given credence by their claims that the idea of sex education is alien to Saudi culture. They also claim that this issue violates the privacy of individuals and families.
Al-Wanyan’s call is supported by the Arab League, which too had urged a need for sex education in schools. Hady Al-Yami, lawyer and member of the Arab League’s human rights committee, said ignorance of sex could lead to abuse, as victims do not understand their rights to protect themselves or even complain. “Awareness of human rights should reach all society members, and for this to happen and also for the nationals and residents to understand their rights, there should be proper and clear channels to spread the concept, which should include sex education,” Al-Yami said.
Full report at:
http://www.albawaba.com/scholar-calls-sex-education-protect-children-abuse-388446
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Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood condemns military trials
Manar Ammar
17 August 2011
CAIRO: Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood has condemned trying civilians in front of military courts and called the process “unconstitutional and against human rights.”
The group said hundreds of its members have been tried before military courts at the hands of the old regime.
“We are extremely distressed to know that over 10,000 people received military rules against them in the past six month and we demand that they get re-tried in front a civil court,” said Mahmoud Ezzat, Deputy head of the group, in a press statement on Tuesday.
Ezzat added that courts are not just to try “criminals” who killed hundreds of people, but to do so in front of civil courts will deliver “all fairness.”
Military sentences can not be appealed and they tend to give quick rulings.
The group said that because the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) is playing two roles in the transitional period, its role as a military force and a political ruler, the Brotherhood demanded that the council play its role in creating more dialogue and discussion and to tolerate criticism and respect public freedoms.
Full report at:
http://bikyamasr.com/39653/egypts-muslim-brotherhood-condemns-military-trials/
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Education key to fighting extremism and terrorism: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani
Aug 17, 2011
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday said education was the key to fight against ignorance, extremism and terrorism, therefore the government had taken a number of steps to promote educational facilities, both for boys and girls.
Addressing Islamabad Model Schools for Boys and Girls here at PM Staff Colony, after inaugurating the new buildings of these two institutions, he said: “We do have financial constraints but we are fully determined to promote educational facilities and it is at the top of the government’s priorities.”
Prime Minister Gilani said once the Muslims were at the top in the world, mainly due to their progress in education.
He said lack of education was the main cause of the downward trend of the Muslims.
He said education played a key role in the progress and prosperity of society and in keeping it united and making it stronger.
“After the 18th Amendment, education has become a provincial subject, but the federal government is still making sincere efforts and contributing a lot to the improvement of educational facilities in the country,” he said.
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/2011/08/17/education-key-to-fighting-extremism-and-terrorism-
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Norway Attacks Reinforce Need for United Stand Against Intolerance
17 August 2011
Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu
Istanbul, Turkey - The horrific and tragic incident that happened in Norway reminds us again of the importance of combating religious intolerance and promoting cultural understanding.
Anti-Islam and anti-Muslim attitudes and activities, known as Islamophobia, are increasingly finding place in the agenda of ultra-right wing political parties and civil societies in the West in their anti-immigrant and anti-multiculturalism policies, as was evident in the manifesto of the Norway killer. Their views are being promoted under the banner of freedom of expression while claiming that Muslims do not respect that right.
A few days before the Norway attack, on 15 July in Istanbul, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the United States agreed to a united stand on “[c]ombating intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatization of, and discrimination, incitement to violence, and violence against persons based on religion or belief” through the implementation of UN Human Rights Council Resolution 16/18.
Full report at:
http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/122029/norway-attacks-reinforce-need-for-united-stand-against-intolerance.html
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Fasting helps Muslims appreciate our blessings
August 17, 2011
By Syed Haq
Ramadan is one of the five basic principles of Islam that are considered pillars of Islam. The lack of preoccupation with bodily appetites helps us to concentrate on spirituality and devotion to God.
Fasting also helps Muslims to appreciate our blessings and encourages us to share those blessings with needy people.
Syed Haq is a member of Islamic Society of CNY, local coordinator of 877-WHY-ISLAM and WhyIslam.org, an InterFaith Works Chaplain at the Onondaga County Justice Center and a member of the InterFaith Works Spiritual Care Program Advisory Board.
http://blog.syracuse.com/cny/2011/08/daily_inspiration_fasting_helps_muslims_appreciate_our_blessings.html
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Indonesia cuts prison sentence of terrorist who was added to US blacklist earlier this week
17 August 2011
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia says it has shaved two months off the five-year prison sentence of a convicted terrorist who was added this week to a U.S. blacklist.
Each Independence Day, Indonesia reduces sentences of inmates who have completed at least a third of their time. This year 53,400 inmates are eligible, including 26-year-old Muhammad Jibriel Abdul Rahman, who calls himself the “Prince of Jihad” on his web site.
Prison official I Wayan Sukerta says Jibriel will get two months off his five-year sentence begun in August 2009. He was convicted of terrorism after authorities said he met with conspirators in 2009 Jakarta hotel bombings that killed seven people.
Jibriel was among five people added Tuesday to a U.S. blacklist of terrorists who face financial sanctions.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/indonesia-cuts-prison-sentence-of-
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Controversial Georgia Mosque Wins Approval
August 17, 2011
A controversial, 20,000-square-foot Muslim worship center won approval Tuesday by city council members in Georgia.
The Lilburn City Council approved a Muslim congregation's request to construct the center after two years of contentious debate.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the council approved the plan by a 3-1 vote.
The four-member council was deadlocked on a December vote of the zoning request. It prolonged a yearlong conflict among the Shiite Dar-E-Abbas congregation, city leaders and residents who oppose the group's expansion.
The congregation owns and worships on 1.4 acres. It originally sought to rezone more property, but later said it would build only a mosque and parking lot.
Wasi Zaidi helped found Dar-E-Abbas in 1998 and says "our neighbors might be mad now, but we love them."
Full report at:
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/08/17/controversial-georgia-mosque-wins-approval/#ixzz1VIDBkTCR
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Take political initiative in J&K, Tarigami urges Manmohan
SHUJAAT BUKHARI
Aug 17, 2011
“Disappointing that the Centre's CBMs are yet to be implemented”
Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretary M.Y. Tarigami on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take a political initiative to follow up on the work done by the Interlocutors in addressing the political issues in Jammu and Kashmir.
He, however, was disappointed at the “non-implementation” of the 8-point Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) announced by Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram last year.
Mr. Tarigami told journalists here that while the work of the Centre-appointed Interlocutors had been appreciable during the past one year, “it is now essential that a political initiative comes from the Prime Minister himself.”
“The efforts of the Interlocutors for resolving political issues can be fruitful only when a dialogue process with forces of dissent in the State is started with the PM,” he said.
He expressed disappointment at what he called non-implementation of the CBMs announced by Mr. Chidambaram on September 25 last. “They were meant to provide relief and instil a sense of security and confidence in the people of J&K. But it is disappointing to see that most of these people-friendly measures are yet to be implemented.”
Full report at:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2362648.ece
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Hackers attack 200 websites
Aug 17, 2011
More than 200 websites across India were hacked by a Kashmir-based cyber hackers group calling itself “Z Company hacking Crew” (ZCHC) and
posted pro-Independence slogans and rebel songs seeking freedom for Kashmir on them. Some of the posts from the hackers also declared support for
the Palestinian “freedom” cause.
Many of the affected websites were those of state governments and some top IT companies and colleges. The hacking came on a day when the country
was celebrating its 65th Independence Day. “This message is not for Indian government but common Indian people who don’t know what their government
hides. For those of your politicians who boast of Kashmir being an integral part of India read your own law books (sic),” said a post on the hacked websites.
Full report at:
http://www.asianage.com/india/hackers-attack-200-websites-003
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Former Balochistan chief minister Mir Humayun Marri accuses forces of plotting to kill him
By Mohammad Zafar
Aug 17, 2011
QUETTA: Former Balochistan chief minister Mir Humayun Marri has said that the security forces, backed by the police, had planted arms and ammunition at his farmhouse as a part of bigger plot to kill him.
“Security personnel raided my residence twice on August 13 and 15 to find a pretext to kill me in a fake encounter if I was present at my Mian Ghundi residence,” Humayun Marri, the son-in-law of Nawab Akbar Bugti and nephew of Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri, told reporters during a press conference at his residence on Tuesday.
He said that the raids were a clear message that the security forces and the establishment are powerful enough to kill or arrest anyone in Balochistan in broad daylight without fear for being held accountable.
“I have never been involved in any illegal activities in Balochistan nor had carried weapons like Kalashnikov and bombs in the past. He said he was not involved in armed struggle since 1960s. He remained a civilian political activist, he told newsmen. The arbitrary raid at my residence had damaged my image and I would approach Balochistan High Court to seek justice,” he said.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\08\17\story_17-8-2011_pg7_1
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80 Pak prisoners get pardon by UAE ruler
Aug 17, 2011
ISLAMABAD: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has granted pardon to 80 Pakistani prisoners confined in different jails in the UAE, a statement by Pakistan embassy in Abu Dhabi said on Tuesday. The cases of several prisoners were submitted to Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi and president of the UAE for grant of pardon to the Pakistani prisoners undergoing different period of sentence in Al Wathba and Al Ain prisons. Pakistan’s ambassador to the UAE, Jamil Ahmed Khan, extended his profound gratitude to the ruler of Abu Dhabi for the remission granted to the Pakistani prisoners. He expressed the hope that remission to Pakistani prisoners in other prisons of UAE would also be granted by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, before the end of Ramazan. The ambassador said Pakistan embassy would continue making efforts to pursue the just causes and assist the UAE authorities in augmenting the welfare of Pakistani prisoners. He urged the interior ministry for stepping up its efforts for the early finalisation of ‘Agreement on Transfer of Sentenced Persons’ between Pakistan and the UAE. Once the agreement is signed, it would offer opportunities to all Pakistani prisoners in the UAE to undergo remaining part of their sentences in their country, close to their hometowns and families, he added.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\08\17\story_17-8-2011_pg7_8
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Israel feeling US heat over Turkey crisis
17 August 2011
JERUSALEM - Israel is coming under US pressure to apologise to Turkey over its 2010 commando raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that killed nine Turkish activists, an Israeli daily reported on Wednesday.
Yediot Aharonot said Israeli diplomats in Washington handed the government a message from US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton saying the Israel-Turkey crisis was interfering with US attempts to deal with the bloodshed in Syria.
A similar message was given to Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak when he visited Washington in late July, when Clinton asked him to do everything in his power to resolve the crisis — “including apologise,” the paper said.
In May 2010, Israeli commandos stormed a Turkish ferry leading a six-ship flotilla attempting to break Israel’s naval embargo on the Gaza Strip.
The botched operation left nine Turkish nationals dead and sparked a huge diplomatic crisis with Ankara, which immediately recalled its ambassador.
Since then, Turkey has demanded an Israeli apology for the bloodshed, as well as compensation for the victims’ families.
Israel has steadfastly refused, although privately officials acknowledge that restoring the once-strong relationship with Ankara would be desirable.
The United States is looking to deepen its ties with Turkey, which shares a border with Syria, in a bid to better handle Syria’s spiralling violence, and hopes an Israeli apology would facilitate that, the Yediot said.
A UN report into the flotilla affair, whose publication has been postponed at least twice this year in order to give the two sides time to reconcile their differences, is due to be released on August 20.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle08.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2011/August/middleeast_August404.xml§ion=middleeast
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Australia must fight calls for sharia law
MARYAM NAMAZIE
Aug 17, 2011
ATTENTION has again been focused on sharia law in Australia since the flogging of a convert in Sydney for drinking alcohol.
Sharia law is fundamentally the demand of Islamic states to limit citizens' rights.
My organisation, One Law for All, has been campaigning against sharia and religious laws in Britain and its resulting ever-shrinking secular spaces and brutal and discriminatory laws, particularly against women, for nearly three years now. The same must be done in Australia and everywhere.
While the far-Right blames, and scapegoats, Muslim immigration for the rise in sharia law in order to further its racist and inhuman agenda, it is the people living under Islamic laws, or the many, who have fled sharia and sought refuge in Australia and elsewhere who are the principal victims of Islamism, and at the forefront of the struggle against it.
Nowhere is opposition to sharia and Islamism greater than in countries ruled by Islamic laws.
Islamic groups and Islamists will often feign representation of Muslims, while in fact Muslims, or those labelled as such, are not a homogeneous group like any other. There are rights activists, freethinkers, socialists, secularists, humanists and atheists among them. Full report at:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/legal-affairs/australia-must-fight-calls-for-sharia-law/story-e6frg97x-1226113380272
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Mladic could face two trials for alleged Bosnian war crimes
August 17, 2011
CNN) -- A notorious Bosnian Serb general accused of trying to eliminate Bosnian Muslims and Croats from their shared country could face two separate trials in the United Nations' International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
Prosecutors want to try Ratko Mladic first for his alleged crimes in Srebrenica, Bosnia, in 1995, according to a statement from the tribunal Tuesday.
Then, prosecutors want to try him for allegedly spreading terror throughout the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo from 1992 to 1995, and for taking U.N. personnel hostage, the statement says. In both cases, Mladic faces charges of genocide, crimes against humanity, and violations of the laws and customs of war, the statement says.
Prosecutors say dividing the case against Mladic "will maximize the prospect of justice for the victims, enable more effective management of the two separate trials and best allow the proceedings to be adapted in case of unforeseen contingencies."
Mladic removed from court Mladic captured after 16 years 'Mladic thought he was Serb protector'
Full report at:
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/08/17/netherlands.mladic.trials/
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Iran is the biggest threat to Iraq's security, says Pentagon official
By Barbara Starr
August 17, 2011
Washington (CNN) -- The single largest threat to Iraq's security today comes from Iranian-backed militia groups and the thousands of fighters, cash and weapons under their control, according to Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Buchanan, the spokesman for U.S. forces in Iraq.
Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon Tuesday, Buchanan said these groups now outpace al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), which once controlled much of the insurgency that terrorized the country.
The United States suspects these groups were behind a number of deaths of U.S. troops in June, using weapons brought in from Iran. Some Iranian-made weapons have been found with manufacture dates as recent as last year, Buchanan said. Overall he said there is "a significant increase in support" from Iran's secretive Quds force, the elite unit of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard.
Buchanan said he believes Iraqi government officials understand Iran's influence could pose a long-term threat and they have told Iran "to knock it off," but he emphasized that was his opinion only.
As for AQI, Buchanan said it still controls anywhere between 800 to 1,000 fighters, but the long-time use of foreign fighters coming into Iraq across the Syrian border has slowed to a trickle. Buchanan said AQI is now so desperate for funds it's engaging in robberies to get money, however the group is also beginning to establish "legitimate businesses" to finance its operations. He said, it will "take a long time to defeat them."
Buchanan also confirmed the United States is informally talking to Iraq about a continued U.S. troop presence in the country after the end of this year. He didn't rule out that troops could find themselves in combat in a new arrangement, but emphasized the expectation is Iraq will ask for help with training its troops.
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/08/16/us.general.iraq.iran/index.html
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Despite ties to the Aga Khan, Perry has avoided broadly embracing Islam
By Mary Tuma
Aug 17, 2011
A recent Salon article exploring the “surprisingly warm” relationship between Texas Gov. Rick Perry and the Muslim community leans on the Republican presidential candidate’s ties to the Aga Khan, religious leader of the Ismailis — a sect of Shia Islam — as evidence he is well-connected to at least one group of Muslims.
Its headline wonders if Perry will be considered “the pro-Shariah candidate,” during his bid to win the GOP nomination, a label sure to make some conservative voters cringe.
Perry’s cozy relationship with the Aga Khan, an extremely affluent jet-setting billionaire, is mutually and monetarily beneficial. Khan’s far-reaching network spends $350 million a year on projects in South Asia, Africa and the Middle East. The governor has capitalized on the leader’s scope and influence, agreeing to partnerships, including a deal with The University of Texas and the Aga Khan University in Pakistan to bring Muslim history and cultural studies to high school educators.
The pair have shared about a decade of friendship, hosting and attending various invitation-only events. For instance, in April 2008 the Austin American-Statesman reported on Perry’s plans to host a private dinner “to honor the Aga Khan, a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad celebrating his 50th year as the spiritual leader of a Muslim sect.”
Full report at:
http://washingtonindependent.com/115077/despite-ties-to-the-aga-khan-perry-has-avoided-broadly-embracing-islam
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Teheran ready to resume nuclear talks: Iranian FM
17 August 2011
MOSCOW - Iran’s foreign minister says the country is ready to resume negotiations on its nuclear program and that a recent Russian proposal will aid the process.
Ali Akbar Salehi made the statement Wednesday at a news conference in Moscow with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, but neither side gave specifics about the Russian proposal.
The U.S., Russia, Britain, France, China and Germany have been pushing Iran to meet U.N. Security Council demands to stop enriching uranium amid fears the country aims to develop nuclear weapons. The last round of the so-called “sextet” talks was in January.
The Russian proposal is for a “step-by-step” approach under which the international community would make limited concessions to Iran for each step it makes in disclosing its nuclear intentions.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle08.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2011/August/middleeast_August407.xml§ion=middleeast
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China denies Pakistan gave it helicopter access
17 August 2011
BEIJING - China has rejected media reports that Pakistan gave it access to a radar-evading helicopter that crashed during the U.S. mission to kill Osama bin Laden, calling them “preposterous.”
The international business newspaper Financial Times reported Sunday that Pakistan allowed Chinese military engineers to photograph and take samples of the stealth chopper before giving it back to the U.S.
In its first public response, China’s Defense Ministry said in a one-line statement late Tuesday, “This report is baseless and preposterous.”
The U.S. suspects that Pakistan shared the technology with China in retaliation for its May 2 raid that killed bin Laden on Pakistani soil, humiliating Islamabad.
A Pakistani official has denied the charge, saying Pakistan was aware the U.S. had bin Laden’s compound and the helicopter wreckage under round-the-clock surveillance after the raid, so it would know whether foreign technical experts had examined it.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/international/2011/August/international_August765.xml§ion=international&col=
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Pak no longer feels threatened by India: Diplomats
Aug 17 2011
Washington : Apparently for the first time, Pakistani officials do not feel any threat to their national security from India despite having moved considerable number of military personnel and assets from its eastern border to the western side to fight al-Qaeda and Taliban militants.
This is the sense diplomats based in Washington got when defence attaches of various countries were given a briefing by the Pakistani embassy here on the country's efforts in the war against terrorism.
Pakistani Ambassador to the US, Husain Haqqani, and the country's defence attache here gave the briefing during which the top Pakistani diplomats also sought international support for Islamabad's efforts in the war against terrorism, including material and financial assistance.
The Indian defence attache was not invited for the meeting.
During the meeting, Pakistani diplomats are believed to have informed the defence attaches of a number of countries that seven to nine divisions have been deployed in the tribal areas of the country along the Afghan border; of which three to five divisions of troops had been moved from the Indian border.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pak-no-longer-feels-threatened-by-india-diplomats/833218/
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Pak military's intentions towards India overrated: Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar
Aug 17 2011
Islamabad : Claiming that army does not run Pakistan's foreign policy, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar has said the military's intentions towards India have been "overrated" and there is a need to break away from this perception.
"We sometimes overrate the role of the military and overrate their intentions especially when it comes to India... Let's not be burdened by our history. Let's move forward. I think Pakistan has learnt its lessons," said 34-year-old Khar, the youngest and first woman Foreign Minister of the country.
Khar made the remarks during an interview with Newsweek magazine's Pakistan edition when she was asked about the role of the Pakistan Army and the ISI's historical ties with militant groups, especially those fighting in Jammu and Kashmir.
She contended that Pakistan's foreign policy was not directed by the army, which was one of the institutions "taken on board" while making decisions on key issues.
"The army does not run our foreign policy," she said. "They (the army) are important stakeholders and not an outside force, so we should stop viewing them as such. After all the institutions are taken on board, a view emerges, and that is the government's view, which is Pakistan's view," she said.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pak-militarys-intentions-towards-india-overrated-khar/833239/
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US slaps sanctions on 3 leaders of LeT-linked group
Aug 17 2011
Washington : The US has slapped sanctions on three Indonesian leaders of Jemaah Islamiya (JI), the Southeast Asia-based terrorist network responsible for deadly bombings across the region, linking their outfit to al-Qaeda and Pakistan-based LeT.
The three men on whom sanctions were imposed by the US Treasury yesterday are Umar Patek, Abdul Rahim Ba'asyir and Muhammad Jibril Abdul Rahman.
"These three men have demonstrated their commitment to violence," Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen said.
The actions against them are intended to disrupt their ability to access the international financial system to support their "deadly agendas," he said.
Announcing the sanctions against the three men, the US Treasury linked Jemaah Islamiya to other terror groups like al-Qaeda, LeT and Abu Sayyaf Group in southern Philippines.
Patek, a key member of JI, has planned and funded multiple JI terror attacks in the Philippines and Indonesia.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/us-slaps-sanctions-on-3-leaders-of-letlinked-group/833168/
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Timeline: Fighting al Qaeda
August 17, 2011
On May 1, Obama announces that US forces killed bin Laden and recovered his body during a commando operation at Abbottabad. PHOTO: AFP/FILE
WASHINGTON: In the run-up to the 10th anniversary of the September, 2001 attacks on the United States, here is a timeline of the fight against the al Qaeda terror network.
September 11, 2001: Almost 3,000 people die when al Qaeda suicide hijackers take control of four US passenger planes. They smash two of them into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York, causing them to collapse; one hits the Pentagon building near Washington and the fourth crashes in a field in Pennsylvania.
September 17: US president George W. Bush calls for al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden to be taken “dead or alive.” Bin Laden has been based in Afghanistan since 1996.
September 18: The US Congress authorizes Bush to use force against countries, organizations and individuals involved in the attacks.
September 28: The United Nations unanimously adopts Resolution 1373 against “terrorists” and the states that harbor them.
Full report at:
http://tribune.com.pk/story/233387/timeline-fighting-al-qaeda/
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Akbar Bugti case: Interior ministry says Musharraf cannot be extradited
August 17, 2011
Musharraf, who is currently living in London and Dubai, is the main accused in the murder case of the former Baloch leader. PHOTO: AFP/FILE
QUETTA: The Interior Ministry has said that it cannot extradite former President Pervez Musharraf in the Akbar Bugti murder case, Express 24/7 reported on Wednesday.
During the hearing of the case at the Balochistan High Court in Quetta, Deputy Attorney General Malik Sikandar informed the court of the interior ministry’s response.
Sikandar informed the two-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Qazi Essa, that there were five conditions rendering the extradition impossible. He did not elaborate on what the conditions were.
The bench expressed its anger at what it called “lack of seriousness” on the government’s part. The deputy attorney general was also urged to quit his office if he was unable to perform his duties.
Full report at:
http://tribune.com.pk/story/233436/akbar-bugti-case-interior-ministry-says-musharraf-cannot-be-extradited/
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For the first time in conflict, Gaddafi forces fire Scud: US
Aug 17, 2011
BENGHAZI: Forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi fired a Scud missile for the first time in the country's civil war, a US defence official said, after rebel advances left the Libyan leader isolated in his capital.
Rebels fighting to end Gaddafi's 41-year rule seized two strategic towns near Tripoli over the past two days, cutting the city off from its supply lines and leaving the Libyan leader with a dwindling set of options if he is to stay in power.
However, pro-Gaddafi forces were encountering a fight-back in one of those towns, Zawiyah, west of Tripoli.
The Scud missile was fired on Sunday morning from a location about 80 km east of Sirte, Gaddafi's home town, and landed east of the coastal oil town of Brega where rebels are fighting for control, US official said. The missile came down in the desert , injuring no one, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
There was no comment from the Libyan government in Tripoli.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/For-the-first-time-in-conflict-Gaddafi-forces-fire-Scud-US/articleshow/9631190.cms
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Religious leaders Mohamed Al-Darsani react to Pastor Jones's move
Aug 17, 2011
FORT MYERS, Fla. - Mohamed Al-Darsani finds a little humor in the strange twist that brings a man best-known for his anti-Islamic sentiments into his own backyard.
"My initial reaction? How funny -- from the whole world -- he chooses Fort Myers, Florida," Al-Darsani says chuckling.
Imam of the Islamic Center for Peace, in Fort Myers, Al-Darsani says it is hard to forget Pastor Terry Jones and the scathing attacks he launched last year on the Islamic faith.
Jones gained notoriety last year when he threatened to burn the Quran on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
"People like Terry Jones are misinformed, and I don't think they know the real Islam," Al-Darsani says.
Regardless of religious ideology, many spiritual leaders, like First Assembly of God's pastor Art VanZanten, agree Jones's methods are more divisive than uniting.
"We're all about reaching, teaching, and sending, and what he's doing doesn't fit with how we're trying to reach the world for Christ," VanZanten says.
Still, in spite of the Gainesville pastor's bad publicity, some are willing to extend the olive branch when he comes.
"If he comes with harmonious relations, then he will be welcomed into our community just like anybody else would," says Rabbi Jeremy Barras, of Temple Beth El, in Fort Myers.
Al-Darsani is willing to go a step further.
"We may even invite him for dinner when he moves down here and have a conversation with the man," Al-Darsani says. "We may not agree with him, but we agree with his right to be wherever he is."
http://www.winknews.com/Local-Florida/2011-08-16/Religious-leaders-react-to-Pastor-Joness-move
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UN tribunal releases Hariri indictment
17 Aug 2011
UN tribunal investigating former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri's killing lifts confidentiality restrictions.
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) has lifted confidentiality restrictions on an indictment issued in its investigation into the killing of Rafiq al-Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister blown up by a car bomb in 2005.
Wednesday's move means details of the case against four men named as suspects by the tribunal in June and subject to arrest warrants can be revealed for the first time. The UN-established tribunal said in a statement it had taken the step in order that the case could "proceed to trial".
The four men named by the STL - Mustafa Amine Badreddine, Salim Jamil Ayyash, Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Assad Hassan Sabra - are all members of Hezbollah.
The documents describe a network of phones, which have been colour-coded to highlight their different functions, that are alleged to have been used by the suspects in co-ordinating the attack in which 21 other people also died.
The indictment claims that an assassination team consisting of Ayyah and others positioned themselves in several locations where they were able to track and observe Hariri's movements, something they had been doing on several occasions prior to the attack.
The indictment went on to say that after the explosion, Oneissi and Sabra called Reuters and Al Jazeera, informing the latter on where to find a video tape that had been placed in a tree near ESCWA in Beirut
Full report at:
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/08/201181773445852950.html
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‘Punishment of the guilty policemen will be the real compensation’
J. S. IFTHEKHAR
Aug 17, 2011
The Hindu Mohammed Rayeesuddin (centre), Abdul Raheem, (left) and Junaid, who were acquitted in the Makka Masjid bomb blast case, are now making a living by selling fruits in Hyderabad. Photo: Nagara Gopal
Those acquitted in Makka Masjid blast case unimpressed by the money offered
It is a glimmer of hope, yes; but not all that is required. That is what the boys wrongly implicated in the Makka Masjid blast case think of the compensation recommended by the National Commission for Minorities (NCM). The real compensation, they feel, would be to punish the cops who tortured and subjected them to third degree methods.
Most of the 21 wrongly accused Muslim boys want the government to suspend the guilty policemen and legally proceed against them. “Payment of a few lakhs can not make up for the suffering we underwent in the name of religion,” says Ibrahim Ali Junaid, a Unani doctor who was jailed for five months.
The same sentiments are shared by others. They have taken the news of the NCM recommendations with a pinch of salt. They want the cloud of suspicion hanging over them to be lifted first. Even after they have been acquitted by the court and found innocent, the police continues to harass them. “Everytime there is a festival or trouble in the city, police come looking for us. We were falsely implicated in the first place; and now why these tabs on us,” fumes Dr. Junaid, who runs a clinic at Hafiz Baba Nagar in the Old City.
Unnerving
Full report at:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2363241.ece
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Rivals suspected in attack on Filipino governor
Aug 17, 2011
MANILA, Philippines: Political rivals and not terrorists may have staged a car bomb attack that killed two people and wounded six but missed a Filipino governor traveling in a convoy in a violent southern region, officials said Tuesday.
Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu, who took office after many of his relatives were slain in the country’s worst political massacre in 2009, was shaken but unhurt in Monday’s attack in Tacurong City in Sultan Kudarat province.
His bullet-resistant van was leading a seven-vehicle convoy to his birthday celebration when a parked car laden with a 105 mm howitzer round blew up and struck the fourth vehicle in his entourage, police said.
Among the wounded was a Maguindanao provincial board member, who later died in a hospital. His son, whose foot was severed by the powerful blast, was in serious condition. A bystander also was killed, Sultan Kudarat police chief Danilo Peralta said.
“We’re looking at the possibility that this was politically motivated and not an act of terrorism,” Peralta told The Associated Press. He refused to name any suspects amid an investigation.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/world/article489382.ece
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/iranian-authorities-seize-thousands-bibles/d/5270