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Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Somali pirates not Islamic enough, hardliners demand their share of the booty

Here is a great example of the difference between being an everyday jihadist and a true Islamist.  Jihadists practice violence to achieve Islamic goals, Islamists use the political Islam to get what they want.  Now the Islamists want what they see as a legitimate portion of the bounty collected from ransom demands.  Here is the Qur'anic justification for their demands(thanks to Jihad Watch)

"And know that whatever ye take as spoils of war, lo! a fifth thereof is for Allah, and for the messenger and for the kinsman (who hath need) and orphans and the needy and the wayfarer, if ye believe in Allah and that which We revealed unto Our slave on the Day of Discrimination, the day when the two armies met. And Allah is Able to do all things." -- Qur'an 8:41

The Islamists are well within the tenets of Islam to ask for such a percentage, and most likely the pirates, being Muslims themselves will accept the deal.  The pirates know better than to mess with their bretheren, and if they have to give up 20%, let it be for the greater good of Islam.  How the hostages will fare in this isn't going to be pretty.  More Islamists aboard the ship means greater peril for the innocents. 


From Reuters March 1 by Mohamed Ahmed and Abdi Sheikh

Somali Islamists want to do ransom deals on board

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somali Islamist rebels have demanded their fighters be allowed to board hijacked vessels anchored off the coastal town of Haradheere to monitor the payment and division of ransoms, escalating risks to hostages.

Islamists clamped down hard on piracy when they briefly ran much of Somalia in 2006, but with ransoms rising they now want a share of its earnings.

Hardline Islamist militants have surrounded the pirate base to pressure gang leaders and their investors into accepting the order, pirates and residents said on Monday, after a number tried to sail ships up the coast.

If rebels are allowed to board the vessels, hostages risk becoming stuck in the middle of dangerous rows or, worse, being kidnapped by al Shabaab rebels, who claim ties with al Qaeda.

Shipowners fear any proven link between pirates and Islamist fighters will make it legally difficult to pay ransoms without running foul of counter-terrorism legislation.

Legally difficult to pay ransom?  What the hell are they thinking?  How about treat this like the Barbary Coast Islamist pirates of the early 19th century and just blow them out of the water when they poke their heads out.

Pirates in Haradheere agreed last week to hand al Shabaab insurgents a 20 percent cut of ransoms but a deep distrust prevails between the two sides.

"They demanded we allow six of their fighters to board each of our hijacked ships. We have not left our houses since Wednesday. Worse, we are constantly receiving threatening text messages," he said, adding negotiations had begun again.

Owners of hijacked vessels usually air-drop cash onto the boats and then the pirates disembark.

There is more.  Read it all

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