Saudi Princess Responds to Charges of Antisemitism in Saudi Royal Family

From MEMRI

I posted here a top ten Arab conspiracy list by Steven Stalinsky. A Saudi Princess responds.

Saudi Princess Fahda: 'Anti-Saudi Campaign: Enough is Enough'

"Steven Stalinsky, executive director of the Middle East Media Research Institute, has published an article under the title 'The Royal Treatment, Anti-Semitism, that is.'

"He starts his piece with this statement: The Saudi royal family has been on the forefront in espousing an extreme position of hatred toward Jews... which influences the Kingdom's educational system and media and subsequently its foreign policy.

"He proceeds by citing examples of statements and policies of the leaders of this country since its inception which are against Jews and hence anti-Semitic. To be more clear about this issue, certain facts need to be stated. First, the writer of this article must have been in great hurry to publish it, as his references are a collection of pieces of articles taken out of their contexts.

I'm not convinced and neither is MEMRI.

"Saudi kings have also been known to espouse extreme antisemitic opinions. Saudi Princess Fahda bin Saud ibn Abd Al-Aziz, who has been described as 'the daughter of King Saud and the historian of her father's reign,' writes occasionally in the Saudi press on conspiracy theories against the Jews and America. She has written that her father's views on the Jews and the Jewish state still serve as inspiration for the Arab and Muslim world. In one article she authored, she explained that King Saud called the Jewish state a deadly disease which would never be accepted by Arabs: '… King Saud made the right diagnosis: 'The Zionist threat is like cancer — in dealing with it neither medicine nor surgery will do any good.' This royal statement was meant to emphasize that the Arabs do not, and will not, accept an Israeli state amidst them.' The article added that under the leadership of King Saud, the Saudi representative to the United Nations called for the U.N. to establish an agency 'to help resettle Jews [now in Israel] in their former European homes.'

"The late King Faisal was also notorious for making anti-Semitic statements. He told the Egyptian magazine Al-Musawwar in 1972, 'While I was in Paris on a visit, the police discovered five murdered children. Their blood had been drained, and it turned out that some Jews had murdered them in order to take their blood and mix it with the bread they eat on that day.'

"The Saudi royal family's hatred of the Jews is now influencing its next generation. Saudi Prince Amr Muhammad Al-Faisal writes often in the Saudi press articles warning Jews in America that eventually Americans will turn against them. In one article he declared: 'Dear cousins, if you hear a snap in two or three years, it will probably be the sound of the trap shutting on your collective necks. You have been warned.'

"Given that the Saudi royal family controls its country's press, mosques, and textbooks, they are clearly responsible for the hatred of Jews which has become closely associated with the Kingdom."

It gets worse for Air America

From Drudge Report

The CHICAGO TRIBUNE is planning to report in fresh editions: The company also failed to make its scheduled payroll, leaving its staff roughly 100 radio personalities, writers, and producers unpaid until Thursday.

Let them eat cake!

Air America Radio's Chairman Resigns

From News Max

The chairman and vice chairman of Air America Radio have resigned, dealing the latest setback to the fledgling liberal radio network headlined by comedian and author Al Franken.

The departures of Evan Cohen and his investment partner Rex Sorensen came just one week after the company said that co-founder Mark Walsh had stepped down as CEO to take a smaller role at the company. Last week the company also said it had forced out David Logan as head of programming.

Cohen declined to discuss the reasons for his departure Friday but confirmed that he was stepping down as chairman and as a member of the company's board. News of the departures, which occurred Thursday, was first reported in the Chicago Tribune.

Cohen also said Sorensen was leaving the company's board. He declined to say what he and Sorensen planned to do with their stakes in the venture. Jon Sinton, president of the company, did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

The continued management turmoil marked the latest growing pains for Air America Radio, which launched on March 31 with a slate of left-leaning political satire and commentary on current affairs.

Just two weeks after the network went on the air, a dispute with a business partner led to the network's signal being pulled from stations in Chicago and Los Angeles. The signal was later restored in Chicago, but the company said it was looking for a new business partner there.

Maybe nobody likes what they have to say.

Iran's extremes

On the one hand you have the mad mullahs and on the other...

Drink, drugs and sex on the slopes: the secret world of Iranian youth

From The Independent

In the ski resorts, life is more free than the socially restricted cities, drawing criticism from conservative parts of the establishment. Shemshak, the main resort town a 90-minute drive from Tehran, is known for illegal parties, where young men and women mix without supervision, drink alcohol and use drugs.

Shemshak is as far from the traditional image of Iran as you can get. Girls wear hats and ski jackets instead of the regulation scarves and long manteaus. The resort appears a declared area of truce in the public morality battle being waged between the young and the conservative elements in Iran. Here,the talk is of foreign holidays, parties and expensive clothes. A large four-wheel drive vehicle pulls up by the cabin entrance. The thumping beat of reggae washes over the car park and five languid young men step out, stretching, yawning and smoking. Their long hair, goatee beards and garish, chunky clothing define them as snowboarders.

"This is the place to be seen in the winter," says Ali Reza, an 18-year-old student from wealthy north Tehran. "Up here, nobody bothers us and we can really chill out on the snow."

While back in Tehran...

TEHRAN, Iran (Reuters) - Iran wants to team up with European states and Russia to produce enriched uranium, hoping that by involving them it can remove fears that it is developing nuclear arms, a senior official was quoted as saying Friday

From Reuters

Egyptian Music Video: Israel Destroyed Twin Towers

From Arutz Sheva

A vehemently anti-Israel and anti-America music video called "Hey Arabs Leaders" is the latest smash hit in Egypt and the Arab world. The Egyptian-produced video claims – among other things – that Israel destroyed the World Trade Center, and the US and Israel are divvying up the Arab world.

The following is a translation of some of the lyrics of the video, which was produced one month ago:

"...Two faces of the same coin, America and Israel.
They made the world a jungle and ignited the fuse.
America spread its wings, doesn't care at all.
No one can stop her, no one can catch her.
Soon he (Bush) will say Iran, then he will say Syria,
But he is silent about [North] Korea.
About that [Twin] Tower, oh people
Definitely! His friends [Israel] were the ones who brought it down.
What terrorism!! [Visual shows Sharon pushing the button]
How many years are left.
For America and Israel acting as bullies. . . "

To see the subtitled Egyptian video clip click here:
High Speed
Dial-up

The singer, Shaaban Abdul Rahim, was interviewed in the official PA daily Al Hayaat Al Jadida this week, and said that his feelings of hatred of Israel and the US were representative of the sentiments of the Arab world in general.

[...]

Shaaban: "I was asked to many parties in America for the Arab communities, and although it is worth a lot of money I will not go to America and I boycott even American cigarettes...I wrote the song 'I hate Israel' in 2000...we did not anticipate the greatness of the success

Hey! Shaaban baby! Can we have our $2 Billion a year back then?

[...]

The use of music and song to promote hatred among children is very common on Palestinian Authority TV. Palestinian Media Watch has documented such methods of incitement on PA TV extensively.

Cute, huh? So, tell me again, how long is the Israel-Palestinan conflict going to last?

'Bin Laden' tape offers gold rewards

A new recording attributed to Osama bin Laden is offering rewards in gold for killing top American and United Nations officials or citizens of any country which has troops in Iraq.

The 20-minute audio message, posted on two Islamist websites, promised 10kg (22lb) of gold for the death of Paul Bremer, the US administrator in Iraq, Kofi Annan, the UN secretary general, or Lakhdar Brahimi, the UN envoy to Iraq. At current gold prices, the reward would be worth around £70,000.

The speaker also offered a kilo of gold for killing a soldier or civilian from countries which are "possessors of the [UN security council] veto such as the Americans or Britons", and 500 grams for killing citizens of US allies, such as Japan or Italy.

"Due to the security situation, rewards will be handed over at the first possible opportunity," the voice said.

Excuse me there o great one who sits upon the camel dung heap. If Jihad is a "holy" war, why do you need to bribe the faithful to do your bidding? I guess dying to get at those 17 (the number keeps going up) virgins isn't as good a deal as some good ole hard cash.

Top ten Arab conspiracy theories

From National Review

Abd Al-Munim Said, head of the Al-Ahram Research Center in Egypt, once said: "We thought that by the end of the 20th century, the Arab mind would be open enough not to explain everything with a 'conspiracy theory'...the biggest problem with conspiracy theories is that they keep us not only from the truth but also from confronting our faults and problems...This way of thinking relates any given problem to external elements, and thus does not [lead] to a rational policy to confront the problem."

Steven Stalinsky goes on to list his top ten Arab conspiracy theories. What is really troubling about these theories is as Mr. Stalinsky says:

Since 9/11/01, conspiracy theories against the U.S., the Jews, and the Zionists have been rampant in the Arab world. These notions are spread not only by marginal personalities and media outlets, but, more important, by prominent members of mainstream governments and media.

And one of the worst ones is our old "friends", the Saudis.

1. After the bombing in Yunbu, Saudi Arabia, on May 1, Crown Prince Abdullah stated: "Zionism is behind terrorist actions in the kingdom. I can say that I am 95 percent sure of that."

As they say , with friends like that who needs enemies?

An interesting list and worth a read.

More calls for Sadr to leave Najaf

From The BBC

Militants of radical Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr should leave Najaf, another leading Shia cleric has urged.
Sheikh Sadreddin Kubanji told worshippers at Friday prayers in the holy city that "the Najafis will be responsible for protecting Najaf".

Mr Sadr meanwhile defied US troops' threats to arrest him, as he left Najaf and delivered a strong anti-US message.


[...]

"Listen to the advice of the learned ones, " Mr Kubanji told worshippers at Najaf's Imam Ali Mausoleum, one of the most revered shrines in Shia Islam.

"You are our beloved youth and we care about you, but go back to your home where you came from and fight the occupation and the Baathists there," the cleric said.

I doubt Falluja will want them back.

Mr Sadr left his base in Najaf surrounded by a large number of heavily armed gunmen, including at least one carrying an anti-aircraft gun, the Associated Press news agency reported.

US troops stationed around Najaf did not intervene.

Interesting. So what's the plan? Let the Iraqis take care of him? Maybe he will just burn himself out. If he has nowhere to go he will look less and less influential. There are reports that his followers have already started to desert him.

Is Canada headed for their own 9/11?

From VANCOUVER where Vancouver residents would suffer sleepless nights if they knew what he knows about terrorist threats, Vancouver police chief Jamie Graham said Wednesday.

To

Toronto
where "The first line of defense against terrorism is local law enforcement. And yet, the federal government have looked after federal agencies, the provincial government have looked after provincial agencies, and we're left with nothing. We've got no help at all," Chief Fantino said, adding, "We are the people who should have the best training, the best resources and yet we're basically left to our own devices. We'd be reliant on someone else to bail us out."


Canada doesn't seem to worry too much about Al-Qaeda despite being number six on their list of targets and two recent warnings from the terrorist organization.

Now comes this article from The Star.

It's just a matter of time before Al Qaeda tries to attack Canadian targets, the head of Canada's spy agency said Thursday as he warned against complacency.

Ward Elcock, director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, told MPs at a Commons committee meeting that Canada is not immune to terrorism.

"As Al Qaeda directly threatened Canadians twice in as many years, the last time only a month ago, it is therefore safe to assume that it is no longer a question of if, but rather of when or where, we will be specifically targeted," said Elcock, whose term with the spy agency ends this month.

Not only are they not worried about Al-Qaeda but they seem to not have been watching the 911 commission. Just listen.

Public Security Minister Anne McLellan wouldn't go as far as Elcock, but said attacks were possible.

"I'm not sure that I would say it's inevitable," said McLellan.

"I can reassure Canadians that we are not the target of any direct or specific threat at this time."

But John Thompson, a security expert with the Mackenzie Institute, said Elcock's assessment was fair.

Oh well, I suppose after the attack, they will just have their own 911 commission and decide who knew what and when and what did they do about it.

All this is taking place at a time when:

Canada prepares to enforce Islamic law

From World Net Daily

Canadian judges soon will be enforcing Islamic law, or Sharia, in disputes between Muslims, possibly paving the way to one day administering criminal sentences, such as stoning women caught in adultery Link here

Some people have to learn the hard way.

Oregon attorney held in connection with Madrid bombings

From CNN

A lawyer in Portland, Oregon, has been taken into custody by the FBI in connection with the March 11 terror attacks in Madrid, law enforcement sources told CNN.

Attorney Brandon Mayfield's detention on Thursday was based on information from Spanish authorities that the lawyer -- who the sources said had converted to Islam -- may have been involved in the train bombings that killed 190 people.


[...]

Mayfield represented one of the chief defendants in the so-called "Portland Seven" terror case in a custody battle.

Six members of the alleged Portland terror cell pleaded guilty in October of plotting to fight with the Taliban against the United States in Afghanistan.

Too early to tell what this is all about but if it is true this is real bad.

Likely 'Dirty Bomb' Material Seized in Ukraine

From Fox News

KIEV, Ukraine — Ukrainian security forces seized nearly 375 pounds of a radioactive material seen as a likely ingredient for a "dirty bomb" (search), authorities said Thursday.

[...]

Cesium-137, a highly radioactive material, is used in soil-testing gauges in construction and is found in photoelectric batteries and vacuum valves. It explodes if it comes into contact with water, and exposure to it can cause blood diseases, sterility and birth defects.

Police and state security agents acted on a tip-off that two buyers from the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, were ready to purchase cesium at an estimated price of $60,000 per container, Kondratyev said. Each container seized weighed more than 187 pounds, he said.

Only a matter of time.

Record number of computer viruses?

I've had to do some work in "the real world" the last few days and yesterday takes the cake.

Let me know if you have heard worse.

This guys is running Windows XP with broadband for about a year and never had a firewall or virus protection enabled. I could barely navigate on the system. I managed to get a print out of the process running. He had 34 programs in startup and 13 of those I could definitely identify as viruses. There were several suspicious programs running but I figured after 13 confirmed viruses, what did it matter.

He couldn't find his recovery DVD so I don't know how he got on after I left.

I feel sorry for those in his address book. Just another reason worms and viruses spread so quickly.

An Al Qaeda 'Chemist' and the Quest for Ricin

From Washington Post via Jihad Watch

You have to register for the Post but Jihad has posted most of the article.

Last month I posted this article titled "Al-Qaeda attack soon and it will be chemical!". The article mentioned Menad Benchellali, known as "the chemist".

Today the Washington Post has a much more detailed look at Al-Qaeda's quest for chemical weapons.

LYON, France -- Menad Benchellali, thin and bearded, was known among his Arab friends as "the chemist" because of the special skills he learned at al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan. When he returned to his native France in 2001, according to investigators, he set up a laboratory in his parents' spare bedroom and began to manufacture ricin, one of the deadliest known substances.

UNSCAM cast of characters grows

From New Zealand Herald

An Iraqi official said today there was a list of cash bribes made by Saddam Hussein's government to journalists, politicians and groups in connection with the US$67 billion ($108.92 billion) UN-run oil-for-food programme.

Jalal Talabani, a Kurdish member of the Iraqi Governing Council, said Iraqi officials combing Saddam's files had not decided whether to release the list as part of a burgeoning scandal over the defunct programme.

"We have a list of cash paid to journalists, personalities, groups and parties," Talabani told a news conference after conferring with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan over an Iraqi interim government.

A separate, previously released list contains the names of more than 250 individuals, business, politicians and other groups alleged to have received vouchers for oil they could sell.

Note that this is a new list.

al-Sadr losing support

I recently posted here about:

Some of Iraq's most important Shiite Muslim leaders called Tuesday for Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his armed followers to abandon two holy cities they are using for sanctuary to avoid a potentially devastating U.S. attack.

Now The New York Times is running the story.

Now I wonder why the BBC and Guardian will not run this story?

UN scandal - the plot thickens

From Opinion Journal

'We Have Other Priorities'
Why won't the U.N. answer questions about its Iraq scandal?

BY CLAUDIA ROSETT
Wednesday, May 5, 2004 12:01 a.m. EDT

The harder the United Nations tries to keep a lid on Oil for Food, the more the scandal keeps boiling over. This past Sunday Secretary-General Kofi Annan appeared on "Meet the Press," rejecting as "outrageous" allegations that this graft-ridden U.N. relief program for Iraq had helped prop up Saddam Hussein's regime, and denying that the U.N. has made any attempt at a coverup. Asked by host Tim Russert why only a portion of the documentation requested of the U.N. by the U.S. General Accounting Office had been turned over, Mr. Annan protested: "We are open. We are transparent."

That sounded lame enough, coming just after Mr. Russert on national TV had flourished in front of Mr. Annan a letter sent by Mr. Annan's own Secretariat on April 14, advising one of the pivotal Oil for Food contractors, Saybolt International--which oversaw Saddam's oil exports--to keep quiet.

Now investigators for the House International Relations Committee have dug up a second hush letter, this one dated April 2, sent by the U.N. to yet another crucial Oil for Food contractor: Cotecna Inspections. This is the company that for the last five years of the seven-year program held the U.N. contract for the sensitive job of authenticating all goods being shipped into Iraq under Oil for Food--and was recommended last October by Oil for Food's executive director, Benon Sevan, for the work it is still doing in Iraq for the Coalition Provisional Authority. (Cotecna is also the company that for the better part of three years before winning its slot in the Oil for Food program, in December, 1998, employed Mr. Annan's son, Kojo Annan, first on staff and then as a consultant, a potential conflict of interest that the U.N. did not declare.)

[...]

In other words, in the interval between March 19, when Mr. Annan finally conceded in the face of overwhelming evidence that the program might after all need investigating by independent experts, and April 21, when former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker was appointed to head to the investigation, Mr. Annan's office explicitly reminded these two crucial contractors, which worked for the Secretariat's Oil for Food program checking the imports and exports involved in more than $100 billion worth of Saddam's oil sales and relief imports, to keep quiet.

There's more.

Irans part in Iraqi unrest

From MEMRI

Introduction

With the downfall of its nemesis Saddam Hussein, Iran can now pursue two principal objectives in Iraq: the first is to stir up problems for the Americans to keep them pinned down and divert their attention from its nuclear program. The second is to assert its influence over the Hawza, or the Shi'a religious centers in the two holy cities of Najaf and Karbala,and to prevent the emergence in these cities of an independent religious and spiritual leadership competing with the Iranian city of Qum.

In a Friday sermon on April 9, delivered at Tehran University amid shouts of "Death to America, Death to Israel," Expediency Council head Hashemi Rafsanjani said: "The present situation in Iraq represents a threat as well as an opportunity… It is a threat because the wounded American beast can take enraged actions, but it is also an opportunity to teach this beast a lesson so it won't attack another country." [1]

[...]

Al-Sadr's Visit to Iran

The young Iraqi Shi'a revolutionary cleric and rabble rouser Muqtada Al-Sadr has visited Iran in 2004 as a guest of the Revolutionary Guard. During his visit, Al-Sadr met with Hashemi Rafsanjani, head of the Expediency Council, as well as the head of the revolutionary guard intelligence, Murtadha Radha'i, and the commander of the Al-Quds Army responsible for Iraqi affairs, Brig.-General Qassim Suleimani, and other government and religious leaders. [3]

Training Camps for Al-Sadr's Supporters

A source in the Al-Quds Army of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard revealed to the London daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat information relating to the construction of three camps and training centers on the Iranian-Iraqi borders to train elements of the "Mehdi Army" founded by Muqtada Al-Sadr. The source estimated that between 800 and 1200 young supporters of Al-Sadr have received military training including guerilla warfare, the production of bombs and explosives, the use of small arms, reconnoitering, and espionage. The three camps were located in Qasr Shireen, 'Ilam, and Hamid, bordering southern Iraq which is inhabited largely by Shi'a Muslims.

The newspaper also reported that the Iranian Embassy in Baghdad has distributed 400 satellite phones to supporters of Al-Sadr and to clerics and students at the A'thamiyya district of Baghdad, Al-Sadr City, and in Najaf, all of which are inhabited predominantly by Shi'a Muslims.

The Iranian source, known in Iraq as "Abu Hayder," confirmed that the intelligence service of the Revolutionary Guards has introduced to the Shi'a cities radio and TV broadcasting facilities which are used by Al-Sadr and his supporters. [4]


Much more.

Friends of Saddam

Friends of Saddam is a blog dedicated to keeping on top of the UN oil-for-food scandal (UNscam).

I wonder why the BBC does not cover this scandal. I know why the Guardian doesn't.

A Million thanks to the US Military

From A Million Thanks

Our Mission

To show our U.S. Military Men and Women, past and present, our appreciation for their sacrifices, dedication, and service to our country as part of National Military Appreciation Month, May, 2004.

Just click on a link to send an email of support! Easy.

Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) taken to task

I posted this several days ago about the BBC being duped by this organization.

Now Cori has a great round up of what CAIR is up to. Follow all the links and get a good view of who these people really are.

Here is a quote from one of her links.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations won't condemn Muslim fanatics, but it has declared war on outspoken Americans who will.

CAIR, which calls itself "America's largest Islamic civil liberties group," has lately focused its wrath on conservative radio talk-show hosts. A new report by the group released this week attempts to tie talk radio to a dubious "sharp jump" in (self-reported) "Islamophobic hate crimes" in the United States.

CAIR fights dirty -- fabricating quotes, taking comments out of context, indulging in the cult of victimology and exploiting a gullibly sympathetic press. By manufacturing an anti-Muslim hate epidemic that doesn't exist, CAIR obfuscates its own suspicious role in fomenting anti-American extremism.

The most recent target of CAIR's campaign to stifle critics of radical Islam is Boston-based radio talk show veteran Jay Severin. On April 23, CAIR issued a press release headlined: "Boston Radio Host Says Kill All Muslims; Islamic Civil Rights Group Calls for Host's Termination."

On April 25, the Boston Globe parroted the charges in a story that quoted CAIR spokeswoman Rabiah Ahmed accusing Severin of saying on his show, "I've got an idea, let's kill all Muslims."

Just one teensy problem with the story. It wasn't true. On April 27, the Globe was forced to publish a correction admitting that Severin never said "kill all Muslims." CAIR, however, has refused to admit the fabrication and continues to call for Severin's termination.

So, the next time you read about CAIR you will know where they are really coming from.

Blogger beats the BBC

Your humble servant has won a small victory against the BBC.

earlier I posted this article about the BBC using an anti-war activist named Jo Wilding as a source for their reporting.

I am proud to announce that due to my complaints the misleading article has now been amended and all reference to Jo Wilding has been omitted.

Here is the BBC response to my email.

Dear Mr Landers,
Many thanks for your e-mail regarding Jo Wilder's piece on the 'Iraq: Your experiences' page. All e-mails on our pages are vetted before publication, however her background had not been made clear to us and, therefore, we have now removed it from the piece.

Many thanks for drawing our attention to this oversight and we apologise if we have misled you on the issue. I hope this does not prevent you from reading our site in the future.

Kind regards,

Sarah Brown
Broadcast Journalist
BBC News Online
www.bbcnews.com
sarah.brown.01@bbc.co.uk


Fantastic! If we could only get them to remove the rigged poll so easily.

Did you notice they misspelled her name? It is Wilding not Wilder. Joan Wilder was the name of the leading lady in "Romancing the Stone" and the sequel. Oh, well, I tried.

Also note that Ms Brown says that Ms Wlding's background had not been made clear to them. Oh, contraire! I emailed the BBC many times and the BBC has ran articles from her before.

One small step for a blogger, one giant leap for the blogsphere!

EU faces nuclear terror threat

From The Guardian

Osama bin Laden or like-minded terrorists could kill thousands of people and wreak global havoc by detonating a crude nuclear device in the heart of Europe, security experts warned yesterday.
"We are in a race between cooperation and catastrophe," said the former US senator Sam Nunn, who helped organise Black Dawn, a war-gaming exercise conducted by the EU, Nato and others.

[...]

In the second part they were confronted with computer projections and video displays illustrating the impact of a 10-kilotonne device exploding at Nato's sprawling headquarters near Brussels airport.

The notional attack immediately killed 40,000 people and injured 300,000, swamping hospitals, as a radiation cloud spread panic across Belgium and the Netherlands and plunged the world economy into turmoil.

[...]

Rolf Ekeus, a former head of the UN weapons inspectors in Iraq, warned that Europe could be a prime target for nuclear terrorists because of the ease with which extremists could hide and recruit in the Muslim communities, and because Russian nuclear material could be more easily smuggled into Europe than the US.

"Europe has become the breeding ground, the place where planning for terrorism takes place," he said.

Not a pretty picture.

Shiite leaders call on al-Sadr to leave

From Twin Cities

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Some of Iraq's most important Shiite Muslim leaders called Tuesday for Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his armed followers to abandon two holy cities they are using for sanctuary to avoid a potentially devastating U.S. attack.

The plea, which included a call for U.S. troops to remain outside the cities, represents the most public attempt to date by Iraq's mainstream Shiite leadership to resolve a 5-week-old standoff between al-Sadr and occupation officials. It comes at a time when U.S. officials are counting increasingly on Iraqis to assume responsibility for the country's security before sovereignty is handed them next month.

A 21-member committee of Shiite tribal, religious and political leaders hopes to broker a deal that would allow al-Sadr, who is wanted by U.S. authorities on murder charges, to leave Karbala and the city of Najaf, where he has hunkered down for several weeks. Najaf is home to the shrine of Ali, Iraq's holiest Shiite site, and recent fighting around the city between al-Sadr's militia and U.S. forces has placed it in jeopardy.

American good deeds in Iraq

Recently I posted this article about "Spirit of America appeal raises staggering $1.5 million!"

In case you missed it, Jim Hake set out to raise $100,000 to buy some TV equipment - to let local Iraqi stations air local news. Much of that news is good, but much as the news of gang shootings in Pico-Union creates panic in West Los Angeles, the bad news there tends to drive out the good. Allowing some old-fashioned local news coverage - of rescuers working to save girls stuck in wells, local sports heroes, all the banal stuff that everyday life is so deliciously made up from - offers the chance to remind people that life is not sliding downhill quite the way some might fear

Now from Fox News comes this:

Young Iraqi Cancer Patient Needs Help Fast

Nicknamed Una, the 15-year-old girl has an aggressive form of cancer in her brain stem. In just three months, the disease has wracked her body and she struggles to move and even talk. And she needs help fast.

"The local doctors advised me to take her home and wait," Una's father said. "There is nothing more they could do."

But Una's parents didn't give up. They got the Minister of Health involved, who got the attention of U.S.-led coalition officials, who turned to American doctors at the military's combat hospital in Baghdad.

Coalition doctors performed emergency surgery to relieve the pressure in Una's brain but it did nothing for the tumor, which if untreated, will kill the tenth grader in weeks. But with specialized surgery and radiation available in the United States, however, Una may get another 10 years of life or more.

Una's father said through a translator that he had never had any dealings with Americans before but that what he saw in the movies "was real. That Americans don't hesitate to do what's asked of them."

This is the real "Spirit of America", not the prisoner abuses we are hearing so much about.

People interested in contributing to travel and living expenses for Una and her family can make donations to:

Una Fund

c/o Thomas C. Ruff Jr. & Assoc., Atty.

201 McCullough Drive, Suite 130

Charlotte, NC 28262

Who are the good and bad guys in Iraq?

Deroy Murdock writing in The National Review has some insight.

“Death to America," read the English-language sign that a young Iraqi waved before a TV camera in mid-April. I wondered if he had any inkling what Americans and others were doing in his country before they were kidnapped or murdered.

Did this Iraqi know, for instance, that the four U.S. contractors who were killed, burned, and mutilated in Fallujah on March 30 neither built rape camps nor forcibly converted Muslims to Christianity? In fact, they protected food convoys so Iraqis might eat.

Was this, or any, Iraqi aware that the April 11 slaying of Danish businessman Henrik Frandsen ended his efforts to launch a sewage project?

Last month's abduction (and subsequent release) of Russian electrical workers kept them from repairing Iraqi power plants. The Kremlin's resulting evacuation of 800 Russian civilian contractors won't help, either.

U.S. truck driver Thomas Hamill, who Sunday escaped his terrorist captors for the safety of a U.S. military patrol, delivered zero fuel within Iraq after he was nabbed April 9 on Highway 10 outside Baghdad.

As a 550-pound truck bomb leveled the United Nations' Baghdad headquarters last August 22, diplomats were discussing how to clear landmines from Iraq's sands so citizens could walk freely without having their legs blown off. Instead, U.N. officials' legs were blown off. Terrorists killed 22 there that day.

From Basra to Berkeley, war critics denounce the Coalition forces' "occupation" of Iraq. They forget (or resent) that this remains a mission to modernize that nation and reverse 35 years of Baathist tyranny.

"We are trying to reconstruct the country," Great Britain's ever-eloquent prime minister Tony Blair told NBC's Tom Brokaw April 16. "Now, why are these people trying to stop us? They're trying to stop us because they can see that if we're allowed to continue this progress, then everything they stand for is defeated."

[...]

Amid this confusion, Iraqis and Americans alike need to be reminded that we and our Coalition partners are protagonists, trying against steep odds to bring freedom, peace and prosperity to a people tormented by more than three decades of Arab fascism. Our enemies impede food, sewage treatment, electricity, fuel, and even landmine removal.

At home and abroad — in English, Arabic, and every language in which America communicates — this message cannot be made clear enough.

You will not see any of this on the BBC.

Iraq lost or is the press?

The press would have you believe that the entire country of Iraq has gone to hell in a hand basket.

One jounalist doesn't think so.

AMIR TAHERI writes in The New York Post via
Cori

May 4, 2004 -- WHAT to do about Iraq? I was bombarded with this question during a recent visit to the United States.

The question is based on two assumptions. First, that Iraq is about to plunge into one of the nightmare scenarios discussed by self-styled experts on TV. Second, that there is some kind of magic wand that one could wave to transform Iraq into a paradise of freedom and prosperity.

Both assumptions are false.

The nightmares are often peddled by those who had opposed the liberation because they didn't wish to see a U.S.-led coalition bring down a Third World dictator. The doomsayers' initial prediction was that, deprived of its oppressor, Iraq would plunge into civil war. That has not happened, so they now warn of chaos, and predict a nationwide insurrection against the Coalition.

But is Iraq really plunging into chaos? Anyone in contact with Iraqi realities would know that the answer is: No.

[...]

The Coalition faces a problem in Fallujah. But Fallujah accounts for no more than 4 percent of Iraq's Sunni Arab community. Other major Sunni cities - Mosul, Ramadi, even Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's hometown - remain calm.

[...]

Those who claim that Iraq is in chaos also point to Najaf, where Muqtada al-Sadr, a 30-year-old Shiite cleric, is hiding in a number of holy shrines and mosques along with his so-called Army of the Mahdi. But talk to anyone in Najaf and you'll soon know that the overwhelming majority of the city's population wants Sadr to get the hell out. (After more than two weeks of contacts with Iraqi Shiite leaders and opinion-makers at various levels, this writer has not found anyone who supports Sadr and his shenanigans.)

Sadr is abusing the old Shiite practice of "bast," which consists of taking sanctuary in a holy shrine. But Najaf is a city of 500,000 people, while Sadr's followers number 3,000 at most.

[...]

The Coalition would do well not to force its way into either Fallujah or Najaf. In each, it faces a group of armed men holding larger civilian populations hostage. In Fallujah, the insurgent Ba'athists are using Saddam's typical tactic of using human shields. In Najaf, Sadr and his gang use the Shiite shrines for the same purpose.

There is no nationwide insurrection in Iraq. Nor is Iraq suffering from a general breakdown in law and order. To be sure, it is no bed of roses. But the violence and insecurity are within the remit of normal in a post-liberation situation, and remain manageable.

The whole article is well worth a read. As is Cori's take.

Lite blogging last few days

Sorry about the lite blogging last few days but I have had to do some work in the "real world". Hopefully back to normal shortly.

Complaint to the BBC

Here is the email I sent to the BBC.

Do you people even read these emails?

Once again you are using Jo Wilding is a source for an article on Falluja. In the article you call her "an aid worker" when you know full well she is a well known anti-war activist.

There is not one bit of evidence to back up her outlandish claims. In fact there is evidence to counter her claim.

You and Ms Wilding are inflaming the situation in Falluja and Iraq and you are putting lives at risk.

I demand you take out the outlandish claims by Ms Wilding and that you stop referring to her as "an aid worker".

BBC uses anti-War activist as source in Iraq - again!

From The BBC

To begin the series, here is a letter from Jo, an aid worker in the Iraqi town of Falluja who recalls helping in ambulances over Easter weekend.

In an
earlier post I exposed this so called "aid worker" as none other than Jo Wilding, a well known anti-War activist that was once arrested for attacking Tony Blair.

Now the BBC is using Ms Wilding to kick off an online discussion "War in Iraq: Your experiences". The BBC purposely used an anti-War activist statements to open the discussions. Why not leave it up to the readers to start the discussion with a good or bad experience? Because the BBC want to taint the discussion from the start.

There is not once piece of evidence to back up her claims. I wrote an
earlier post to refute these shootings at ambulance claims.

SPECIAL NOTE: I recently wrote an article condemning the BBC for using an anti-war activist as the prime source for some outlandish claims about US forces.

The source, a well known anti-war activist, claimed that in Falluja, the scene of the fighting above, she saw "US gunmen firing at ambulances and civilians."

Note this paragraph in Hider's story.

In the midst of the firefight, with the armoured vehicle's munitions blowing up, an ambulance pulled up. The Marines thought they were being rescued. Instead, 15 men with RPGs jumped out and started firing.

Believe who you want. Personally, I'll believe a Marine fighting for his life over an anti-war activist fighting for publicity anytime.

One of my readers suggested this actually backed up Ms Wilding's story because if the bad guys were using ambulances this way it would make sense for the Marines to fire on them. The Marines would be entitled to shoot on the ambulances under the rules of war.

I disagree with my reader because of the Marines statement. Read it carefully. He says "an ambulance pulled up. The Marines thought they were being rescued. Instead, 15 men with RPGs jumped out and started firing". Notice he says the ambulance pulled up and then the bad guys got out. He sounds surprised they were in the ambulance. But if the Marines had been firing at ambulances as Ms Wilding claims why would this Marine be surprisedd that bad guys got out of one?

The BBC knows full well the extent of Ms Wilding's anti-War activities - I told them. I'm sure they knew already because they have reported on her before. As part of her Falluja nonsense she originally claimed and the BBC published that she had been kidnapped in Falluja. The BBC quickly dropped that part of their story when it could not be corroborated and they should not run this garbage from her for the same reason. Calling her an "aid worker" when they know full well who she really is journalism at its worst.

Do a Google search on Ms Wilding and you will find a tremendous amount of anti-war writings and activities. This is no mere peace protester. This is a wannabe jounalist trying to get as much publicity as she can.

I will once again write to the BBC to complain - fat lot of good it does.

The BBC have learned nothing from their past mistakes and continue to thumb their noses at the public. I urge all of you to write or call them to stop this nonsense. Fabrications like Ms Wildings inflame the situation in Falluja, in Iraq and indeed around the world. Her actions are putting lives at risk and the BBC are helping her do it.

Shame on the BBC.

National Guard Holds On to Recruits

From Fox News

Army National Guard recruiters across the country say that so far, the unprecedented levels of guard deployment into theaters of violent conflict for tours of 12 months or longer have not had a negative impact on recruitment and retention levels.

"There hasn’t been any impact to date," said Lt. Col. Dennis Devery, spokesman for the New Jersey Army National Guard, which has about 1,500 troops mobilized for service out of a force of 6,200.

"If we get 100 personnel per month, then we’re doing OK, and we’ve had that for the last six months, so that is a plus for our side," Devery said. "We’re on track."

And all the regular military forces say retention is up.

BBC and CNN duped by terror linked organization

I posted earlier on CNN being duped by The Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair) into publishing figures about so called Muslim abuses in the US.

Now The BBC reprints the story.

However, the report said the jump in complaints also reflected an increase in the number of regional offices of the Washington-based group, allowing more cases to be recorded

No, this just allows them to make up more numbers.

Both are so quick to publish "the story" they don't even bother to check the organization out. If they had they would have found all the terror links.

Diplomats' scathing letter to Blair

From The BBC

Inevitably the ex-diplomats have already been dismissed as "Foreign Office Arabists", in retirement, and well known for particular views of British Middle East policy.

Maybe that is because so many of them have ties to the Middle East.

From Harry's Place

Remember the 52 former UK diplomats who signed a letter to Tony Blair advising him to stop supporting America's "doomed" policies in the Middle East?

According to The Telegraph, a number of those ex-diplomats have business links to the Arab world.

About the iniator of the letter, former ambassador to Libya Oliver Miles, The Telegraph reports:

Mr Miles is the chairman and a director of the London-based MEC International, which promotes business opportunities in the Middle East. He has a 10 per cent holding in the company and although he draws no actual salary he will receive £10,000 this year in consultancy fees from the firm.

According to the company's website, MEC has been commissioned to produce reports for the Saudi Arabian Export Promotions Board and the Gulf Co-operation Council. An offshoot of the firm, called AIM, has carried out work for the government of Bahrain.

The website also lists the Arab Gulf Co-operation Council, the Arab League and the National Bank of Egypt as among MEC's clients.

More with links at Harry's site.

The Thulfiqar Army and Muqtada al-Sadr

From Dust in the Light via InstaPundit

Reference my earlier post, same subject.

Most readers following the blog world's surfing maneuvers on last week's wave of dourness from the mainstream media will have come across the Belmont Club's take on the supposed "retreat" from Fallujah:

Although the appearance of the Fallujah Protection Army (FPA) and its effects still remain to be seen, the mystery of it origins has been solved at last. It appears to be a creature of the Marines themselves, tricked out in Iraqi uniform. This would go a long way toward explaining the kind of training Marines were providing to Iraqis in southeastern industrial area of the city. They were training locals who will be assigned police duties. ...

If this interpretation proves to be accurate, it will have flowed directly from the basic operational requirements of Valiant Resolve. The goals of that operation would have been to root out enemy cells in Fallujah without massacring everyone in the city. This had to be accomplished against an active resistance schooled in the methods which brought the Russians to grief in Grozny. All with the final goal of wresting control of Fallujah from its gang leaders into the hands of an American-controlled Iraqi administration.

Yesterday, Belmont Club found some supporting evidence for the thesis (although nothing's conclusive yet, of course). As an afterthought, he mentions the Thulfiqar Army.

It is a long article with many links but well worth a read.

Portland Indymedia advocates US soldiers kill their officers.

From Portland Indymedia via LT Smash

Write a letter to a soldier to let him/her know what people really think of this war. Send a photo of a dead Iraqi civilian. Send a photo or message about an anti-war protest.

I found this organization Soldiers Angels maybe there are others. Outreach to soldiers is the best way to persuade them to stop killing civilians. Maybe they will even begin fragging (killing their officers) like in Vietnam. It's worth a try. At least send your newly adopted soldier some real news instead of the Stars and Stripes propaganda they hear 24/7.

Here's a suggestion: Make nice the first time you contact your soldier. Then send anti-war information or whatever. Once you have the address/name and build a relationship your mail will get through. The first time it may not if it's clearly anti-war that's why it might work best to make nice at first.

Isn't there a law against this sort of thing? What a bunch of morons.

Are Arab countries finally getting the message?

From Fox News

Car bombings in Saudi Arabia. A chilling tale of a foiled Al Qaeda plot in Jordan. A fire-fight in the Syrian capital.

With attacks such as these, which targeted or resulted in the deaths of Arab civilians, Islamic militants have angered not just their enemies but also the very Muslims they claim to champion.

"These people do not have a specific logic, and unfortunately, we are facing a group of insane people," said Imad Shuaibi (search), a Syrian political analyst, summing up the sense of fear and frustration in Damascus after unidentified attackers last week set off a bomb and then fired bullets and grenades at Syrian security forces in a diplomatic neighborhood.

Right. That is what we have been telling you all along. What part about 911 did you not get?

The militants made an unusual and horrific appeal to recruit young Saudis, dragging the bloodied corpse of a Westerner through a high school parking lot and urging the students to join their Arab brethren in a holy war in Iraq.

They appear to have badly miscalculated the response: school officials said some of the boys ran from the scene crying; others spoke of nightmares.

"This is not right," said a traumatized 18-year-old. "This is un-Islamic."

But 911 was ok was it?

Saudi authorities have cracked down on accused militants since a string of terror attacks that began with coordinated suicide bombings at Riyadh housing compounds last May that killed 34 people, including eight Americans.

So long as they attack outside Saudi Arabi it's ok then?

But just who are these terrorists? The Saudis know.

Nevertheless, Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, who runs the day-to-day affairs of the kingdom in the name of his invalided brother King Fahd, blamed internal Saudi terrorism on "Zionists."

"Zionism is behind terrorist actions in the kingdom," Abdullah told a gathering of princes in Jiddah following the Saturday attacks. "I can say that I am 95 percent sure of that."

There they go again. bin Laden gets the credit for Al-Qaeda and the Jews get credit for the Saudi attacks. Poor ole Al-Zarqawi does all the work and gets no credit. What is a terrorist mastermind to do? Give up perhaps? Just a thought.

Muslim harassment claims terrorist linked organization

From CNN

Reference my earlier post and FronPage's in depth article on the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and its ties to terrorism.

CNN has been taken in hook, line and sinker by CAIR. You would think CNN would do a little research on this organization before taking their word for these figures.

Here is a snipet from FrontPage's article.

One group in particular, CAIR or the Council on American-Islamic Relations, an entity masquerading as a ‘civil rights’ organization, has called into question its own support for nefarious causes. The following will prove that, in late 2001, CAIR appeared to be in violation of United States law, as in regards to the providing of material support to terrorists.

In September of 2001, just following the worst terrorist attack ever suffered in modern history, CAIR placed on its website, under a picture of the World Trade Center in flames, a plea for donations. It read, “Donate to the NY/DC Emergency Relief Fund.”

Yet, when people clicked on the link, it did not take them to any NY/DC Emergency Relief Fund. No, it took them straight to the website of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, an Islamic ‘charity’ that was soon to be shut down by the United States for “raising millions of dollars annually for HAMAS.”

Anybody want to give CNN a call and burst their bubble?

Future Islamic attacks

From Daniel Pipes via Little Green Fottballs

Future Attacks
In this context, it is important to understand the motivations and world of thought of extremist Muslims. Pipes defines an Islamist as one who believes Islam is the solution to every problem. "In America, an Islamist would be somebody who wants to replace the constitution with the Qur'an.2 It is a totalitarian movement that has much in common with fascism and Marxism-Leninism." He estimates that about 10-15 percent of Muslims in the world are Islamists, which is tantamount to well over a hundred million people. Pipes adds that the percentage is probably in the same order of magnitude among U.S. Muslims.

He forecasts: "There will be more attacks by Islamists on Americans. I can say this confidently because so many signs point in this direction. These assaults will awaken people. I expect it to be a one-way process of what I call education by murder. I do expect ever more Americans to worry; contrarily, I do not expect to hear many say, 'Well, I used to be worried about the threat of militant Islam, but no longer.' As time passes and more events occur, their assessment will become more realistic.

"As Islamists are dangerous, the methods to be used against them cannot be like those the United States usually applies to dissenters. However, much of the U.S. public is unprepared to discuss these matters; if one broaches the topic, one is accused of McCarthyism.

"One little-noticed development concerns the declaration of war. This used to be part of a military undertaking, but since World War II it has become defunct, and along with it the legal machinery that once went into gear. When President Bush says we are at war, it is a political statement, not a legal one."

The Main Determinant: Ideology
Pipes adds: "There is a gradual awareness developing of militant Islam existing not just in the hills of Afghanistan but within American society. This is unparalleled in our country's history, as the United States never seriously confronted fascism or communism internally, as Europe was forced to do. Americans certainly never experienced a hazard from an ideological source comparable to the Islamists.

"The focus on al-Qaeda is doubly misplaced. First, it is an umbrella group, rather than an actual organization. Second, it is a symptom of a much deeper attitude. The ideology is the key, not an organization. This ideology is a force in itself and not the result of socioeconomic conditions; it cannot be solved, for example, through a Marshall Plan type of response.

"Militant Islam cannot be compared to any segment of Christianity, Judaism, or Hinduism. These religions do not embody groups with totalitarian utopian ideologies that seek world hegemony. In fact, militant Islam resembles fascism and communism more than any religious movement.

"All we can do presently is prepare ourselves for worse to come. Eloquence and perceptivity did not make Churchill prime minister of Great Britain; it was the fall of France that did so. In like fashion, those who are warning of the dangers of militant Islam will be turned to should a fall-of-France style disaster occur.

"Conservatives have increasingly become the backbone of understanding what the United States represents, what its duties are, and what it means to be an American. While Jews have traditionally been on the liberal side of the political spectrum, many are now becoming more conservative. Nevertheless, as moderate Democrats move increasingly to the left - as Dennis Prager points out, it is hard at this point to see a difference between a liberal and a leftist - there are many Jews on the left who are part of the problem. They see the United States as a 'rogue state,' want it never to respond with force, call for open borders, and generally disparage their own country."


Not a pretty picture, is it?

Islam 'should talk to the West'

From The BBC

Reference my last post on Islam's attack on the world, look at this puff piece from the BBC.

Delegates from 65 Islamic countries are meeting in Cairo for the start of a conference on tolerance in Islam.

That is not what this conference is about and Heba Saleh knows it isn't. The conference is billed thus: "Tolerance in Islamic Civilization".

It does not say tolerance in Islam; there is a big difference here. One implies the religion the other implies me and you.

Not once does Mr. Saleh mention that little bit about incorporating Shai law into international law. Now I wonder why he failed to mention that?

From Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak:

Many Islamic scholars have felt that their religion has come under attack since the 11 September 2001 attacks.

Hey pal, many people around the world are under attack from your religion. I've never heard to this day any Muslim leader say publicly that they condemn bin Laden and Al-Qaeda. Go blame yourself Murbarak.

Islam's attack on the world

From Islam Online

Islam is mounting a three pronged attack on the world.

On the battle front Al-Qaeda is bombing countries, like Spain, into submission. Their terrorists minions are all over the world trying to wreck havoc and terror.

In their mosques, schools and in the media they spread a message of hate and death to the infidels.

Now they are trying to add to their arsenal to conquer the world through the courts and the law.

CAIRO, April 30 (IslamOnline.net) World Muslim scholars meeting in Cairo urged incorporation of Sharia into the International Law to avoid eruption of more crises or other forms of injustice.

"Some western researchers have found out that Islamic principles could be used to develop the International Law and incorporate its moral values into it," said Jaafar Abdel-Salam, the secretary general of the Islamic Universities Association.


He was speaking at the International Islamic Conference, held in Cairo from April 28 till May 1 under the title of "Tolerance in Islamic Civilization".

Addressing the sixteenth session of the Conference, Abdel-Salam, himself a professor of International Law, said the application of Sharia along with the International Law would help set up a world system "turning countries closer to each other".

"Islam, with its practices, is the best of international systems that could achieve peace," said Mohamed Dissouki, an International Law professor at Al-Azhar University, in the conference.

"The International Law has recently tilted towards unequal treatment of people, as some agreements turned into valueless pieces of paper when they came against the interests of such a super power as the United States," he lamented.

Islam, on the other hand, deeply respects vows, treaties and agreements and warns against the serious consequences of their violation, Dissouki averred.

He cited that the United States had enforced its veto power in the Security Council several times of the year, mostly to kill draft resolutions condemning Israel for aggressions against the Palestinians.

In September, the U.S. employed its veto to kill an Arab-driven resolution condemning Israel for its decision to expel Palestinian President Yasser Arafat.

On October 14, the U.S. vetoed a Syrian-proposed U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Israel for continuing its construction of the separation wall, which snakes through the Palestinian territories in the West Bank.


And Canada is buying into this camel dung.

Islam - Religion of peace?

From All Africa

Governor Ahmed Sani of Zamfara State, has ordered the demolition of all churches in the state, as he launched the second phase of his Sharia project yesterday.

Speaking at the launch in Gusau, the state capital, Governor Sani disclosed that time was ripe for full implementation of the programme as enshrined in the Holy Quran.

He added that his government would soon embark on demolition of all places of worship of unbelievers in the state, in line with Islamic injunction to fight them wherever they are found.

Where is the world condemnation of this?

As I have said before, by their deeds and actions they condemn themselves.

Great minds think alike

Mine is not so great but Rantingprofs and I were on the same wavelength today. I posted earlier today about "Ishard Manji's The Trouble with Islam" and Rantingprofs has this:

Then two books that arrived today, Ishard Manji's The Trouble with Islam (which I realized while I was in Canada is now available in paperback. Oh well.) I think I described this one when I ordered it. She's a Canadian-Muslim, born in Iran, and a feminist. Her argument isn't only that Islam must be reformed to give the moderates a greater and more legitimate voice, but that Muslims living in the West have to take the lead in this effort, because they are the ones privelaged to live in societies where the freedom to do so is protected -- there will be no government crack downs on dissidents engaged in debates over the future of Islam here.

Nice one, Cori.

MORE ATTACKS IN SAUDI

Rantingprofs is "ranting" about this one and for good reasons.

According to local press reports, the gunmen demanded that the Westerners move into a separate group from the Saudi employees and then they opened fire on the Westerners.

Three of the Westerners died at the scene, while a fourth was stripped naked, tied to a vehicle and dragged as the assailants fled in two separate cars, according to witnesses interviewed by reporters from The Saudi Gazette, an English-language paper in Jidda. (my emph.)

Where is the world outrage at this?

'The Trouble With Islam' by Irshad Manji

Can you say Salman Rushdie?

Following on from my last post about Yvonne Riddley I found this on The BBC. Scroll down to the bottom where it says: You asked author Irshad Manji on 'The Trouble With Islam' . It will open up a transcript and an audio link.

Some things that stood out for me.

Azher Mir, Blenheim, New Zealand asks: What did you hope to achieve with writing a book with such a provocative title?

... "I must tell you that I’m hearing primarily from young Muslims and from Muslim women who are saying thank you – expressing their gratitude and their relief that somebody is finally going public. And that’s the key, going public, with thoughts that they’ve only ever allowed themselves to keep private. "

Phil, London asks: Why is the only response for a call to change and reform within Islam is a threaten to kill those who call for it?

Irshad Manji:
And it does have a problem with pluralism at this point. And that wasn’t always the case. I must emphasise that there was a time – and I go into detail in the book about it – when Islam epitomised pluralism.

Newshost:
And dissent was encouraged, wasn’t it?

Irshad Manji:
Well yes. It was the leader of progress and debate and critical thinking. This was during the golden age of Islam, for example, when Jews and Christians and Muslims worked together to preserve the works of Plato and Socrates and so forth.

There was a time when critical thinking was embraced and that tradition was called ijtihad. I know it sounds a lot like jihad to non-Arab ears and in fact it comes from the same root – to struggle. But unlike violent struggle ijtihad is all about independent reasoning and independent thinking.

I explain in the book that towards the end of the 11th century, for very political reasons - which we can go into if you are interested - the gates of ijtihad were deliberately closed; 135 schools of thought were whittled down to only four schools of thought. And today a thousand years later, most Muslims have inherited that legacy of a ban on independent thinking.

And I am asking my fellow Muslims, especially in the West but not only in the West, what is stopping us from rattling at the gates of ijtihad at the very least and if nothing else ripping off the lock and saying, it is time that we rediscovered our tradition of critical thinking.

[...]

Isa, UK: Irshad does not speak Arabic so how can she claim to reinterpret the Koran.

Irshad Manji:
I don’t claim to reinterpret the Koran. Again Razia, as you yourself have said, Islam is in many ways a very personal and private spirituality between creature and creator and so I am not expecting, never mind asking, anybody to accept my personal interpretation. Rather I am reminding Muslims – and I can’t emphasise this enough – that there was a time when we had a tradition of critical thinking.

I’m asking the person who asked me her question, why is it so unreasonable to suggest that we Muslims ought to rediscover that glorious tradition of independent thought. Remember it is that tradition of independent thought that allowed Arab Muslim civilisation at one time to lead the world in curiosity, creativity and cultural independence. Is that such an Islamic thing to advocate?

[...]

... " And here’s the bottom line, as I say in the book, that if we as Muslims can unhinge the practise of Islam from Arab cultural imperialism then frankly I think we’ve got a hope in hell of reform but if we can’t, I don’t hold out too much hope."

Yvonne, buy the book.

Koran magna carta for women

From The BBC

That's right. According to "Yvonne Ridley the journalist captured by the Taliban while reporting undercover in Afghanistan, soon after 9/11".

She read the Koran looking for an explanation of the Taliban's treatment of women, only to find there wasn't any. "It's a magna carta for women!"

She converted last summer and has found that her new faith has helped put behind her three broken marriages and a reputation as the "Patsy Stone of Fleet Street."

I doubt the women of Saudi Arabia would see it that way. The following is from
my earlier post on the subject.

A popular Saudi television host publicly showed her bruised and bloodied face and has shocked her compatriots into openly talking about one of the kingdom's long-hidden problems: violence against women.

Although Islam prohibits violence against women, many believe spousal abuse is common in the almost entirely Muslim Saudi Arabia.

There are no statistics available on wife abuse in the kingdom, but husbands rarely meet disapproval for "reforming" spouses deemed "disobedient" by hitting them.

So, what's the deal here? If Islam prohibits violence against women why is it so widely practiced in the land of Islam? And why all these "honor" killings of Muslim women.

Oh, well, since she lives in the UK she might be alright. Then again maybe a "forced" marriage might work this time, eh Yvonne?

UPDATE: From The BBC

Perhaps Yvonne should see and read this article from the BBC. In response to the story of Rania al-Baz, the Saudi television presenter, who was beaten by her husband, the BBC received over 1000 emails.

UNSCAM and lack of press coverage

There is very little press coverage of the UN oil-for-food scandal here in the UK or in the US.

The Spoons Experience has a handy chart to explain why.

Spirit of America appeal raises staggering $1.5 million!

A grass roots appeal to raise $100,000 to "buy some TV equipment - to let local Iraqi stations air local news" has been an unbelievable success.

From Winds of Change

It has just been an incredible week for me.

Spirit of America. Damn, I've never ridden a rocket before. What a thrill; my friend who is doing the books - who is somewhat of a cynic - commented as she iced her hands from entering all the donations into Quickbooks - "My faith in humanity is restored."

In case you missed it, Jim Hake set out to raise $100,000 to buy some TV equipment - to let local Iraqi stations air local news. Much of that news is good, but much as the news of gang shootings in Pico-Union creates panic in West Los Angeles, the bad news there tends to drive out the good. Allowing some old-fashioned local news coverage - of rescuers working to save girls stuck in wells, local sports heroes, all the banal stuff that everyday life is so deliciously made up from - offers the chance to remind people that life is not sliding downhill quite the way some might fear.

Well, Jim is aggressive and good, and soon there was a column in the Wall Street Journal, and the next day there was $400,000 in the bank. As of today, the website shows over $1.5 MILLION in contributions - all of which will be used to buy things the Iraqi people need to rebuild their country and their lives.

It is a shame that this will not get much press but will be overshowded by a few bad guys who tortured Iraqi prisoners.

Canada says UN a failure

From The Globe and Mail via InstaPundit

WASHINGTON -- With yesterday's landmark speech, Paul Martin tacitly acknowledged what Canada's foreign policy establishment has refused to accept for decades: that the United Nations is a failure, for which there is no solution.

The Prime Minister's proposed alternative is a new international body, the G-20 summit of world leaders, representative of North and South, developed and developing, rich and poor: a working group unfettered by the UN's bureaucracy and its anachronistic Security Council.

Fighting terrorism and being seen to fight terrorism

There is a difference - a huge difference!

Yesterday I posted this article about the huge numbers of terrorist suspects arrested and then released in the UK. Only 6 out of 572 people were convicted while, according to Scotland Yard figures, fewer than one in five of the 572 held in such police operations were charged with terrorism-related offences. There is something wrong here and something needs to be done about it.

Meanwhile in Pakistan we get this report:

Pakistani authorities on Saturday released 78 Pashtun tribesmen arrested two months ago in a major sweep against al Qaeda militants and their local allies in the tribal region near the Afghan border.

And in Italy this report:

An Italian court has acquitted three Egyptians accused of planning to attack a Rome airport and a US war cemetery.

The ruling comes two days after nine Moroccans, accused of plotting to bomb the US embassy in Rome, were acquitted.

Now is appears this "wanting to be seen" to be fighting terrorism has reached a terrible conclusion.

From CNN

Macedonia admits staging raid, killing innocents
Friday, April 30, 2004 Posted: 8:14 PM EDT (0014 GMT)

SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) -- Macedonian police gunned down seven innocent immigrants, then claimed they were terrorists, in a killing staged to show they were participating in the U.S.-led campaign against terrorism, authorities said Friday.

Police spokeswoman Mirjana Konteska told reporters that six people, including three former police commanders, two special police officers and a businessman, have been charged by police with murder.

There will always be the danger of people using the war on terror as a cover for their own agendas. Governments around the world have to do better at stopping this sort of thing.

Former Al Jazeera presenter to head BBC Arabic news service

From Oman Observer

The British Broadcasting Corporation, the world's biggest public broadcaster, has for the first time chosen an Arab to head its Arabic news service, the 42-year-old appointee, Hosam Sokkari, said on Thursday. "I think it's an important development because this is the first time since the (beginning of the) BBC Arabic service that an Arab runs the operation," Egyptian-born Sokkari said by telephone. "I definitely think that it sends a positive signal," said Sokkari, whose move to head the Arabic division of the BBC World Service will be officially announced later.

"It means that the BBC is serious about looking into the competences rather than the origin or the nationality," he said. Sokkari, originally from Cairo, said his challenge would be to maintain the BBC's traditional impartiality, balance and objectivity while reporting in a compelling way. We must keep the traditional, loyal listeners of the BBC and win more young listeners, he said. After graduating from Cairo university with a degree in pharmacy, Sokkari decided on a career in journalism, working first as a cartoonist in Egypt, Germany and Finland.

He began working for the BBC in 1994 as a presenter and producer in the Arabic division before moving for a few months to the Qatari-based broadcaster Al Jazeera in 1996. Three years after returning to the corporation, Sokkari was chosen to run the BBC's Arabic Internet operation becoming an award-winning editor of BBCArabic.com. The Arabic Service is part of the BBC World Service which provides news and information in 43 languages worldwide.

"Challenge" doesn't even come close to describing the road ahead of him. How about "monumental task" or "seemingly impossible task".

For starters the "BBC's traditional impartiality, balance and objectivity" has long gone. But coming from Al Jazeera he presumably won't miss that. All of this coupled with all the anti-American rhetoric coming from Egypt, it will be interesting to see if he rises to the "challenge".

Saudis might rethink Al-Qaeda policy

With mounting terrorists attacks inside Saudi Arabia, the kingdom may have to rethink their "fight al-Qaida at home, fund abroad" policy.

From World Net Daily

While Saudi Arabia fights for its life against al-Qaida, the kingdom still supports the Islamic terrorist organization's campaign in the Russian breakaway republic of Chechnya, reports Geostrategy-Direct, the global intelligence news service.

The anomaly points to Saudi Arabia's position on terrorism: The Saudis cry terrorism only when they are the victims, Geostrategy says.

Western and Russian intelligence sources agree that amid the height of the kingdom's campaign against al-Qaida, Saudi princes and prominent businessmen continued to funnel millions of dollars to Islamic insurgents to attack civilian targets in Iraq, Israel, Jordan and Russia.

[...]

Why do the Saudis support al-Qaida these days? Western intelligence sources said Chechnya remains a safe outlet to export thousands of Saudi seminary students who have little prospect of decent jobs and are ill trained to actually work as clerics outside the kingdom. But the students are full of Islamic zeal and are all set for jihad.

That's where Chechnya comes in -- to serve as a release of pressure against the kingdom. Moreover, Saudi-funded al-Qaida fighters in Chechnya can also be recruited to oppose Islamic dissidents who attack the kingdom on religious grounds.

The plan seems to be backfiring.

Saudi plot to hijack BA plane

From Reuters

Saudi militants have plotted to hijack a British plane at Riyadh airport, hit Western embassies and strike at government buildings with rocket-propelled grenades, according to a Saudi security document.

[...]

Citing information gleaned from an Islamic militant who it says was involved in planning, the document warned of attempts to break into royal palaces, attack senior security officials and visiting VIPs, and kidnap or kill Westerners.

[...]

He said it read like a "laundry list" of targets which anyone seeking to drive Westerners out of the world's biggest oil exporter might select. "Each of these contingencies is something we have been working with the Saudis to prevent.

"Even if this list is 100 percent authentic, it merely serves to confirm what we already suspected, and planned for."

In light of todays attacks, it would seem they didn't "suspect" or "plan" very well.

Westerners killed in Saudi Arabia

From BBC

Reports say six western expatriates have been killed by gunmen in the city of Yanbu in Saudi Arabia.
The US embassy said it had received reports that a US citizen was among the dead. At least one Briton was feared dead, according to the British embassy.

My local radio station is quoting a the chairman of a large corporation saying as many as 17 are dead.

From CNN

An informed source said two of the militants were killed when they detonated the car bomb; a third was shot and killed by Saudi authorities; and the fourth was shot and wounded by authorities and arrested.

From Fox News

Gunmen opened fire Saturday at an oil refinery co-owned by Exxon Mobil (search) and the Saudi company SABIC (search) in northwestern Saudi Arabia, killing at least three Americans, two Britons, an Australian and a Saudi, company officials and diplomats said

Still too early to tell exactly what happened.

Moderate Muslims March in Phoenix

From FrontPage Magazine via Jihad Watch

When the American Islamic Forum for Democracy organized “A Rally against Terror” on April 25 in Phoenix, its head, an Arizona physician named Zuhdi Jasser, said his goal was to give Muslim moderates “an opportunity to speak out publicly.” And Jasser presented the rally as a robust response to the many criticisms that American Muslims had not produced a “groundswell of condemnation” against terrorism. In fact, he asserted,

The killing of innocent people out of revenge, out of hate or out of retribution is against the absolute laws of Islam. Suicide is against the absolute laws of Islam. People can justify their actions all day long, but we as Muslims are here to say clearly their actions are against everything we believe.

Jasser wrote an oped in the Arizona Republic where, as a Muslim, he took responsibility for the mistrust directed toward American Muslims, rather than merely blow this off as prejudice:

It is impossible as an American not to feel the growing palpable distrust toward the Muslim community. With attacks targeting innocent civilians across the globe, it has sadly at this time gone far beyond the initial prideful question of “Why are Muslims being singled out?” It is time now only to rally and provide an unmistakable resounding reply.

[...]

But then the event was held (an audio of the 50-minute long event can be heard online) and reality set in. Estimates vary. The Arizona Republic counted 250 in attendance, the police 400. The number of Muslims, I heard, was between 30 and 100 persons. Most participants were not Muslim but (the Arizona Republic recounts) “people like Michael Fischer, 18, of Glendale, who wanted to denounce the stereotyping of Muslims; and Grace Clark of Apache Junction, who wanted to promote peace.” One correspondent of mine judged the event “a total disaster.”

[...]

Until then, however, there is the stark reality that very few Muslims did show up. And those who did held up “peace” and “anti-war” signs, not anti-terror or anti-Islamist signs. Two factors help explain this disappointing result.

The Phoenix rally points to the current reality of American Muslim opinion. This problem needs to be dealt with. If not, I can imagine the United States will hear the same overt calls for jihad and Islamic rule that Western Europe is now experiencing.

At least you tried Dr. Zuhdi Jasser

Vietnam lessons and the press

Kevin Anderson, writing for BBC News Online in Washington, claims US media grapples with Iraq horrors in this article.

April was the deadliest month for the US in Iraq. And on the home front, the battle is also heating up over coverage of the war and whether showing the horrors of battle undermines the war effort.

Since Vietnam first sent the horrors of conflict into the living rooms of America, the US government and military has tried to carefully manage the media during times of war.

The US military learned it's lessons well from Vietnam; training, equipment and tactics all vastly improved. The speed coupled with the reduction in loss of life on both sides, with which the Iraq war was won attest to this. Still war is a horrible endeavor and as I have said many times, rightly so. For it is the horror that stops us practicing it at the drop of a hat.

US politicians learned their lessons as well from Vietnam and let the military run the war in Iraq. Which no doubt contributed to the success of the war.

Some of the press have learned some lessons as well. The news coverage of the Iraq war was far different than the coverage of Vietnam.

Vietnam was the first "televised" war; Iraq had the first "embedded" reporters. The difference was astounding. Both pro and anti administration news organizations were able to travel with and report on military actions without censorship. The press were limited to not reporting on exact locations or tactics so as not to endanger the troops.

This enabled the public to see for themselves who was telling the truth and who was lying. The BBC's disgraced reporter, Andrew Gilligan, in a live video report countering US claims that they had taken Baghdad airport, stated he had been to the airport and the US military was nowhere near it. He later confessed he was nowhere near the airport, having been kept back some 5 miles by the fighting. In contrast, some US news channels showed crowds of Iraqis cheering and waving as US troops rolled in.

What the press haven't fully learned is how much they can aid the enemy and betray the people the US is trying to help.

The following relates to the Tet offensive in Vietnam on Jan 31 1968.

Gen. Giap had thrown some 70,000 troops into a strategic gamble that was also designed to overwhelm 13 of the 16 provincial capitals and trigger a popular uprising. But Tet was an unmitigated military disaster for Hanoi and its Viet Cong troops in South Vietnam. Yet that was not the way it was reported in U.S. and other media around the world.

As Arnaud de Borchgrave, writing in Newsmax relates:

Viet Cong units not only did not reach a single one of their objectives - except when they arrived by taxi at the U.S. Embassy in Saigon, blew their way through the wall into the compound and, guns blazing, made it into the lobby before they were wiped out by U.S. Marines. But they lost some 50,000 killed and at least as many wounded.

The same is true of Falluja today and to some extent, Iraq as a whole. Iraq has a population of roughly 25 million and Falluja approximately 250,000. Compared to the overall situation in Iraq, Falluja is more like an LA riot, except the weapons are more deadly. The press would have you believe Falluja is the whole Iraq war all over again. Falluja has been Iran and Syria's Tet offensive; and it has failed. There are reports of local citizens battling the insurgents and providing intelligence to the US troops. And where is the insurgent's "Gen. Giap", Al-Sadr? He fled to Najaf where he is holed up and losing support both from his own people and Tehran. See earlier post here.

Mr. Anderson illustrates how the BBC press have not learned their lessons despite the Gilliagan debacle that forced the two top men at the BBC out.

As the violence and chaos increases, supporters of the war and of the administration fear that coverage could turn public opinion not only against the war but also against President George W Bush.

By using such phrases as "as the violence and chaos increases", Mr. Anderson tries to portray the whole of Iraq in such a state when the exact opposite is true. Except for the Sunni triangle the rest of Iraq is on the rebuilding path.

Mr. Anderson, they don't fear the coverage as you put it, they "understand" it; they learned their lessons from Vietnam.

Even Giap admitted in his memoirs that news media reporting of the war and the anti-war demonstrations that ensued in America surprised him. Instead of negotiating what he called a conditional surrender, Giap said they would now go the limit because America's resolve was weakening and the possibility of complete victory was within Hanoi's grasp.

Bui Tin, who served on the general staff of the North Vietnamese army said:

America lost the war, "because of its democracy. Through dissent and protest, it lost the ability to mobilize a will to win."

Mr. Anderson, it would behoove you and the BBC to learn these lessons on behalf of the Iraqi people.