9/11/13 Jihadis gain ground in Syrian rebel movement as moderates grow desperate

/in /by

Source: NBC news

By Richard Engel, Chief Foreign Correspondent, NBC News

ANTAKYA, Turkey — Syrian opposition activists tell NBC News that Bashar Assad is getting away with having used chemical weapons to massacre hundreds of civilians, and that giving the regime a pass will only benefit al-Qaeda extremists.

“If there is no action, everyone will be desperate. We are already desperate. We are dying. Many will join al-Qaeda. Even the educated will join them, because no one else is helping,” a Syrian rebel said.

There is a battle underway within the Syrian revolt — a war within the war — between the generally moderate, US-backed Free Syrian Army and Islamic extremist groups.

The Free Syrian Army put its faith in Washington, which promised action, but so far hasn’t delivered. The moderates say they have lost hope and face. Islamists, on the other hand, always doubted Washington would act, and instead of attending meetings, they are putting bullets in their guns; and they are sending men.

Read More

9/11/13 The Reason Syria is vital to U.S. national security

/in /by

Statement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

An American Muslim of Syrian descent makes the case that President Obama failed to do

PHOENIX (August 20, 2013) – Dr. M. Zuhdi Jasser, author of “A Battle for the Soul of Islam: An American Muslim Patriot’s Fight to Save His Faith” released the following statement on behalf of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy (AIFD) regarding why the United States needs to engage in Syria.

“The use of American military power should never be taken lightly.  It is the highest duty that any Commander-in-chief can undertake.  It deserves thoughtful and full deliberation that delivers a strategy that is in the best interest of America’s national security.

The conflict in Syria has at long last sparked debate about Syria’s import to the security of the United States.  Unfortunately that debate has taken place after over 110,000 Syrians were killed by their genocidal leader and his military.  It has also been mired in a false narrative that the choice in Syria is a binary decision between the secular fascist Bashar Assad and the theocratic fascists of Al Qaeda. That narrative ignores the fact that there are more than 22 million Syrians who simply long for freedom.

What is the case for action? This isn’t about 1,400 people being killed by a chemical attack. This isn’t even about the 110,000 killed over 30 months – though those both should be enough. The stakes in Syria are about the direct threat to the United States from a rogue puppet nation of the Iranians that is directly tied to terrorism from Hizballah.  It is about the United States standing on principle and for the right of all people across the world to declare freedom from tyranny.  It is about the fact that Syria sits at the crossroads of the Middle East. The defense of liberty in Syria is for the hope of a secular, democratic Syria that recognizes that its power is derived from the consent of its people which could rewrite the destiny of the Middle East as much as the converse- a Syria that is allowed to be folded completely under the wing of an emboldened Iran that has chemical and nuclear capability.

While we may be war weary in the United States, we are not ready to write-off the next generation as being post-American.

There is no doubt that for 30 months President Obama and his Administration have mostly ignored if not mishandled Syria.  There is no doubt that they still have yet to create a national strategy for regime change despite explicitly calling for it in August 2011.  Instead, now the narrative has changed from regime change to punishment for chemical weapons to now the hope of a diplomatic and political solution brokered by Assad’s pal Putin. Congress should now turn around and direct our President to take back the lead and call the Russians on their lies over the past 30 months in Syria while telling rather than asking the psychopathic dictator of Syria how he is going to end his regime.

The world cannot stand by and allow chemical weapons to be used.  We cannot stand by while another 100,000 are killed and millions more are driven from their homes. The U.S. cannot stand by and let Iran develop hegemony over the region and spread their anti-Americanism for generations to come. We cannot stand by and leave a void against Iran, Hizballah, and Assad that is filled by Jihadists supported by Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Assad like his father is a tyrant and a pathological liar who will do anything to maintain power.  His continued presence as the President of Syria will mean that tens of thousands more will die.  We have already seen that inaction by this White House has bred the radicalization of the Syrian people and turned Syria into the world’s biggest factory of jihadists.  It has created a vacuum that Al Qaeda and the Islamists in Turkey, Qatar and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are more than happy to fill.

The President has finally woken up from his slumber over Syria. The speech he should have given in August 2011, he gave on September 10, 2013. Now can Congress keep its attention on Syria long enough to demand that our Commander-in-chief formulate and then lead with a coherent strategy rather than a reflexive short-sighted muddle?

We may be witnessing the end of America’s influence in the world as a superpower. That also means the end of any potent advocate or protectors of those who seek freedom in the world. Syria is not only about freedom for Syrian citizens, it is about regional security from Iran, Hizballah, Al Qaeda, and Jihadists and the protection of our ally, Israel.”

 

About the American Islamic Forum for Democracy

The American Islamic Forum for Democracy (AIFD) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization. AIFD’s mission advocates for the preservation of the founding principles of the United States Constitution, liberty and freedom, through the separation of mosque and state. For more information on AIFD, please visit our website at http://www.aifdemocracy.org/.

MEDIA CONTACTS:         Gregg Edgar,  Gordon C. James Public Relations,  gedgar@gcjpr.com,  602-690-7977

9/12/13 Pledge of Allegiance skipped, Muslim poem read at Boston school on 9/11

/in /by

Source: The Washington Times

The principal of Concord Carlisle High School in Boston issued an apology Wednesday after a Muslim poem was recited over the intercom on the 12th anniversary of 9/11, and the Pledge of Allegiance was not.

According to principal Peter Badalament, a “small number” of people were outraged at the poem, which was meant to promote “cross-cultural understanding,” Boston.com reported. Apparently, the Pledge of Allegiance was not read because of some confusion.

“Yesterday was the first Wednesday of the school year; we were unaware that our student Pledge reader had an internship commitment on this day,” Mr. Badalament said in the statement. “This was our responsibility to know. We humbly apologize that this oversight and communication gap occurred.”

Mohja Kahf’s “My Grandmother Washes Her Feet in the Sink of the Bathroom at Sears,” tells a granddaughter’s account of watching her grandmother adhere to the religious Muslim custom of washing her feet five times a day, Boston.com reported.

Read More

9/23/13 Kenya mall attack: Military says most hostages freed, death toll at 68

/in /by

Source: CNN

Nairobi, Kenya (CNN) — Authorities in Kenya appeared close to ending a deadly siege Monday at an upscale Nairobi mall, where attackers have killed at least 68 people, injured 175, and are believed to still be holding about 10 people hostage.

“All efforts are underway to bring this matter to a speedy conclusion,” the Kenyan military announced on Twitter.

It said that “most of the hostages have been rescued and security forces have taken control of most parts of the building.”

Earlier, police had tweeted that a “MAJOR assault” by security forces was ongoing.

Read More

9/18/13 In Britain, emotive debate about the Muslim veil tempered by a streak of pragmatism

/in /by

Source: Associated Press

LONDON –  In Britain this week, a judge struck a blow against religious oppression. Or for religious freedom. It all depends who you ask.

Judge Peter Murphy ruled that a female Muslim defendant may stand trial wearing a face-covering veil — but must remove it when giving evidence.

The case has reignited a debate about Muslim veils that has flared across Europe, sparking protests and exacerbating religious tensions in several countries.

Those tensions exist in Britain, too, and attacks on Muslims and mosques rose after the May slaying of an off-duty British soldier by Islamist extremists. But both the compromise court ruling and the response to it suggest there is little appetite from the center-right coalition government for a ban like that introduced in France.

This is a country where many politicians agree with the aide to former Prime Minister Tony Blair who famously said: “We don’t do religion.”

Read more

9/10/13 Obama Judge: Hijab Ban Violates Muslim Civil Rights

/in /by

Source: Judicial Watch

An Obama-appointed federal judge has handed the administration a major victory, ruling that a Muslim woman’s civil rights were violated by an American clothing retailer that didn’t allow her to wear a head scarf as required by her religion.

The lawsuit was filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency that enforces the nation’s workplace discrimination laws. In 2011 the agency sued the retail giant, Abercrombie & Fitch, accusing it of religious discrimination for firing 19-year-old Umme-Hani Khan for wearing a hijab at a northern California store. The company, which focuses on hip casual wear for consumers aged 18 to 22, has a policy against head covers of any kind for its employees.

In the case of this Muslim woman it amounts to discrimination based on religion, according to the EEOC, and that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Employers are required to accommodate the sincere religious beliefs or practices of employees, the agency says, unless doing so would impose an undue hardship on business.

Read More

9/12/13 Egypt tanks cross fence leading to Gaza

/in /by

Source: Fox News

GAZA CITY (AFP) –  Two Egyptian army tanks crossed an initial border fence leading to Gaza for the first time on Thursday, witnesses said, but did not enter the Palestinian territory itself.

Gaza’s Hamas rulers neither confirmed nor denied the incursion, but said no Egyptian tanks had entered the besieged Strip.

The tanks “crossed the first Egyptian border fence along the corridor between Egypt and (Gaza), and drove along the road running next to the cement wall” that Egypt built, the witnesses told AFP.

They said it was the “first time Egyptian tanks have been in this area, although they didn’t cross into the Palestinian side,” adding that soldiers on top of the tanks had masked faces.

A spokesman for Gaza’s Hamas government, Ihab al-Ghassin, told AFP that no Egyptian tanks had crossed onto the Israeli-blockaded territory.

Read more:

09/11/13 WEA-RLC Research & Analysis Report: Religious Repression Carries on Unabated in Turkmenistan

/in /by

Read the entire article on the World Evangelical Alliance site

Turkmenistan has been one of the most repressive countries in the world for over two decades, as key international actors continue to sideline the issue of religious and other freedoms due to their thirst for cheap energy. This Muslim-majority Central Asian nation possesses the world’s fourth largest reserves of natural gas resources

Like some other countries in this region, Turkmenistan is “reminiscent of the old Soviet Union” as it commits serious human rights violations, “particularly through enacting and enforcing laws against freedom of religion or belief,” Katrina Lantos Swett and M. Zuhdi Jasser, Vice Chairs of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), wrote in an op-ed article in The Moscow Times recently.