Indonesia: Red Cross stays, says court

A small but significant victory in the war of ideals.  The Red Cross symbol is known world-wide, and removing or changing it is only done for the forwarding of Islam.  It may seem a small thing, but each little victory for Islam is another chunk of freedom and liberty gone for the non-Muslim.  Indonesia is a Muslim country, and this ruling is a welcome breeze in a storm of jihad.


From ASIANews Feb 27 by Mathias Hariyadi

Indonesian Red Cross does not give in to Islamist, cross remains in logo 

Jakarta (AsiaNews) - The Indonesian Red Cross (Palang Merah Indonesia or PMI in Indonesian) will 

never change the traditional logo that has made it famous around the world. The statement came following criticism from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), an Islamist party that says that the symbol of a red cross is too easily identifiable with Christian culture and traditions. Red Cross volunteers and activists reject the claim, saying that any changes to the logo are tantamount to giving in to the extremists. For former Vice President Jusuf Kalla, the demand is baseless.

PMI executive member Muhammad Muas said the logo was agreed to in the Geneva Convention of 1949, which Indonesia "officially ratified" and must respect.

The symbol is unrelated to Christianity. "Indonesia is a secular, not a Muslim-based state," he explained. It "is a state that respects pluralism".

A lie.  The official religion is Islam and sharia is the rule of law.  It's in their constitution.

Jusuf Kalla, a former vice president in Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's first administration, has backed the current logo in the past.

"We should have pride in the PMI's red colour," said the devout Muslim from South Sulawesi and former Golkar leader on the occasion of the 66^th anniversary of the organisation in September 2011.

For him, the Red Cross logo is internationally recognised and respected by all parties in warzones.

Some experts suggest that the demand to change the PMI symbol stems from the PKS's desire to link the Indonesian Red Cross to the Islamic Red Crescent.

Nightly Nigerian nonsense; Feb 28

From AFP/Yahoo Feb 27

Gunmen attack police station, bank in nothern Nigeria

Gunmen hurled explosives and fired at a police station and a nearby bank in a northern Nigeria town Monday in another of daily attacks blamed on Islamist sect Boko Haram, witnesses said.

The attack in Jama'are, a traditional emirate and town in the north of Bauchi state, occurred 24 hours after a similar assault in another northern Nigerian town in which three policemen were killed.

Residents said a large number of gunmen were involved in the attack, but were unclear about casualties.

"They arrived in cars and headed straight to the police station and a nearby bank, shooting and throwing explosives," said Tijjani Khalifa by phone from the town.

He said residents quickly moved indoors on hearing the sound of the explosions and gunshots.

"We don't know if there are casualties because everybody is at home," said another resident Muktar Dan-Abba.

Members of Boko Haram are thought to rob banks to fund their activities.

No officials were immediately available for comment.

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Pepsi jihad

Shandi Cola is "tasteless" and Shezan juice is Ahmadi owned, but Coca-Cola is just fine.  Pepsi, on the other hand, being part of the IZCTTOTW* is now banned.

What next, ban Skittles and guacamole?


From The Express Tribune Feb 26 by Rabia Mehmood

Banned drinks: No Shezan, Pepsi at Punjab University

  LAHORE: “Coca Cola converted to Islam a year or two back apparently, but not the other beverages, well not yet”, says Khalid* laughing. “Shezan is manufactured by Ahmadis so we can neither sell the beverage nor their jams, and Pepsi is still a Jewish drink, so it is banned.”

Khalid*, a canteen salesman at the new campus of Punjab University (PU) is referring to the unofficial ban on select beverages at the university campus by the the Islami Jamiat-e-Talba (IJT) — an ongoing  protest that was formulated after the publishing of controversial Danish caricatures of the Prophet (PBUH) in 2005.

The IJT, the student wing of the Jamat-e-Islami is known to interfere in the management of not just students affairs at Punjab University but the faculty as well. One duty the IJT assumes as its own is to control what is sold, where and to whom. Their control of such matters ensures that even while discussing regulations forced by the IJT on canteens, Khalid was scared of being seen speaking to this scribe or being overheard commenting against the IJT.

For years only “Shandy Cola” was allowed to be sold on campus, a drink that students found “tasteless”. Shezan a local product was also banned by the IJT because the manufacturers were Ahmadis. This ban on beverages was partially lifted in 2008, however, canteen workers, owners and students say beverage distributors pay the IJT for permission to sell specific products.

Javed Sami, Residential Officer Punjab University who is in charge of canteen contracts and what will be sold at the new campus claims “Shezan is not sold because it is not in demand any more. If you look around, many shops do not sell Shezan. That is why it is not available at the campus canteen.”

And it is not in demand anymore because...

The IJT cabinet’s new President Rai Haq Nawaz says “We just represent the students, and because Shezan is owned by Ahmadis, the students do not want it on campus and that is why we do not allow it.”

aka; "not Muslim enough"

Aside from banning beverages, the IJT also plays the role of moral police at PU. The reason why Muhammad Aslam* had to stop selling shawarmas at his tuck shop was because the IJT told him that “too many male and female students hang out” outside his shop and eating this food item was their excuse. Aslam, who has been running the tuck shop at PU’s new campus for 12 years says he could sense an ultimatum when given one from the IJT.

Given that he had been roughed up and had his shop closed down on more than one occasion, Aslam was forced to stop sale of shawarmas. Aslam claims that the reason he was targeted was because he asked members of the Jamiat cabinet to return Rs 18,000 which they owed him.

“They used the excuse of opposite sexes mingling to shut me up” said Aslam.

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Somalia: three dead at football match, Al-Shabaab suspected

To the three dead, it does not matter now who murdered them.


From AFP/Yahoo Feb 27

Blast kills three at Mogadishu football match

An explosion killed three people Monday at a football match in the war-torn Somali capital Mogadishu, police and medical officials said.

"A heavy explosion, presumably a roadside bomb, went off at thefootball pitch as the match was about to start. ... Three spectators were killed and seven others injured," police Colonel Abdi Mohamed said.

Witnesses said the blast occurred as spectators were arriving at a pitch in the southern Hararyale neighbourhood. One person was killed on the spot, while ambulance driver Mohamed Moalim said two died in hospital.

Abduhafid Bashir, a witness, said: "The explosion went off at a corner of the pitch before the game started. I saw the dead body of a young man."

No one claimed responsibility for the attack, but Islamist Shebab insurgents have carried out grenade and suicide attacks since abandoning bases in Mogadishu in August.

The insurgents have waged a brutal war to oust the Western-backed Somali government and a contingent of African Union forces protecting the weak transitional administration.

But the Al-Qaeda-linked rebels are now have been weakened since Kenya and Ethiopia deployed forces late last year to the lawless Horn of Africa country to defeat the insurgents they blame for causing insecurity in the region.

The Kenyan forces in the far south have carried out aerial and ground assaults against the extremist militia, while Ethiopian troops in the west last week wrested control of the southern Baidoa town from the rebels.

A missile strike last week also killed four Shebab rebels and destroyed their vehicle, reportedly carrying foreign fighters, some 60 kilometres (35 miles) south of Mogadishu.

France: Father tries to torch daughter for being "too emancipated"

France has a Muslim population of about 12%, and that enables Muslims to push for more accommodations and further implementation of sharia law.  Honor murders occur with greater frequency and vehemence as the population rises as well, and this instance is but the latest in the continuing spread of Islam.


From The Local Feb 27 by Matthew Warren

Father tries to set 23-year-old daughter alight

A man was being held by police on Monday after allegedly trying to set fire to his grown-up daughter in central Paris.

Le Parisien newspaper reported that the man sprayed teargas in the young woman's face and then covered her in petrol on Saturday evening.

The father was apparently annoyed that the woman planned to go out with a group of friends that evening and considered her "too emancipated".

The newspaper quoted a source describing him as a "Muslim fundamentalist."

Wow, one of the rare instances where the perp is actually identified factually.  I am impressed.

The 23-year-old daughter has a room in a building in the city's 11th arrondissement, close to the Place de la Bastille.

The 49-year-old man went there at around 11.30pm on Saturday evening and started arguing with her in the hall of the building.

He then attacked her with the teargas and poured petrol over her head and face, after which he pulled out a lighter, causing her to scream.

"She managed to grab the lighter from his hands while passers-by heard her screams," said a source close to the inquiry. "The man quickly made a run for it."

The woman told police her father had been harassing her for several weeks. "She explained he was unhappy that she had a Jewish boyfriend," said the source.

I would think seething anger would be more like it.

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There is a new taqiyya in town, and it's name is Tawriya

I just learned of this Islamic rule, and it is more deadly than taqiyya.  Known as Tawriya, it is a doctrine of true misrepresentation.  A frightening aspect of Islam previously unknown to most of us, including yours truly.  The article below is a beginning explanation of the concept, there will be more in the future and when it appears I will post it here.

Knowledge is power.


From raymondibrahim.com Feb 28 by Raymond Ibrahim


Tawriya: New Islamic Doctrine Permits 'Creative Lying'

Perhaps you have heard of taqiyya, the Muslim doctrine that allows lying in certain circumstances, primarily when Muslim minorities live under infidel authority. Now meet tawriya, a doctrine that allows lying in virtually allcircumstances—including to fellow Muslims and by swearing to Allah—provided the liar is creative enough to articulate his deceit in a way that is true to him. (Though tawriya is technically not "new"—as shall be seen, it has been part of Islamic law and tradition for centuries—it is certainly new to most non-Muslims, hence the need for this exposition and the word "new" in the title.)

The authoritative Hans Wehr Arabic-English Dictionary defines tawriya as, "hiding, concealment; dissemblance, dissimulation, hypocrisy; equivocation, ambiguity, double-entendre, allusion." Conjugates of the trilateral root of the word, w-r-y, appear in the Quran in the context of hiding or concealing something (e.g., 5:31, 7:26).

As a doctrine, "double-entendre" best describes tawriya's function. According to past and present Muslim scholars (several documented below), tawriya is when a speaker says something that means one thing to the listener, though the speaker means something else, and his words technically support this alternate meaning.

For example, if someone declares "I don't have a penny in my pocket," most listeners will assume the speaker has no money on him—though he might have dollar bills, just literally no pennies. Likewise, say a friend asks you, "Do you know where Mike is?" You do, but prefer not to divulge. So you say "No, I don't know"—but you keep in mind another Mike, whose whereabouts you really do not know.

All these are legitimate according to Sharia law and do not constitute "lying," which is otherwise forbidden in Islam, except in three cases: lying in war, lying to one's spouse, and lying in order to reconcile people. For these, Sharia permits Muslims to lie freely, without the strictures of tawriya, that is, without the need for creativity.

As for all other instances, in the words of Sheikh Muhammad Salih al-Munajid (based on scholarly consensus): "Tawriya is permissible under two conditions: 1) that the words used fit the hidden meaning; 2) that it does not lead to an injustice" ("injustice" as defined by Sharia, of course, not Western standards). Otherwise, it is permissible even for a Muslim to swear when lying through tawriya. Munajid, for example, cites a man who swears to Allah that he can only sleep under a roof (saqf); when the man is caught sleeping atop a roof, he exonerates himself by saying "by roof, I meant the open sky." This is legitimate. "After all," Munajid adds, "Quran 21:32 refers to the sky as a roof [saqf]."

Here is a recent example of tawriya in action: Because it is a "great sin" for Muslims to acknowledge Christmas, this sheikh counsels Muslims to tell Christians, "I wish you the best," whereby the latter might "understand it to mean you're wishing them best in terms of their [Christmas] celebration." But—here the wily sheikh giggles as he explains—"by saying I wish you the best, you mean in your heart I wish you become a Muslim."

As with most Muslim practices, tawriya is traced to Islam's prophet. After insisting Muslims "need" tawriya because it "saves them from lying," and thus sinning, Sheikh Uthman al-Khamis adds that Muhammad often used it. Indeed, Muhammad is recorded saying "Allah has commanded me to equivocate among the people inasmuch as he has commanded me to establish [religious] obligations"; and "I have been sent with obfuscation"; and "whoever lives his life in dissimulation dies a martyr" (Sami Mukaram, Al Taqiyya Fi Al Islam, London: Mu'assisat al-Turath al-Druzi, 2004, p. 30).

More specifically, in a canonical hadith, Muhammad said: "If any of you ever pass gas or soil yourselves during prayers [breaking wudu], hold your nose and leave" (Sunan Abu Dawud): Holding one's nose and leaving implies smelling something offensive—which is true—though people will think it was someone else who committed the offense.

Reads it all

I just wish I could go to Medina, dig up his grave, pull him out and set his bones or whatever of him remains on fire. I hate him, I hate him, I hate him from the core of my heart"

From our friend at Liberated, more on her continuing journey towards the light of freedom.

 The Bourne Supremacy
 Even when I was a Muslim, I often used to wonder why the hell these Muslims are so proud of themselves and their legacy. They have always taken it for granted that they would be the ones to enter heaven and the rest would burn in hell fire for eternity. I used to wonder how could the God almighty judge someone just based on their beliefs and not their good deeds. In school, my teachers used to tell us that no matter how many crimes a Muslim person committed, as long as he or she did not commit the unthinkable crime 'Shirk', he would eventually enter paradise, once he had done with his share of punishment in his temporary abode, the hell. In other words, a Muslim has a confirmed one way ticket to heaven, whereas a Non-Muslim is doomed to be in hell for eternity.

Last weekend, I was out of town visiting my uncle and his family for couple of days, and to say that it was sheer torture is an understatement. Each time I meet my family and relatives, I realize it more and more that they are totally nuts, psychopaths in fact, just like their cult leader Mo.  One day at breakfast my cousin was reading out some article about Bill Gates and his philanthropic acts. Between 2007 and 2011, he has spent 28 billion US dollars in charity and saved millions of lives. I was obviously very pleased and praised him wholeheartedly, to which my uncle said with a huge sigh, "It is a real pity that such good deeds of his will go in vain, because no matter what he does, he would eventually burn in hellfire for eternity unless he realizes the truth before he dies and says the shahada".  I was really shocked, to say the least. How could my favorite uncle, a top notch surgeon, say such a crappy thing about someone? Then I remembered that no matter how educated you are, once you are a Muslim, you are in some ways a brain dead zombie. As if there are two compartments in a Muslim man's mind: one deals with wordly affairs, logic, education, knowledge, intelligence and intellect, whereas the other compartment is totally one tracked, having an irrational obsession with Mohammed and his absurd idiosyncrasies. There was a lot that I wanted to say to my uncle, but then I thought, what the heck, it won't make a difference anyway, plus it would lead to an argument, which I did not want to get into lest I arouse his suspicion regarding my beliefs.

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No more free speech in Britain

It's gone, the last vestiges swept away in a cloud of politically correct dhimmitude.  A innocent statement, actually factual and in no way racist or bigoted gets you in very hot water, and the admonition that you are not allowed to say what you said, lest it be seen as hate speech.

We are doomed.


From the Telegraph Feb 26 by Jason Lewis

Fireman Sam creator detained at airport for veil comment at security gate

As David Jones arrived at the security gates at Gatwick airport, he was looking forward to getting through swiftly so he could enjoy lunch with his daughters before their flight.

Placing his belongings, including a scarf, into a tray to pass through the X-ray scanner he spotted a Muslim woman in hijab pass through the area without showing her face.

In a light-hearted aside to a security official who had been assisting him, he said: “If I was wearing this scarf over my face, I wonder what would happen.”

The quip proved to be a mistake. After passing through the gates, he was confronted by staff and accused of racism.

As his daughters, who had passed through security, waited in the departure lounge wondering where he was, he was subjected to a one hour stand-off as officials tried to force him to apologise.

Mr Jones, 67, who is the creator of the popular children’s character Fireman Sam, said: “Something like George Orwell’s 1984 now seems to have arrived in Gatwick airport.

"I feel that my rights as an individual have been violated. What I underwent amounts to intimidation and detention. I was humiliated and degraded in full public view.

"I am a 67-year-old pensioner and have lived my life within the law. I do not have even one point on my driving licence.”

He said that when he made his initial remark the security guard had appeared to agree with him, saying: “I know what you mean, but we have our rules, and you aren’t allowed to say that.”

As he went through the metal detecting arch, his artificial hip set off the alarm, prompting a full search from a guard. It was after this, and as he prepared to rejoin his two grown-up daughters, that he was confronted by another guard who said he was being detained because he had made an offensive remark.

“I repeated to her what I had said and told her that I had said nothing racist,” he said. “She took my passport and boarding pass and I was then escorted back through the security zone into the outer area. Here the female security guard proceeded to question me further, inferring many things that I had not said.

“It was impossible to get her to listen to reason. We were then joined by a second female security guard who stated that she was Muslim and was deeply distressed by my comment.

“I again stated that I had not made a racist remark but purely an observation that we were in a maximum security situation being searched thoroughly whilst a woman with her face covered walked through. I made no reference to race or religion. I did not swear or raise my voice.”

According to Mr Jones, who was due to board a British Airways flight to Portugal, where he now lives and runs a restaurant on the Algarve, the British Airways duty manager was then called in and sided with the security staff.

He continued: “I had now been detained for some time and my daughters were worried, calling me on my phone asking what was happening. We were going around in circles. I maintained that I had said nothing offensive and the security guard was continuing to accuse me. This had taken about 15-20 minutes and looked as though it was not going to be resolved.

“I asked the security guard if she was going to charge me to which she said no but I could not leave until I had apologised to the Muslim guard.

“At this point I asked for the attendance of a police officer. After some time he arrived but it was also plainly evident that he was keeping to the politically correct code. I told him that if there was a case then he should arrest me.

“I was told that we now live in a different time and some things are not to be said. They decided again that I would only be allowed to continue on my journey if I were to apologise to the Muslim guard. My reply was that as I had not made a racist remark it would be impossible for me to apologise.”

This restricted speech is coming to America unless we take these lessons from the soon to be Islamic British  Isles and wake up to the very real threat of censorship and the stifling of our right to say what we want.

Reads it all

"I will kill her under the stairs here, I will show you. I swear to my mother I will kill you, you are dirt."

Feel the love in Egypt from the rampant democracy of the "Arab Spring" as it flows from Muslims to Christians.


From AINA Feb 25 by Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

In Egypt, Christian-Muslim Tension Is On The Rise

Blackened rubble is all that is left of Abskharon Suleiman's appliance store in the northern Egyptian village of Sharbat.

Suleiman is a Coptic Christian, and his upstairs apartment, as well as his children's homes and shops, were gutted and looted in an attack last month by young Muslim men.

In Egypt, growing tensions between Muslims and Christians have led to sporadic violence. Many Egyptians blame the interreligious strife on hooligans taking advantage of absent or weak security forces. Others believe it's because of a deep-seated mistrust between Muslims and the minority Christian community.

The incident in the rural community of Sharbat started as most interreligious clashes in Egypt do -- with a rumor of an illicit liaison between members of different religious sects.

In this case, it was about a Coptic Christian man and Muslim woman, each of them married to someone else, explains Muslim merchant Magdy Abu Sheashaa.

He claims the man had suggestive photos of the woman on his phone, though neither he nor anyone else interviewed actually saw the pictures.

The rumor was enough to send a frenzied mob to the alleged offender's house on Jan. 27. That building was near Suleiman's property.

Abu Sheashaa says Suleiman's grown sons fired handguns into the air to try to disperse the crowd. The mob then shouted insults at the Coptic family and demanded they leave the village where they had lived for two decades.

"They threw rocks through the windows and set our building on fire. I was sure we were going to die," says Um Suleiman, the elderly wife of the merchant.

Police Didn't Act

Witnesses say police officers who came did nothing. Instead, Muslim neighbors and friends of Suleiman intervened. They formed a protective cordon around the Christians and brought them to Magdy Abu Sheashaa's home.

Abu Sheashaa says a group of Muslim elders later came to express their sympathy to his Coptic friend. But they also urged him to move out like the mob was demanding.

The elders said they felt it was no longer safe for Suleiman and his family to stay in Sharbat.

They stayed with Muslim friends for a while, then moved into a cramped apartment an hour's drive away.

Suleiman's eldest son says they want to go back home.

But they are afraid of being attacked again, he says, even though a committee sent by the Egyptian parliament decreed last week that the family has the right to live in Sharbat.

Ihab Ramzy, a Coptic Christian lawmaker who was a member of the committee, says he understands the family's fears.

Islamists Will Hold Power

Islamists won Egypt's recent parliamentary elections, and this has created a feeling of helplessness in the Coptic Christian community.

The Muslim Brotherhood, which is the strongest Islamist faction, has vowed to protect Christians and other minorities. And Egyptian experts and human rights activists say there is no evidence of any official or organized effort to terrorize Christians.

"Is there an extremist wave that is identifying Christians and trying to drive them out of Egypt? Personally, I doubt it, but you know, maybe I'm naive," says Mahmoud Sabit, an Egyptian historian who lives in Cairo.

Sabit says Copts get nervous when Islamist candidates talk about incorporating more Islamic law, or Shariah, into Egyptian society.

"So this I think is one of their great fears, is a reversal and suddenly finding themselves ... as second-class citizens," he says.

Most Copts, like the Suleiman family, refuse to discuss those fears publicly.

But last December on a talk show on Egyptian TV, a Christian caller who gave her name as Mervat accused the guest -- an ultra-conservative Salafist -- of trying to drive Christians out of Egypt.

The Coptic Christian caller accuses Hazem Salah Abu Ismail -- who is a presidential candidate -- of inciting hatred and violence by demanding women wear veils and Egyptians not drink alcohol. She argues that if Christians don't comply, they will be attacked.

There is more, read it all

Nigerian update-Feb 25

The latest round of jihad on what is usually seen as a spiritual day (Sunday.)


From the BBC Feb 26

Nigeria unrest: Suicide bomb targets church in Jos

A suicide car bomber has killed at least three people at a church in the troubled central Nigerian city of Jos, sparking reprisals by Christian youths.

Witnesses said the suicide bomber drove his car into the prominent Church of Christ during morning prayers.

The radical Islamist sect Boko Haram later said that it carried out the attack.

The bombing sparked a riot by Christian youths, with reports that at least two Muslims were killed in the violence.

The two men were dragged off their bikes after being stopped at a roadblock set up by the rioters, police said.

A row of Muslim-owned shops was also burned, an AFP reporter at the scene said.

President Goodluck Jonathan condemned the violence and appealed for calm.

"Those who seek to divide us by fear and terror will not succeed," he said in a statement.

"The indiscriminate bombing of Christians and Muslims is a threat to all peace-loving Nigerians."

'Very angry'

Earlier, the suicide bomber smashed his car through unmanned gates towards the packed church, killing a woman in the process, witnesses said.

The explosives detonated close to where members of the congregation were attending a Sunday service, killing a father and his child.

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Iran military commander says burning the White House will make everything all better

"Their apology can be accepted only by hanging their commanders; hanging their commanders means an apology"


Over the burning White House, I assume.




From Haaretz Feb 25

Iran military official: Only burning White House can make up for burning Koran

The Muslim world should not accept an apology issued by U.S. President Barack Obama over the burning of Korans in an American base in Afghanistan, a top Iranian military commander said on Saturday, adding that nothing short of "burning the White House can relieve the wound of us."

Obama's Thursday apology in a letter to Afghan President Hamid Karzai sought to quell spiraling furor among Afghans, who have been protesting the act for five straight days, after Afghan workers found charred copies of the Muslim holy book on a military base near Kabul.

According to White House spokesperson Jay Carney, while the apology was "wholly appropriate given the sensitivities" about treatment of the Koran, he said Obama's primary concern was "the safety of American men and women in Afghanistan, of our military and civilian personnel there."

Responding to Obama's apology on Saturday, the commander of Iran's Basij force Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqd claimed that the holy book was burned by U.S. forces over the heavy slap it has been given by Islam," urging Muslims worldwide to reject the American apology.

"Nothing but burning the White House can relieve the wound of us, the Muslims, caused by the Burning of Quran in the US," he said adding: "Their apology can be accepted only by hanging their commanders; hanging their commanders means an apology," he was quoted by the semi-official Fars news agency as saying.

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Afghanistan: 12 more die in Qur'an burning protests

The more we apologize, the greater Muslims anger becomes.  As we continue to show weakness more will die, and it is all due to the perpetually insulted religion, Islam.


From The Montreal Gazette Feb 25 by Mirwais Harooni and Hamid Shalizi

12 die protesting burned Quran

Twelve people were killed on Friday in the bloodiest day yet in protests that have raged across Afghanistan over the desecration of copies of the Muslim holy book at a NATO military base.

All of them Muslim.

Hundreds of Afghans marched towards the palace of Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Kabul, while on the other side of the capital protesters hoisted the white flag of the Taliban.

Chanting "Death to America!" and "Long live Islam!," protesters also threw rocks at police in Kabul.

Friday is a holy day and the official weekly holiday in Afghanistan and mosques in the capital drew large crowds, with police in pickup trucks posted on nearby streets.

Armed protesters took refuge in shops in the eastern part of the city, where they killed one demonstrator, said police at the scene. In another Kabul rally, police said they were unsure who fired the shots that killed a second protester.

Seven more protesters were killed in the western province of Herat, two more in eastern Khost province and one in the relatively peaceful northern Baghlan province, health and local officials said. In Herat, around 500 men charged at the U.S. consulate.

U.S. President Barack Obama had sent a letter to Karzai apologizing for the unintentional burning of the Qurans at NATO's main Bagram air base, north of Kabul, after Afghan labourers found charred copies while collecting rubbish.

Muslims consider the Quran to be the literal word of God and treat each copy with deep reverence. Desecration is considered one of the worst forms of blasphemy.

Yet the fact that the scorched Qur'ans had handwriting in them, blasphemous according to sharia law, seems not to be the core of their rage.  Hmmm...

Afghanistan wants NATO to put those responsible on public trial.

In other words, uphold sharia law.

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Hamas throws Assad under the bus, throws support to the rebels

The reason Hamas decided to hitch its wagon to the rebels are two-fold; Assad is a lame horse and not to be bet on, and the rising power of the rebels is based in traditional Islamic doctrine, or more sharia if you will.  If Hamas is to survive they must make new alliances.  This makes sense from a strategic point of view also; go with the one seen as the best option.

More sharia and more stringent application of Islam is the goal of both Hamas and the rebels.


From The Chicago Tribune Feb 24 by Omar Fahmy and Nidal al-Mughrabi


Hamas ditches Assad, backs Syrian revolt


CAIRO/GAZA, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Leaders of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas turned publicly against their long-time ally President Bashar al-Assad of Syria on Friday, endorsing the revolt aimed at overthrowing his dynastic rule.

The policy shift deprives Assad of one of his few remaining Sunni Muslim supporters in the Arab world and deepens his international isolation. It was announced in Hamas speeches at Friday prayers inCairo and a rally in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas went public after nearly a year of equivocating as Assad's army, largely led by fellow members of the president's Alawite sect, has crushed mainly Sunni protesters and rebels.

In a Middle East split along sectarian lines between Shi'ite and Sunni Islam, the public abandonment of Assad casts immediate questions over Hamas's future ties with its principal backer Iran, which has stuck by its ally Assad, as well as with Iran's fellow Shi'ite allies in Lebanon's Hezbollah movement.

"I salute all the nations of the Arab Spring and I salute the heroic people of Syria who are striving for freedom, democracy and reform," Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, visiting Egypt from the Gaza Strip, told thousands of Friday worshippers at Cairo's al-Azhar mosque.

"We are marching towards Syria, with millions of martyrs," chanted worshippers at al-Azhar, home to one of the Sunni world's highest seats of learning. "No Hezbollah and no Iran.

"The Syrian revolution is an Arab revolution."


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Libya: Islamists trash cemetery of WWII warriors

Boy, that rampant democracy from the "Arab Spring" is really turning out to be a new day for freedom.  And nothing says freedom and liberty than destroying gravestones of those who fought and died for Libya during WWII.


From The Daily Mail Feb 25

Insult to WWII heroes: Graves of British troops smashed and desecrated by Libyan Islamists in protest over U.S. soldiers' Koran burning

A furious mob has desecrated dozens of Commonwealth War Graves in a Libyan cemetery amid continuing fury in the Middle East over the burning of the Koran by U.S. soldiers.

Headstones commemorating British and Allied servicemen, killed during World War II campaigns in the Western Desert, lay smashed and strewn across Benghazi Military Cemetery.

Protesters rampaged through site on Friday, despite efforts by America to calm tensions sparked when it emerged U.S. soldiers had burned Muslim holy books in a pile of rubbish at a military base in Afghanistan.

President Obama has apologised to President Karzai for the unintentional burning of the Korans at NATO's main Bagram air base after Afghan labourers found charred copies while collecting rubbish.

White House spokesman Jay Carney sought to counter criticism, telling reporters on board Air Force One: ‘It is wholly appropriate, given the sensitivities to this issue, the understandable sensitivities.’

But it appears to have had little affect on sentiment among many in the Middle East.

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Nigerian update

Just one today.  Sadly, only one is still a very bad thing.


From BikyaMasr Feb 20 by Habiba Salihu

Blast at Nigeria church injures two

Abuja (dpa) – A bomb attack outside a church in Abuja on Sunday, suspected to be by Nigeria’s Boko Haram sect, has left at least two people seriously injured, the country’s National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said.

Several other worshipers were also hurt in the blast in the suburb of Sulieja.

Five cars were also badly damaged in the attack when a parked car filled with explosives detonated outside the Christ Embassy Church.

Witness Ngozi Favour told dpa that “the church service was still on-going when the car exploded, otherwise we would have suffered more casaulties.”

Sulieja is a volatile area known for previous attacks – including one during the 2011 presidential election at the Independent Electoral Office left scores dead.

Human rights organizations say more than 250 people have been killed since January in attacks carried out by the group.

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