‘US has plan ready to snatch Pak nukes’
J& K militants beheaded two jawans & took back ‘ trophies’
NATO airstrike kills eight Afghan civilians
'Copter crash kills 31 US, 7 Afghan troops'
Cop among 4 Afghans killed as anti-NATO demo turns violent
'Playing with non-Muslims is haram', Oz Muslim dad tells daughter
China vows to show no mercy in restive Xinjiang
Pak fears terror attacks, moves warships out of Karachi
UAE praised for pluralism in its Islamic character: Islamic Scholar
The US debt crisis and a Pakistani riddle
Mubaraks not guilty plea a hit ringtone
During the month of Ramzan Punjabis donate blood in Dubai to meet shortage
Gunman killed at Saudi prince's palace
In Abu Dhabi, lingerie reflects retail allure
Gaddafi son ‘dead’ but Libya denies it
Pakistan: Crimes against women go up by 18 percent in a year
Breivik’s idol calls him boring, slams brutal killings
'Jihad' is most misunderstood term: Malaysian law professor
Syrians pour into the streets despite deadly siege
US diplomats caught in cat fight at Kabul mission
Al Qaeda may turn to cyber warfare, says CIA veteran
US soldier gets 3 years for Afghan killing spree
Fight for food in Mogadishu leaves 7 dead
India, Pak can play 'decisive role together' for peace: Malik
Under NATO’s Flag: An Interim Assessment of the Mission in Libya
Protest marches across Syria on first Ramadan Friday
Somalia's al-Shabab rebels leave Mogadishu
Taliban promised to pay Afghan boy $80 to blow up British marines
Far-right racist anger, violence thrive in Europe
2011 is bloodiest year for Karachi since 1995
Religious party chief asks Muslims to return back to roots
Nigeria: There's No Boko Haram in Islam - Muslim Group
Nigeria: A Muslim's Thoughts on Christian Banking in the Country
Chris Christie smacks down the Shariah crowd
Islamic heritage museum combats Islamophobia
“Islam Without Extremes: a Muslim case for liberty”
The Appreciation of European Islam
German official named to head UN mission in Iraq
US lawmaker urges humanitarian corridors in Somalia
Court orders detention of former Ukraine PM Tymoshenko
U.N. peacekeeper killed in Darfur attack
Mushahid for cooperation with China on war against terrorism
Turkey calls for Islamic meeting on Africa famine
Muttahida Qaumi Movement agrees to Karachi’s ‘de weaponisation’
Grand Mosque imam calls on Muslims to fortify faith
‘The Ministry’ puts satirical spin on Afghan govt
Comedy actor Talat Zakareya believes Mubarak is innocent
During Ramzan, no one notices Kashmir's fasting teachers
US State Department to coordinate measures against “religious defamation”
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: http://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/‘us-has-plan-ready-to-snatch-pak-nukes’/d/5198
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‘US has plan ready to snatch Pak nukes’
Shafqat Ali
Aug 06, 2011
The United States wants to create a crisis in Pakistan and eventually seize the county’s nuclear weapons, a media report said.
NBC News reported that US military and intelligence operatives are debating, strategising, gaming, and potentially even conducting drills on entering Pakistan and seizing the nation’s nuclear weapons during the crisis. The former White House deputy counter-terrorism director, Roger Cressey, confirmed the planning and termed the scheme as “the highest priorities of the US intelligence community and the White House”.
He disclosed that the planned operation would be to “snatch and grab” the nuclear weapons and that US Special Forces would try to dismantle or eliminate them. A US Congressional Research Service report debated the case and justified it, claiming that Pakistan has to be deprived of its 90-110 nuclear weapons. Princeton University Pakistani academic Zia Mian disclosed that the CIA and US defence department frequently conducted preparatory exercises to snatch Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. “They’ve exercised attacking Iran, hence Pakistan should be ready for such an episode,” he said.
In his 2009 book Defusing Armageddon, intelligence scholar Jeffrey T. Richelson wrote that the then US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Peter Pace, five years ago outlined two kinds of situations: “elimination operations” and “interdiction operations” by the US to secure Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. He said the operations’ aim was to be able to locate, secure, disable and/or destroy Pakistani nuclear weapons. According to the New York Times, American intelligence assessments have concluded that Pakistan has steadily expanded its nuclear arsenal since President Barack Obama came to office in the US, and that it is building capability to surge ahead in the production of nuclear-weapons material, putting it on a path to overtake Britain as the world’s fifth-largest nuclear weapons power.
For the Obama administration, the assessment poses a direct challenge to a central element of the US President’s national security strategy: the reduction of nuclear stockpiles around the world.
Pakistan’s determination to add considerably to its arsenal — mostly to deter India — has also become yet another irritant in its often testy relationship with Washington, particularly as Pakistan seeks to block Mr Obama’s renewed efforts to negotiate a global treaty that would ban the production of new nuclear material.
http://www.asianage.com/international/us-has-plan-ready-snatch-pak-nukes-874
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J& K militants beheaded two jawans & took back ‘ trophies’
By Ajmer Singh
Aug 06 2011
IN A barbaric incident, which has shocked army officials, Pakistantrained militants beheaded two soldiers and dumped their bodies during an encounter to check infiltration attempt near the Line of Control ( LoC) in Kupwara district of Kashmir late last month.
It is suspected that the militants killed the jawans from the 20 Kumaon regiment, beheaded the duo and reportedly retained their heads as war trophies.
But, the army officials are not willing to accept the tragic story, as it might have an impact on the morale of the armed forces waging anti- terror operations in J& K. A jawan of 19 Rajput, who was part of the patrol party, also died in the cross- fire.
A senior Army official, requesting anonymity, disclosed that the two men of Kumaon regiment were killed and their heads were chopped off. Their bodies were also mutilated, he said.
The incident happened around Pak foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar’s visit to the country, in the last week of July, disclosed the officer.
The martyred soldiers were identified as Havildar Jaipal Singh Adhikari and Lance Naik Devender Singh.
The details of the third jawan, from 19 Rajput, couldn’t be ascertained.
The soldiers were cremated on Wednesday at their native places in Pithoragarh and Haldwani districts of Uttrakhand.
A state police officer, who was present at the cremation of Devender Singh, confirmed that the bodies were badly mutilated and not shown to relatives. The Army authorities informed that the heads were blown away during the fierce encounter, he said.
Lance Naik Devender Singh’s uncle also admitted that the bodies weren’t shown to the family members, and so did a 20 Kumaon regiment official.
Militants fired rocket propelled grenades at the jawans, killing them on spot and blowing off their heads, the official said.
He, however, refused to share details of the encounter. Lt Col J. S. Brar, the official spokesperson, HQ 15 Corps wasn’t available for comments.
Rajesh Kalia, the official spokesman of Udhampur based Northernern Command, said there was an infiltration bid near Farkian Gali, which is close to the Line of Control ( LOC), and that they had lost three men.
When asked if militants beheaded Indian soldiers, Kalia avoided a direct reply by merely commenting that “ details weren’t available”. But, the actual incident is quietly being discussed among the army circles in the valley.
A commanding officer of a Rashtriya Rifles ( RR) unit, deployed in the Kupwara sector, also privately confirmed that militants had beheaded two soldiers of the Kumaon unit.
Officers said that the trend of beheading armymenby the militants has resurfaced after four yeras.
A major rank officer of Kumaon Scouts, however, claimed that soldiers were martyred in a fierce encounter, which took place at 16.40 hrs on July 30, near Kupwara.
The ambush party had come under attack from three sides.
The barbaric incident is despicable and has outraged top army officers, stated one colonel posted in Kupwara sector.
In 1999 also, there was a national outcry, when Kargil hero Lt Saurabh Kalia and five Jawans were captured by Pakistani troops.
They were brutally tortured and then shot dead.
According to Lt Kalia’s father’s online petition, Pakistan had dared to humiliate India by flouting all international norms.
Mail Today
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Nato airstrike kills eight Afghan civilians
Aug 06 2011
LASHKAR GAH: A Nato airstrike killed eight civilians in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, a district police chief said on Saturday, adding to a 2011 toll that is so far the deadliest for civilians in the decade-long war.
The airstrike happened about 3 p.m. Friday in the Nad Ali district of Helmand after insurgents had attacked troops from the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) in the area, said Nad Ali district police chief Shidi Khan.
Violence is at its worst in Afghanistan since US-backed Afghan forces toppled the Taliban government in late 2001, with high levels of foreign troop deaths, and record civilian casualties during the first six months of 2011.
Civilian casualties caused by Nato-led troops hunting Taliban fighters and other insurgents have long been a major source of friction between Kabul and its Western backers.
The victims on Friday were from one family that had recently fled fighting in neighbouring Uruzgan province, Khan said.
Isaf confirmed an airstrike was carried out after a coalition patrol came under attack.
“Shortly after the engagement coalition forces received reports that civilians were being held captive by the insurgents and may have been present during the airstrike,” an Isaf spokesman said.
He said a team of coalition members met with local leaders and Isaf was assessing the incident.
A gradual transition of security control to Afghan forces began last month with when areas were handed over by the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force.
Afghan forces are due to take full control across the country by the end of 2014. The most contentious of the first seven areas to be handed over was Helmand provincial capital Lashkar Gah.
Helmand province has been the site of some of the most vicious fighting of the war.
Far more foreign troops have died there than in any other province and there are still several Helmand districts dominated by the Taliban.
In the past month insurgents have carried out a string of destabilising assassinations of high-profile southern leaders, including President Hamid Karzai’s younger brother, and several large attacks killing police and civilians.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (Unama) said that the first six months of 2011 had been the deadliest period for civilians since the Taliban were toppled by US-backed Afghan forces in late 2001.
It said 1,462 civilians were killed in conflict-related incidents, up 15 per cent on the first half of 2010. It blamed insurgents for 80 per cent of those deaths.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/08/06/nato-airstrike-kills-eight-afghan-civilians.html
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'Copter crash kills 31 US, 7 Afghan troops'
August 06, 2011
Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Saturday 31 US soldiers and 7 Afghan troops had been killed in a helicopter crash overnight, one of the worst incidents of its kind in the 10-year-old war in Afghanistan. The statement from the presidential palace said the helicopter had crashed in
central Maidan Wardak province, just to the west of the capital, Kabul.
The Taliban claimed to have shot down the troop-carrying helicopter.
The Nato-led International Security Assistance Force confirmed a helicopter had crashed but gave no further details.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/afghanistan/Copter-crash-kills-31-US-7-Afghan-troops/Article1-730110.aspx
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Cop among 4 Afghans killed as anti-NATO demo turns violent
Aug 06 2011
KABUL: At least four Afghans, including a policeman, were killed when police fired on an angry crowd in Afghanistan’s volatile south on Friday, police said, after protesters claimed NATO forces had killed a number of civilians overnight.
Civilian casualties caused by NATO-led troops hunting Taliban fighters and other insurgents have long been a major source of friction between Kabul and its Western backers, occasionally spilling over into violence.
The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kabul said there had been an operation targeting insurgents overnight in the Qalad district of Zabul province, which neighbours violent Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban.
“We have no reports about civilian casualties during this operation,” a spokesman for ISAF in Kabul said.
Zabul police chief Mohammad Nabi Elhaam said angry residents took to the streets after they said three Afghan civilians had been killed during a “night raid” by ISAF troops.
“A night raid by NATO forces killed three civilians and that provoked people to go out on the streets,” Elhaam said.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\08\06\story_6-8-2011_pg7_5
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'Playing with non-Muslims is haram', Oz Muslim dad tells daughter
Aug 06 2011
Canberra : A Muslim man in Australia asked his daughter not to play with non-Muslim children, saying that it is ‘haram’.
The Federal Magistrates' Court, sitting in Victoria, heard that the girl had refused to play with another, fair-haired ‘non-Muslim’ girl during a visit to a family counsellor.
The girl reportedly said “Baba says it is haram”, as she explained to her mother that she was not allowed to play with non-Muslim children, the Herald Sun reports.
Federal Magistrate Philip Burchardt said the father was clearly a loving parent but ‘he did not appear to have an understanding of his daughter's developmental needs’.
Burchardt ordered that the child will live with her mother and would spend time with the father every second weekend.
“Furthermore, his conduct in seeking to alienate (the girl) both from the non-Muslim component of the Australian community and from her mother and grandmother is very disturbing,” Burchardt said.
The father however denied telling his daughter who she could play with.
“He denied being in the business of telling the child that it was forbidden or otherwise bad to play with non-Muslims, but the evidence of (the family counsellor) makes it plain that he does,” Burchardt added.
The father, who is a devout Muslim, also complained to the family counsellor about his ex-wife’s dressing style.
Although he denied using denigrating words to describe his ex-wife, Burchardt said his denials were dishonest.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/playing-with-nonmuslims-is-haram-oz-muslim-dad-tells-daughter/828070/
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China vows to show no mercy in restive Xinjiang
Aug 06 2011
Beijing : China is ordering a new security clampdown in the restive western region of Xinjiang following recent deadly attacks blamed on fundamentalist Muslim militants.
Public Security Minister Meng Jianzhu is vowing to show no mercy to those who commit acts of terrorism or who seek to overthrow Chinese rule over Xinjiang. He told officials at an anti-terrorism conference on Thursday to mobilize all available resources and manpower to create a high-pressure environment under which to battle and contain terrorism.
The conference follows a trio of recent attacks blamed on militants among the region's native Turkic Muslim Uighur population. At least three dozen people were killed, including the alleged attackers, despite a massive security presence.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/china-vows-to-show-no-mercy-in-restive-xinjiang/827556/
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Pak fears attacks, moves warships out of Karachi
Aug 6, 2011
ISLAMABAD: Claiming there were "all time high security threats" , Pakistan navy has moved away its main battleships out of its Mehran naval base in Karachi to the Makran coast in Balochistan.
The navy sent its warships away from its main base in Karachi to Ormara in Balochistan as a "precautionary measure" after the 16-hour terrorist siege of its main naval airbase, PNS Mehran, on May 22, the Express Tribune newspaper quoted its sources as saying.
The move has come two months after the commandostyle gun and rocket-propelled grenade attacks on Mehran, that resulted in destruction of two P3C Orion airplanes - which were key naval assets - and the killing of 10 security personnel.
Since then, the main battleships have been stationed in Ormara. The navy chief ordered the immediate movement of the entire fleet in view of "all-time high security threats, which continue to loom even today" , said sources.
The attack on the naval airbase was carried out just weeks after three navy buses were bombed in Karachi on April 26 and April 28. However , an unnamed senior navy official said not the entire fleet but "definitely quite a few" warships had been moved.
Despite the movement, Karachi remains secure since there are other naval assets in place guarding the city, he said.
A navy spokesperson declined to comment, saying navy does not speak on "operational details" .
Retired navy and air force officials welcomed the move and described it as "pragmatic and positive" .
Retired Vice Admiral Tanvir Ahmed said golden rule in warfare is to disperse your assets in as many bases as possible.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pak-fears-attacks-moves-warships-out-of-Karachi/articleshow/9503260.cms
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UAE praised for pluralism in its Islamic character: Islamic Scholar
By Shehab A. Makahleh
Aug 06 2011
Abu Dhabi: The UAE has achieved an optimal balance between religious and national identities by preserving Arabic language and traditions alongside a culture of pluralism, Shaikh Hamza Yousuf, a renowned Islamic scholar, said during a lecture on Wednesday at a majlis hosted by General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
During his lecture, Yousuf said he could see no contradiction between religious and national identities in the UAE, noting that the country set a very good example as a melting pot for people of different cultures.
"The UAE is a very good example in terms of safeguarding its national and religious identities which are unparalleled anywhere," Yousuf said, adding that the people of the UAE are very cooperative and "each emirate supports the other".
Many facets
Full report at:
http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/heritage-culture/uae-praised-for-pluralism-in-its-islamic-character-1.847539
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The US debt crisis and a Pakistani riddle
By Dr. Manzur Ejaz
Aug 06 2011
Globally high national debts are associated with higher interest rates and inflation along with many other things. Given that the rate of inflation is under five per cent and interest rates around three per cent in the US, one wonders why such a fuss has been created about the debt ceiling. On the contrary Pakistan’s rate of inflation is recognised at around seventeen per cent and official interest is over thirteen per cent but everyone seems to be complacent. It is like a riddle!
Apparently, the debt crisis in the US has come to a close due to Congress approving a reconciled version of the debt bill. It was an ideological struggle between the Republican and Democratic economic models, and renowned economists are calling it surrender by President Barrack Obama. Notwithstanding who is right and who is wrong, one thing is evident: the legislative bodies of the US have publicly debated the pros and cons of increasing the debt ceiling. In contrast, Pakistan’s debt crisis is much more serious but the Congress body has ignored the issue because of their ignorance or opportunism.
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/2011/08/05/the-us-debt-crisis-and-a-pakistani-riddle.html
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Mubaraks not guilty plea a hit ringtone
Aug 06 2011
Washington: Former Egyptian president Hosni Mubaraks courtroom remarks have reportedly become popular ringtones in his native country.The 83-year-old former president appeared at a special court in Cairo on Wednesday to face charges of corruption and the unlawful killing of over 850 protesters during the revolution that forced him from power.Now,three different ringtones comprising the few words the deposed leader spoke on the first day of his trial are doing the rounds on the internet and are available for download,the ABC News reported.The first is the judge calling on Mubarak by his full name Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak followed by ex-presidents response: I am here,your honour.
The third and the most popular one is Mubaraks response to the charges of corruption and complicity in the murder of 850 protesters,made as he lay on a hospital bed inside a cage of mesh and iron bars in the courtroom I categorically deny all the charges. Not only have the ringtones exploded in popularity,but many Egyptians took to social networking websites to post photos of Mubarak inside the cage.
Meanwhile,Mubarak convicted for having cut Internet services during the revolt which toppled him,has pinned part of the blame on his successor as Egypts ruler,a defence lawyer said.
Times of India
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During the month of Ramzan Punjabis donate blood in Dubai to meet shortage
I P Singh
Aug 6, 2011
JALANDHAR: To make up the demand for blood in hospitals of Dubai during the month of Ramzan, when Muslims find it difficult to donate blood due to fasting, NGO "Sarbat Da Bhala'', formed by Sikhs settled in Dubai, organized a blood donation camp to help out health authorities in the Gulf state.
Over 300 Punjabi volunteers turned up at the camp organized at Dubai Grand hotel, owned by the NGO's president S P Singh Oberoi, but the team of health department had arrangements to accept only 140 units.
"We were requested by health authorities to help maintain stocks at blood banks in the month of Ramzaan as emergency and thalassemia patients were finding it difficult to get blood due to dwindling stocks these days. We immediately planned the camp," Oberoi told TOI from Dubai.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Punjabis-donate-blood-in-Dubai-to-meet-shortage/articleshow/9500190.cms
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Gunman killed at Saudi prince's palace
Aug 6, 2011
RIYADH: Security forces shot dead a gunman as he opened fire on the Jeddah palace of Saudi interior minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz early on Saturday, said a source close to the government.
Another man was arrested during the attack in which "two men opened fire after midnight on the Qasr Shateh residence of Prince Nayef (and) the security forces retaliated, killing one of them," the source told AFP.
The nature of the attack was "individual and isolated" and did not bear the hallmarks of any organisation, the source said in reference to the al-Qaida terror network.
The men, who were only identified as members of the Zahrani family, were "under the influence of drugs" and one of them had a "small handgun".
State news agency SANA said a deadly shooting occurred in Jeddah at 1:00 am (2200 GMT), without reporting if it took place near the residence of Prince Nayef.
"A man fired his weapon in Abd el-Rahman al-Maliki Avenue in Jeddah" before he "was killed," it said citing police, adding that "no citizens or members of the security forces were affected."
Prince Nayef, in his late 70s, is second in line to the Saudi throne and was appointed second deputy prime minister in 2009.
He has been interior minister since 1970 and led the kingdom's crackdown on Al-Qaeda in response to a wave of attacks by the militant group between 2003 and 2006.
In August 2009, his son Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, the Saudi deputy interior minister, narrowly survived a suicide bomb attack claimed by al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Gunman-killed-at-Saudi-princes-palace/articleshow/9504655.cms
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In Abu Dhabi, lingerie reflects retail allure
Aug 06 2011
Abu Dhabi : It could have picked London or Hong Kong. Instead, the lingerie retailer that styles itself “the original sex symbol’’ chose the buttoned-down sheikdom of Abu Dhabi for its first international store.
Frederick’s of Hollywood, famed for its curve-cinching corsets and provocative push-up bras, opened up to little fanfare in the Emirati capital last weekend. Another outpost offering the chain’s racy lingerie is set to open soon up the road in more freewheeling Dubai.
The choice of venue is revealing, not only about demand for risque unmentionables on the Arabian Peninsula, but also for what it says about the United Arab Emirates’ retail pull. In only a few short years, this desert country has emerged as an unlikely first port of call for retailers looking to test their brands overseas.
“Despite the outward conservative culture ... this is a very fashion-conscious market,’’ Frederick’s Chairman and CEO Thomas Lynch said . Other retailers seem to agree. Crate and Barrel, American Eagle Outfitters, Aeropostale, Pottery Barn and Bloomingdale’s each have launched their first stores outside North America in the UAE in the past couple of years.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/in-abu-dhabi-lingerie-reflects-retail-allure/827853/
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Gaddafi son ‘ dead’ but Libya denies it
Aug 06 2011
Rebels report army leader Khamis killed in Nato strike. Libya govt calls it a dirty lie
MUAMMAR Gaddafi’s son Khamis has reportedly been killed in an air strike by Nato forces.
A rebel spokesman said on Friday that an air attack had killed 32 people, including Khamis Gaddafi, who serves as one of the main commanders of the Libyan leader’s military forces.
The spokesman said the air strike took place at Zlitan, a frontline town where some of Gaddafi’s most loyal and best equipped troops are making a stand to defend the outskirts of capital Tripoli.
Mohd Zawawi, a spokesman for revolutionary militia groups, claimed Khamis was confirmed to be among the dead, while the Libyan government denied the news.
“ The reports about the killing of Khamis in a Nato strike are very dirty lies to cover the murder of civilians,” government spokesman Mussa Ibrahim said.
A Nato official at the operations headquarters in Naples said he was aware of the report but could not confirm it. “ We don’t have people on the ground, but we are trying to find out what we can,” he said.
Full report at: Mail Today
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Pakistan: Crimes against women go up by 18 percent in a year
Aug 06 2011
ISLAMABAD: Crimes against women, including forced marriages and sexual assaults, registered an increase of 18 percent over a period of one year, according to a comparison of cases registered in 61 districts across the country.
Based on the comparison of number of the first information reports (FIRs) pertaining to anti-women crimes in 61 districts, the number of total reported crimes increased from 849 in May 2010 to 999 in May 2011, says a FAFEN report on crimes against women on Friday.
The number of cases on forced marriages, incidents of insults and sexual harassment increased significantly while the spread of more serious crimes like rape and honour killing increased.
Attacks on modesty increased the most during the reporting year as 58 percent more FIRs were registered compared to May 2010. Cases of forced marriages and sexual harassment went up by 42 percent and 17 percent, respectively. However, FIRs registered against rape, honour killings and offences against marriage decreased by 25 percent, 17 percent and 1 percent, respectively.
Full report at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Crimes-against-women-up-by-18/H1-Article1-730076.aspx
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Breiviks idol calls him boring,slams brutal killings
Aug 06 2011
Oslo: Mass killer Anders Behring Breiviks favourite writer,a right-wing blogger previously known only as Fjordman,denounced the attacks in a newspaper interview as a wave of funerals took place across Norway on Friday.
Norwegian daily newspaper VG identified the blogger as Peder Jensen,a 36-year-old who claims Islam is over-running European culture and who was praised by Breivik in a 1,500-page manifesto.
He showed an extreme brutality thats completely incomprehensible,and he must have believed he was part of a computer game where he was the superhero, said Jensen in an interview with the newspaper,two weeks after attacks.
Breivik has confessed to setting off a bomb in central Oslo and gunning down people at a Labour Party youth camp on a nearby island on July 22,killing a total of 77 people in what he saw as the start of a culture war to defend Christendom.
Since the attack,police and Norwegian media have been trying to find the author of the anonymous Fjordman blog.He was questioned by police as a witness on Thursday,before meeting with reporters from VG in a central Oslo cafe.
Jensen said Breivik had sent him emails seeking personal contact,but he declined not because (Breivik) talked about violence,but because I thought he seemed boring like a salesman or a vacuum cleaner.Castle in the sky,I thought to myself when I read the emails, said Jensen.
Breivik wrote in his manifesto Fjordman was his favourite contemporary author and quoted his writing at length.
Times of India
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'Jihad' is most misunderstood term: Malaysian law professor
By Malu Cadeliña Manar
Aug 06 2011
THE word "jihad" is the most misunderstood term in Islam, said a Malaysian professor of law at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Prof. Rohimi Shapiee, member of the faculty of law at the UKM, said the word "jihad" has been misused and as a result, many people associate it with war and terrorism.
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Shapiee is one of the speakers during the Sixth Southeast and East Asian Teaching Session (Seats) on the International Humanitarian Law (IHL) held July 24-31 at the UKM, who discussed with more than 30 participants from different countries in Southeast Asia the session on the armed conflicts and the humanitarian principles of Islam.
Shapiee said that linguistically, "jihad" means striving, whether for good or for evil.
"Its general meaning signifies resisting and opposing the oppression, persecution, or standing up to a dictator," he explained.
Jihad, he added, is a struggle both to improve and expand Islam, “but not necessarily through violent means.”
Full report at:
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/local-news/2011/08/04/jihad-most-misunderstood-term-malaysian-law-professor-171026
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Syrians pour into the streets despite deadly siege
Aug 06 2011
AP In this image made from amateur video released by ‘Ugarit News’ and accessed via ‘The Associated Press Television News’ on Tuesday, protesters carry the body of a man during a funeral ceremony in the city of Homs, Syria.
Tens of thousands of protesters have poured into the streets across Syria calling for the downfall of President Bashar Assad's regime, defying a deadly military siege on the city of Hama.
Friday’s protests spread from the capital, Damascus, to the southern province of Daraa and Deir el-Zour in the east. Other demonstrations were reported in Qamishli in the north to Homs in the centre, activists said.
The protests come as Syrian troops kept bombing Hama, which has become the epicentre of the country’s uprising.
Hama has been under military siege for six days as Mr. Assad tries to crush a growing uprising that has so far claimed the lives of more that 1,700 civilians since March.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article2327998.ece
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US diplomats caught in cat fight at Kabul mission
Julius Cavendish
Aug 06 2011
There may be bombs going off across Afghanistan,a fraught relationship with President Hamid Karzai to preserve,and the small matter of restoring law and order before the troops go home and the money runs out.But diplomats with the US mission in Kabul have another problem on their hands: cats.
This is the pressing issue confronting Ryan C Crocker,the new US ambassador to Kabul,and its polarising opinion at one of the worlds largest embassies,the Washington Post reports.
When one of the semi-domesticated cats living on the high-security premises mauled one of the staff earlier this year,health and safety ordered the extermination of the embassys feline population.Ever since,Americas finest have been engaged in a fierce and escalating row over the fate of Gordo,Freckles,Dusty et al.
To understand how emotive the issue has become its important to venture inside the claustrophobic US Embassy where security protocols have not been designed to make diplomats lives easy.Entrance is through a series of checkpoints and barred doors that can take 10 minute to navigate.Taking a turn in the garden is often off limits because of the persistent rocket and mortar threat.
Full report at: Times of India
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Al Qaeda may turn to cyber warfare, says CIA veteran
Aug 06 2011
Facing a “strategic defeat”, Al Qaeda could switch to cyber attacks, opening a new front in their global jihad against the West, says a former top CIA official, who headed the agency’s Counter-Terrorism Centre during 9/11 attacks.
“The natural thing will be for Al Qaeda to fall back to things that are small and agile,” said Cofer Black, adding: “They will enter the cyber world because it’s comparatively remote, comparatively safer than strapping on a bomb.”
Black, who spent 30 years in CIA, told a conference attended by several thousand cyber security experts in Las Vegas that cyberspace might well be the domain choice of not just Al Qaeda, but nation-states as well.
As he put it, “Cyber will be a key component of any future conflict, whether it’s with a nation-state, a rogue state or terrorist source.” “You had the Cold War, the global war on terrorism... now you have the Code War,” he said.
Coinciding with the conference, cyber security firm McAfee put out a report about uncovering a global cyber attack affecting 72 organisations.
A total of 36 corporations, 12 non-profit bodies and 22 Government organisations were affected, including 15 US government agencies and the United Nations, CNN reported.
In an apparent reference to China, McAfee said a country launched a sponsored cyber-espionage scheme, noting that it has been going on undetected for the past five years. McAfee reportedly discovered the attack when the hackers finally made a mistake by leaving logs of their attacks on a command and control server that McAfee uncovered in 2009.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/358665/Al-Qaeda-may-turn-to-cyber-warfare-says-CIA-veteran.html
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US soldier gets 3 years for Afghan killing spree
6 August 2011
Washington — A member of a rogue US Army unit was sentenced to three years’ prison Friday after pleading guilty to killing an unarmed Afghan civilian in US custody in May 2010.
Specialist Adam Winfield, 23, of Coral Gables, Fla., had been charged with premeditated murder, aggravated assault and conspiracy to commit murder in several incidents, including the deaths of three Afghan civilians in Kandahar Province.
He pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of involuntary manslaughter in military court, along with one count of illegal use of marijuana, in exchange for his testimony against other soldiers accused in the killings.
His rank was reduced to private and Winfield was stripped of pay and allowances, as well as discharged for bad conduct. The Coral Gables, Florida man will get credit for the approximately 507 days he has already served in prison.
Winfield, who tried to blow the whistle on the murder plot, is among five soldiers accused of killing the civilians for sport and then planting evidence on the bodies to make it seem as though the victims had attacked the soldiers first.
He is a member of the 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, also known as the Stryker Brigade, based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Seattle.
Another soldier in the unit, Private Jeremy Morlock of Wasilla, Alaska, was sentenced in March to 24 years in prison. Seven other service members have been charged with covering up the killings.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle08.asp?xfile=data/international/2011/August/international_August245.xml§ion=international
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Fight for food in Mogadishu leaves 7 dead
Aug 06 2011
MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somali government troops opened fire Friday on hungry civilians, killing at least seven people, as both groups made a grab for food at a UN distribution site in the capital of this famine-stricken country, witnesses said.
Witnesses accused government soldiers of starting the chaos by trying to steal some of the 290 tons of dry rations as the aid workers tried to hand them out in the biggest camp in Mogadishu for famine refugees. Then refugees joined in the scramble, prompting some soldiers to open fire, the witnesses said.
“It was carnage. They ruthlessly shot everyone,” said Abdi Awale Nor, who has been living at the camp. “Even dead bodies were left on the ground and other wounded bled to death.”
David Orr, a spokesman for the World Food Program, said the food distribution started smoothly at around 6 a.m. but degenerated a couple hours later.
“We got reports of trouble, looting. The trucks were overwhelmed by a mob of people. There were reports of some shots fired,” said Orr, who said he could not confirm any death tolls. He said he didn’t know specifically what type of food was being handed out by the WFP, a UN agency.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/international/2011/August/international_August218.xml§ion=international&col=
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India, Pak can play 'decisive role together' for peace: Malik
Aug 06 2011
Islamabad : Pakistan is committed to working with India to root out terrorism, Interior Minister Rehman Malik has said, insisting that the two countries can play "a decisive role together" for peace and stability in the region.
"We show our firm resolve to cooperate with India and the international community to work together to end this menace (terrorism)," Malik said in a message posted on micro-blogging website Twitter last evening.
"Terrorism can only be eliminated when all countries work together with a collective responsibility to fight terrorism."
Malik appreciated his Indian counterpart P Chidambaram's remarks linking the bomb attacks in Mumbai on July 13 to a "home-grown" terrorist module.
"I condemn the recent acts of terrorism by the local home-grown terrorists in Bombay, on peaceful and innocent people," he tweeted.
The Pakistani Interior Minister contended that Pakistan and India "can play a great and decisive role together for peace and stability of this region".
"The people of Pakistan and India are suffering from home-grown terrorism. Extremism, in all its forms, needs to end," he said.
Malik called for an "open discussion" on the issue and sought "honest suggestions" to ensure a "terrorism-free region".
He wished Chidambaram the "best of luck in dealing with terrorists who are enemies of humanity".
"I (have) great trust in his abilities (and) wisdom," He he said.
Malik was, however, silent on Chidambaram's recent call for Pakistan to ensure the speedy prosecution of the perpetrators of the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/india-pak-can-play-decisive-role-together-for-peace-malik/828056/
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Under NATO’s Flag: An Interim Assessment Of The Mission In Libya
Aug 06 2011
NATO is only nominally in charge of the stalemated war in Libya. The Alliance’s leader, the United States, was quick to move to a back seat in this operation after having sparked it. Europe’s residual military powers, France and Britain, are mainly in charge of this war, operating as a tandem but basically in their respective national capacities. President Nicolas Sarkozy and Prime Minister David Cameron each embarked on this intervention as a short-term political project, only to see it turn into stalemate, and the expected political rewards turn into liabilities. Yet for the French and British leaders, Libya remains a short-term, non-core issue, which almost irrespective of its outcome will ultimately be amenable to political damage control.
Unlike the French and British leaders, NATO has core business here, and any indecisive outcome would not be a short-term episode to be filed away. NATO has lent its name and its flag to this intervention and assumed a high public profile as mission leader. The Alliance has not been able to show a military success in the field since Kosovo 1999. In Libya it has no choice but to win and be seen winning convincingly.
Full report at: Jamestown Foundation
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Protest marches across Syria on first Ramadan Friday
Aug 06 2011
AMMAN: Tens of thousands of people marched across Syria on the first Friday of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, stepping up defiance of President Bashar al-Assad's bloody crackdown on unrest as his tanks again shelled Hama and massed outside another restive city.
Hama residents feared higher casualty figures than the 135 estimated killed since the military assault began on Sunday on the city of 700,000 people in central Syria.
In a strong sign of opposition resilience, activists said, tens of thousands rallied in cities around Syria on the first Friday of Ramadan, when Muslims do not eat or drink in daylight hours, demanding Assad's fall and showing solidarity with Hama.
They said demonstrations broke out in the eastern tribal province of Deir al-Zor where tanks assembled at the gates of the provincial capital, in the southern Hauran plain, in the central city of Homs and its rural environs, in the coastal town of Jableh and in several districts of the capital Damascus.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Protest-marches-across-Syria-on-first-Ramadan-Friday/articleshow/9496321.cms
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Somalia's al-Shabab rebels leave Mogadishu
Aug 06 2011
Thousands of people have moved to Mogadishu from al-Shabab controlled areas
Somalia's al-Shabab Islamist rebels have pulled out of all positions in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, government and rebel spokesmen say.
President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed declared the rebels defeated after they left overnight on trucks.
However, al-Shabab described the move as a "change of military tactics".
The conflict has hampered aid efforts in the famine-hit country, with the militia barring some aid agencies from central and southern areas it controls.
African Union peacekeepers and government forces have for months been contained to small areas of the capital. Recently they have been battling the rebels in a bid to secure delivery routes for emergency supplies of food, water and medication.
The pull-out followed reports of gun battles in the capital on Friday night.
Sheikh Ahmed told a press conference: "The Somali government welcomes the success attained by the Somali government forces backed by AMISOM (peacekeepers) who defeated the enemy of al Shabab."
Full report at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14430283
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Taliban promised to pay Afghan boy $80 to blow up British marines
Aug 06 2011
Kabul : A Royal Marine was killed by a 14-year-old Afghan boy, who was offered 80 dollars by the Taliban to set off an explosive device, it has emerged.
According to the Sun, Stephen Curley, 26, died instantly when Aga Wali set off a roadside bomb, in Helmand province in May last year.
When Wali went to collect his cash, Taliban chiefs refused to pay, saying that he should have been fighting for religious reasons, not money.
The boy felt betrayed, and confessed to the killing days later after his dad turned him into the Afghan police, the report said.
The inquest in Exeter, south-west England, heard that the teenager had been jailed by Afghan authorities, but it is not known how long he would serve or whether he is still in the custody.
According to the report, Curley was targeted as patrol leader in a new Taliban tactic and was easily identified by the three feet radio aerial in his backpack.
The inquest heard the device that killed Curley could have been activated manually with a command wire, or set off when he stepped on a pressure plate.
The inquest was adjourned so that further evidence could be obtained.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/taliban-promised-to-pay-afghan-boy-80-to-blow-up-british-marines/828069/
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Far-right racist anger, violence thrive in Europe
Aug 06 2011
Paris : They beat up black and Arab football fans, terrorise immigrant neighborhoods, smash Muslim and Jewish gravestones, preach hate and rally support online. Norway's attacks laid bare a fringe of flourishing racist anger around Europe – and exposed the risk that it could erupt into violence anywhere, anytime.
In interviews and online forums, European far-right extremists have not softened their rhetoric since Norway's massacre left 77 dead. They may recoil at the attacker's methods, but not his message: that Muslim immigrants are a threat to European survival.
"If there were no immigrants, there would never have been this drama,'' one French blogger says. Jean-Marie Le Pen, France's firebrand icon of anti-immigrant politics, said Norway "did not estimate the global danger that massive immigration represents, which is the principal cause'' of the attacks.
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/farright-racist-anger-violence-thrive-in-europe/828048/
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2011 is bloodiest year for Karachi since 1995
Aug 06 2011
Karachi : At least 800 people have been killed in ethnic clashes and politically linked violence in Karachi this year, the bloodiest since 1995, Pakistan's human rights commission said Friday.
Zohra Yousuf who heads the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said the 800 people were victims of often targeted and violent shootings in the last seven months.
“The figures are a cause of great concern for every law abiding Pakistani," she said.
Previously the HRCP had put the figure of those killed in the violence in Karachi in the first six months of the year to around 500 but in one of the bloodiest months witnessed by the city another 300 people were killed in July.
Yousuf said the figures compiled by the HRCP staff also through police records showed that around 300 people were killed in July.
The figures represent a big challenge for the government which has already deployed an additional force of 1000 Frontier Constabulary (FC) soldiers in the city to assist the police and para-military rangers to control the violence.
Around 60 people were killed in the cycle of violence and in arson attacks in the last five days this week.
The HRCP official said the violence in Karachi is the deadliest since 1995, when more than 900 killings were reported in the first half of the year. Meanwhile the Muttahida Qaumi Movement which is the largest part in Karachi and represents the Urdu speaking Muhajirs who migrated at partition from India has demanded a judicial inquiry into the violence and killings.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/2011-is-bloodiest-year-for-karachi-since-1995/827753/
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Religious party chief asks Muslims to return back to roots
Aug 06 2011
Islamabad : Pakistani religious party chief on Wednesday stressed upon the Muslims to return back to their roots to counter anti-Islam conspiracies.
Amir Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Syed Munawar Hassan speaking to IRNA agreed with the statement of Supreme Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei that holy Quran is the only solution to Muslims' problems.
In the meeting, the Supreme Leader said holy Quran can fulfil all human needs and is a guideline for mankind and stressed that all weaknesses and problems of Muslim nations can be rectified through practicing the holy Qur'an.
Syed Munawar Hassan expressing his views said that Muslims are blessed with the light of wisdom. ‘we have left the right path’. “We need to find out the right path that could lead us to our destiny”, he suggested.
Full report at:
http://twocircles.net/2011aug05/religious_party_chief_asks_muslims_return_back_roots.ht
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Nigeria: There's No Boko Haram in Islam - Muslim Group
Aug 06 2011
The Association of Muslim Brotherhood of Nigeria (AMBON) has argued that there is no prohibition of Western education in Islam.
In a communiqué issued in Kaduna at the end of its meeting, which was signed by its national president, Abu-sufyan Ibn Abubakar, and national publicity secretary,
Aminu Tahir Tinau, they said there was an urgent need to put across the true teaching of Islam to avoid misrepresentation.
AMBON said: "First and foremost, the public, especially the Ummah, is not being fair to this group called Boko Haram. As for our own assessment, there is no Boko Haram in this country. Their concept must be understood. Let us all be fair in our utterances to them. And for Ulama, they should do their best in engaging them in discussions and understanding. They are our brothers. Let them be brought back to the correct Islamic religious teachings".
It further appealed to the sect to halt its violence on the nation and embrace peace and dialogue.
Full report at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/201108040141.html
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Nigeria: A Muslim's Thoughts on Christian Banking in the Country
Yushau A. Shuaib
Aug 06 2011
It is rather unfortunate that every issue in Nigeria today is debated on the basis of ethnic or religious sentiments, while every action taken is politicised, becoming a weapon for further escalation of animosity among the Nigeria's citizens.
What is more alarming is when religious leaders join the bandwagon in fanning the ember of hatred and enmity through provocative pronouncements and combatant posture against programmes and policies that might have good intentions.
The recent brouhaha over the non-interest banking grossly associated and referred to as Islamic banking system is one debate that has created divisions in the polity. Interestingly the Islamic banking principle was mooted long time before the appointment of the current governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as attested to by principal insiders in the apex monetary institution. In an interaction in CBN, Pastor Tunde Lemo, the Deputy Governor of Central Bank in charge of Operations disclosed that: "Islamic banking is a programme that started several years before the appointment of the current Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi." He added that the first application for license was about ten years ago. He went on to mention that more than three years ago he led a team to Malaysia to develop the framework for Non-Interest Banking, part of which, of course is Islamic banking.
Full report at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/201108050860.html
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Chris Christie smacks down the sharia crowd
By Adam Serwer
Aug 06 2011
Sharia panic has emerged as a primary issue for Republican presidential hopefuls, but New Jersey Republican Governor Chris Christie is having none of it. At a recent press conference that deserved far more attention than it received, Christie defended his appointment of a Muslim lawyer to the state bench by saying that the Islamophobic smear campaign he had been subject to was “crazy”:
Sharia law has nothing to do with this at all. It’s crazy. It’s crazy. The guy’s an American citizen who has been an admitted lawyer to practice in the state of New Jersey, swearing an oath to uphold the laws of New Jersey, the constitution of the state of New Jersey, and the Constitution of the United States of America…this sharia law business is crap. It’s just crazy. And I’m tired of dealing with the crazies. It’s just unnecessary to be accusing this guy of things just because of his religious backround.
Christie came under fire from conservative bloggers months ago when he nominated Sohail Mohammed, a Muslim lawyer who represented several individuals detained in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, to the state bench. The sharia panic crowd went full bore, accusing Mohammed of being “a longtime mouthpiece for radical Islamists,” merely because he represented people suspected of terrorism who were never actually charged. One conservative blogger wrote, “The attorney’s name is Mohammed, first name Sohail — Sohail Mohammed.” The guy’s name is Mohammed, Case closed!
At a time when many Republican presidential candidates are aggressively competing for the segment of the conservative base that’s convinced that American Muslims are part of a vast conspiracy to institute Taliban-style Islamic law in the U.S., it’s refreshing to see a Republican as beloved by GOP and media elites describing this for what it is — crazy.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/chris-christie-smacks-down-the-sharia-crowd/2011/03/04/gIQARsBBuI_blog.html
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Islamic heritage museum combats Islamophobia
Marjan Asi
Aug 06 2011
Amidst talks of Islamophobia and discrimination against Muslims in the United States, a challenge to the idea that Muslims are new members of American society can be found in a recently formed Islamic Heritage Museum.
“So many times people, Americans and non-Americans, Muslims and non-Muslims, have misperceptions of Muslims saying they came from the Nation of Islam or that they came through the immigrations in the 60s and the 70s. Muslims have been a part of the American fabric since its conceptions.”
The Museum, located in Washington DC, began as a traveling exhibit called “Collections and Stories of American Muslims” which went on display in mosques and university campuses. As demand for the American Muslim historical narrative increased, co-founder and curator
Amir Muhammad decided on making it a permanent feature in the nation's capital.
“We felt there was a need being here in Washington, D.C. to have a place that the public could come to, learn about Islam, and learn about Muslims and learn about the history of Muslims in America.”
Stories begin with African Muslims like Estevanico, a servant to the Spanish explorers in the early 1500s- to Muslims living amongst Native American tribes in the eighteenth century. Many attendees were surprised to hear of these early Muslim adventures and discussed their
experience at the museum.
Muhammad discussed the importance of the museum in light of rising Islamophobia.
The museum also traces modern day Muslim experiences, including civic and military participation.
As the discourse on Islamophobia increases, American
Muslims continue to carry out projects like this museum in hopes of solidifying their place in American history and society.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/192410.html
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“Islam Without Extremes: a Muslim case for liberty”
ELISE HILTON
Aug 06 2011
Is Islam a religion of extremes? It certainly can appear to be. Muslim women in certain areas of the world cannot appear in public uncovered or without male escort nor are they are not permitted to drive a car. Just last fall, we saw a Christian Pakistani woman sentenced to death by stoning for allegedly blaspheming the prophet Muhammad. Throw in terrorist factions like Al-Qaeda who have hijacked the name of Islam and an understandable wariness sets in. The question arises: can a religion connected with such extremism be reconciled with the principles of human freedom, justice, and liberty? In his book, Islam Without Extremes, Turkish journalist and devout Muslim Mustafa Akyol earnestly addresses this pointed question that has undoubtedly become one of the central issues of the modern world.
Akyol believes Islam without extremes is not only possible, but vital to the future of the faith and the global economy. He also clearly believes that Islam without extremes does not require the compromise of one’s faith. Akyol’s aim in this book is to show that Islam is relevant in today’s world, and is not only NOT a threat to liberty, but a religion that has much to offer the world in terms of stabilizing economies and governments. For instance, the earliest days of Islam showed that it was a “business-friendly” faith. The Prophet himself was married to a well-to-do businesswoman, and property rights, inheritance laws and fairness in trade were all strengthened by Islamic teaching.
In the book, Akyol lays out a concise history of Islam (necessary for those who may be unfamiliar with the origins of the faith), and then delves into the intriguing areas of interpretation and application of not only the Qur’an, but the Hadiths, a collection of the “example” (Sunna) of the Prophet Muhammad (considered by some Muslims to be nearly “on par” with the Qur’an).
Full report at:
http://blog.acton.org/archives/25281-book-review-islam-without-extremes-a-muslim-case-for-liberty.html
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The Appreciation of European Islam
Aug 06 2011Peter
Kellow Civic
The Norway killer, Anders Breivik, saw his massacre of 69 people as a strike against what he sees as the growing threat posed by the presence of Muslims in Western Europe. In this he had international connections. The strongest of these appears to have been to our home-grown English Defence League, whose anti-Muslim ideology inspired him. But Breivik and the EDL are only the most extreme expression of anti-Islamic sentiment that is observable in many countries of Western Europe.
The establishment of Islamic communities in Western Europe is a fact. But in spite of the familiarity of Islam it often remains poorly understood. In order to appreciate Islam and what its presence, in Britain and other western countries, means, we need to turn the mirror on ourselves and see better how Islam and our society relate.
Islam is an Abrahamic religion, that is to say, it springs from the message of the biblical figure of Abraham as does Judaism and Christianity. But this obscures the fact that its origins are closer to Christianity than Judaism.
Full report at:
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/peter-kellow/the-appreciation-of-europ_b_917866.html
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German official named to head UN mission in Iraq
Aug 6, 2011
UNITED NATIONS: UN leader Ban Ki-moon on Friday named Martin Kobler of Germany as the new head of the UN mission in Iraq helping the government with efforts to recover from conflict.
Kobler, 58, a former top official at the German foreign ministry with particular expertise in helping countries in conflict, moves from the UN mission in Afghanistan where he was deputy head. He had previously been Germany's ambassador to Iraq.
Kobler replaces Ad Melkert of the Netherlands, who had led the UN mission in Iraq, UNAMI, since July 2009. "The secretary general is grateful for Mr Melkert's leadership of UNAMI," said Ban's spokesman Martin Nesirky.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/German-official-named-to-head-UN-mission-in-Iraq/articleshow/9499649.cms
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US lawmaker urges humanitarian corridors in Somalia
Aug 6, 2011
WASHINGTON: A US lawmaker called Friday for world leaders to negotiate humanitarian corridors in Somalia to allow in food aid, warning of a massive loss of life without greater effort to fight the famine.
Representative Chris Smith said that so-called corridors of tranquility -- where all sides guarantee safe passage of vital aid -- have proven successful in past crises, including Ethiopia's famine in the 1980s.
"Corridors of tranquility needs to be something that is being pushed real strongly right now," Smith, who heads the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Africa, told C-SPAN's "Newsmakers" program in an interview to air Sunday.
Smith said that President Barack Obama and other world leaders needed to put a greater focus on the Horn of Africa crisis, in which some 12 million people are battling hunger in Somalia and neighboring countries.
"We have people dying and there needs to be, I think, a much more -- much more -- focused effort and global leadership on the part of the United States and the Europeans," the lawmaker added.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/US-lawmaker-urges-humanitarian-corridors-in-Somalia/articleshow/9499801.cms
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Court orders detention of former Ukraine PM Tymoshenko
Aug 06 2011
KIEV: A Ukrainian court ordered the detention of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on Friday following a state prosecutor's motion to take her into custody during her trial on charges of abuse of office.
The prosecution, which accuses Tymoshenko of illegally forcing state energy company Naftogaz to sign a gas supply contract with Russia in 2009, has said Tymoshenko was disturbing the courtroom proceedings. She has denied the charges.
Judge Rodion Kireyev said he had ordered Tymoshenko's detention over her "systemic violations" of court rules. He did not say how long the detention would last and adjourned the trial until Monday.
A Reuters correspondent saw police escort Tymoshenko out of the courtroom.
"They (the authorities) are just showing off their power," Tymoshenko's former lawyer Serhiy Vlasenko told reporters in the courtroom.
Tymoshenko has dismissed all charges against her as politically motivated and Western governments have expressed concern over the case.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Court-orders-detention-of-former-Ukraine-PM-Tymoshenko/articleshow/9496300.cms
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U.N. peacekeeper killed in Darfur attack
Aug 06 2011
A United Nations’ peacekeeper from Sierra Leone was killed and another seriously wounded when their vehicle was attacked by gunmen in the Darfur region of Sudan on Friday, the United Nations said.
The attack took place in Duma village, 37 km northeast of the town of Nyala, when four gunmen opened fire on the vehicle carrying five soldiers serving with the joint U.N.-African Union force in Darfur, the U.N. said.
Earlier this week, four Ethiopian peacekeepers deploying to Sudan’s contested Abyei region died in a land mine explosion, three of them after Sudan refused requests to let them be flown out of the region for medical care, according to UN officials.
The peacekeeper injured yesterday, also from Sierra Leone, was transferred to a hospital where he underwent surgery, the UN-AU force known as UNAMID said in a statement.
“The attack on our peacekeepers is deplorable and our hearts go out to the families and friends of the deceased,” said UNAMID deputy representative Aichatou Mindaoudou Souleymane. “UNAMID is doing all it can to render treatment to the injured, and, with the Sudanese police, to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice.”
The U.N. Security Council in late June authorised a 4,200-strong Ethiopian peacekeeping force to deploy for six months in the contested region of Abyei, which lies between Sudan and the new nation of South Sudan.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article2330262.ece
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Mushahid for cooperation with China on war against terrorism
Aug 06 2011
ISLAMABAD: Pak-China Institute Chairman Mushahid Hussain Syed on Friday demanded the government to send a high-level security delegation to China to discuss bilateral cooperation against terrorism and extremism and plug in the gaps and address misunderstandings, if any, between both the nations, as the western and Indian media was publishing negative stories, pointing fingers at Pakistan for acts of terrorism in Kashghar.
“It is the primary responsibility of the government and the armed forces to ensure that no part of the Pakistani territory should be allowed for use by any negative forces against our neighbours. Sino-Pak ties are solid and strong and no negative propaganda can undermine this robust relationship,” said the chairman while addressing a seminar titled ‘Regional Development and Sino-Pak Relations’ at the Sir Syed Memorial Society.
He said that Pakistan has condemned terrorism and separatism in China, as stability in China is vital for stability in Pakistan.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\08\06\story_6-8-2011_pg7_11
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Turkey calls for Islamic meeting on Africa famine
Aug 06 2011
ISTANBUL: Turkey has called for the 57-nation Organisation of the Islamic Conference to hold an emergency meeting on the famine in Somalia and the risks that poses to other African countries, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Friday.
“It doesn’t matter whether the meeting is held in Istanbul or Jeddah, we want OIC to step in as soon as possible. We want to meet the needs of our African brothers in Ramazan month,” he told reporters in Ankara after Friday prayers. Davutoglu said he had made the request on Thursday to OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, a fellow Turk. He added that his ministry was organising a visit to Ethiopia and South Africa later this month. “We may add other countries including Kenya in light of recent developments. We are planning the visit to take place after Aug. 15, maybe around Aug. 20,” Davutoglu said. Some 3.7 million Somalis are at risk of starvation, the majority of them in the south of the Horn of Africa country that has been in a state of armed anarchy for two decades, complicating any humanitarian relief effort. Hundreds of thousands have made the dangerous trek to the capital Mogadishu and its outlying areas in search of food aid. On Friday, a Somali soldier was killed and a dozen residents wounded when three trucks loaded with food intended for famine victims were looted in Mogadishu, witnesses said. reuters
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\08\06\story_6-8-2011_pg4_3
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Muttahida Qaumi Movement agrees to Karachi’s ‘deweaponisation’
By Raja Asghar
Aug 06 2011
ISLAMABAD: Apparently beset by a new wave of violence in Karachi, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement agreed in the National Assembly on Friday to ideas to “deweaponise” the city and send a parliamentary panel to investigate recent killing sprees there.
Ideas for what is called “deweaponisation”, or searching and seizing illegal arms, in the violence-plagued city had long been floated by both friends and foes of the MQM, to be countered by the Karachi-based party with its demand for a more daunting nationwide deweaponisation.
And proposals for sending an all-party fact-finding parliamentary committee to Karachi came from other opposition parties and a government-allied party without a response from either the MQM or the PPP-led coalition government.
But on Friday, MQM parliamentary leader Farooq Sattar came out with what looked like a grudging acceptance of both proposals after launching a tirade against the government, which his party was allied with until June, for allegedly backing what he called a nexus between terrorists and underworld mafia to harm his party’s prospects in next general elections at the risk of a civil war in the country’s commercial hub.
“Whatever the National Assembly decides I will be with you,” he told the house while referring to proposals, mainly from the main opposition Pakistan Muslim League-N party and the government-allied Awami National Party, for sending to Karachi a parliamentary fact-finding committee, which he said should find ways to “save the hen that lays the golden eggs”.
But he also called for the formation of a judicial commission to investigate and assess Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/2011/08/06/mqm-agrees-to-karachis-deweaponisation.html
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Grand Mosque imam calls on Muslims to fortify faith
Aug 06 2011
MAKKAH: Sheikh Saleh Al-Talib, imam and khatib at the Grand Mosque, called on Muslims to fortify their faith in Almighty Allah as a means to wipe clean their hearts of hatred and hostility.
“Whoever tastes the sweetness of faith will never experience the thoughts of hatred, evil or hostility,” Al-Talib said in his sermon on the first Friday of Ramadan. Hundreds of thousands of faithful attended the congregational prayer at the Grand Mosque.
The sheikh stressed the futility of a man depriving himself of food and water in Ramadan without accompanying it with plenty of good deeds, charity and repentance. “As the blessed month will pass quickly, believers should do good deeds to earn a place amid the blessed in the world and the hereafter,” Al-Talib said.
Under the aegis of Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, steps have been taken to ensure security and comfort to pilgrims and worshippers in the mosque and surrounding areas.
The Presidency of the Affairs of the Grand Mosque has made provisions for the smooth entry and exit of worshippers with special arrangements for the disabled.
“Prayer carpets have been cleaned and polished, the mosque interior brilliantly lit, and all air-conditioners and fans put in full blast to keep the temperature under control,” a mosque official said. Jets of water being sprinkled in courtyards have lessened the impact of the heat.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article483730.ece
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‘The Ministry’ puts satirical spin on Afghan govt
Aug 06 2011
KABUL: Britain and the United States poke fun at incompetent, arrogant middle managers in the television comedy “The Office,” but in Afghanistan the target is a fictional minister of garbage in a new series called “The Ministry.”
Instead of a series mocking drab office life in impoverished Afghanistan, where there is widespread unemployment, “The Ministry” mockumentary puts a satirical spin on some serious issues such as corruption, drug trafficking and nepotism.
“We’ll see how open (Afghans) are to this style of comedy,” said Abazar Khayami, a producer involved with the show.
“If you look at the United States and Europe, they are always poking fun at the government but to do that here we really don’t know what to expect,” he said. “No one thinks there is anything to be concerned about.” Dawlat is the arrogant minister for garbage in Hechland, which translated from Dari means “Nothing Land,” and the first eight-episode season following daily life in the ministry premiered on Afghanistan’s TOLO TV on Thursday.
In a trailer posted on Youtube, which has already been viewed more than 56,000 times in a week (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KzQpRt7GYw), the minister says that the story of his rise to power was too long to explain.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/lifestyle/offbeat/article483682.ece
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Comedy actor Talat Zakareya believes Mubarak is innocent
Aug 06 2011
CAIRO: Egyptian comedy actor Talat Zakareya said Egypt’s former President Hosni Mubarak is innocent of charges of government corruption and had nothing to do with the deaths of people during the revolution.
In a television interview recently, the actor said that he is convinced of Mubarak’s innocence and that time and history would prove it. Zakareya said that he sat once with the former president and did not believe that he could commit such horrible crimes. He said that he still has Mubarak’s picture on a wall in his house and on his mobile phone.
The actor said that he cries every time he sees his picture, believing that he is innocent. He said that Mubarak was brave when he refused to leave the country to live in exile. He resigned from power to prevent any bloodbath or clashes like what is happening now in some Arab countries, he added.
http://arabnews.com/lifestyle/offbeat/article483685.ece
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During Ramzan, no one notices Kashmir's fasting teachers
Aug 06 2011
Srinagar : For the past week, dozens of contractual college teachers in Kashmir Valley have been on an indefinite fast in Srinagar demanding a wage hike. But theirs could be a lost cause at a time when most locals are busy fasting for entirely different reasons.
The teachers' agitation seems to have gone unnoticed as in Mumlim-dominated Jammu and Kashmir, most people are observing a dawn-to-dusk fast during the holy month of Ramzan that began Tuesday.
"For the last six days the hunger strike has been going on in the Press Enclave area of Srinagar and nobody in the government has bothered to even speak to us," said a protester.
"We had been on strike for over two months and after our demands were not even heard, we have now been forced to go on an indefinite fast," he said.
Abid Khaliq, 35, a contractual teacher, who has done his doctorate in sericulture sciences, said: "Many of our colleagues on indefinite fast fainted due to dehydration and hunger and were shifted to hospital in semi-conscious state.
"A contractual teacher draws Rs.8,000 per month while a permanent teacher in the same college draws around Rs.70,000 per month," he said. "Even a peon in the college where I teach draws Rs.18,000 per month," he said.
"What respect would I command among my students despite doing a Ph.D. in sericulture sciences?" Khaliq said.
Full report at:
http://twocircles.net/2011aug05/during_ramzan_no_one_notices_kashmirs_fasting_
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US State Department to coordinate measures against “religious defamation”
Aug 06 2011
According to the International Islamic News Agency, in the next few months, the US will host a meeting with the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to coordinate implementing UN Human Rights Council Resolution 16/18 on “combating defamation of religions.” (H/t: JihadWatch, Next 2 Cents) The report indicates the meeting will look at the following:
…how to prevent stereotypes depicting religions and their followers; as well as disseminating religious tolerance, which has been endorsed by the UN Human Rights Council last March, in agreement with Western countries. The resolution was adopted after lengthy discussions held between the OIC and countries in which the phenomenon of Islamophobia is in the rise.
The U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had announced the intention of the U.S. State Department to organize a coordination meeting during her participation in the meeting which she co-chaired with the OIC Secretary General, Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu in Istanbul on 15 July 2011. The meeting issued a joint statement emphasizing the dire need for the implementation of resolution 16/18. … the two sides, in addition to other European parties, will hold a number of specialized meetings of experts in law and religion in order to finalize the legal aspect on how to better implement the UN resolution.
Full report at:
http://hotair.com/greenroom/archives/2011/08/05/us-state-department-to-coordinate-measures-against-religious-defamation/
URL: http://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/‘us-has-plan-ready-to-snatch-pak-nukes’/d/5198