Islamism & Islamophobia Abroad - News & Analysis (9-8-2014)

[A_Gupta]

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm ... id=2801167

Islamic Constitutionalism: Not Secular. Not Theocratic. Not Impossible.

16 Rutgers Journal of Law and Religion 553 (2015)

Univ. of Wisconsin Legal Studies Research Paper No. 1384

28 Pages Posted: 27 Jun 2016
Asifa Quraishi-Landes

University of Wisconsin Law School

Date Written: 2015
Abstract

This Lecture Series asks us to engage in a thought experiment: what would a constitution look like if it integrated — rather than separated — church and state? As the Muslim respondent to this question, I have to start by reminding us that Islam does not have a “church” in the first place. This fact has some very important and relevant constitutional implications that will become clear later. But setting that aside for the moment, the thought experiment is still appropriate for a Muslim context if we broaden it to imagine the constitutional integration of state and “religion” (rather than “church”). As it happens, I have been working on the subject of Islamic constitutionalism for some time, so I will answer the question by summarizing a proposal for modern Islamic constitutionalism that is part of my current larger academic project. This proposal presents a structure for Islamic constitutionalism that is inspired by pre-modern Islamic jurisprudence and Muslim history, yet designed for contemporary realities. It also has the potential to solve the apparently endless “Islamist-versus-secular” political and social tensions that plague most Muslim-majority countries today.

In modern western constitutional discourse, theorizing about religious government typically encounters this immediate obstacle: fear of theocracy. Entrenched in western constitutional theory is the belief that any combination of religion and state is unacceptable because it too easily allows for theocracy; it is simply too dangerous to individual freedoms to enable a government to use its police power to impose religion and religious law upon its citizens. This concern is usually impossible to remove — and for good reason. European history tells a long and gruesome tale of religious wars and government oppression justified by states claiming to be enforcing divine law. Therefore, our modern age of constitutional protection of individual freedoms is strongly linked with the principle of separation of religion and state. Without this separation, we open the door to theocratic oppression of all those who disagree with the government’s chosen religious beliefs.

But this is a European telling of the story of religion and state. More precisely, it is a specifically Christian story of the history of church and state. It ignores the rest of the world’s experiences and the possibility that not every religion has had the same relationship with government power. Islam is one very significant counter-example to this Eurocentric narrative. In order to provide an Islamic answer to the thought experiment, therefore, I must begin with a brief summary of the nature of Islamic law and Muslim political history, pointing out its significant differences with the Christian church-state paradigm. With that foundation, I will then elaborate on what a contemporary Islamic constitutional framework might look like, based on what I find to be the essential characteristics of Islamic constitutionalism.

[Vadivel]

The Indian friend is yours truly

[Peregrine]

X Posted on the STFUP Thread

Finsbury Park attack: Former EDL leader Tommy Robinson sparks outrage with inflammatory tweets

Tommy Robinson, the former leader of the EDL, has provoked fury after describing the Finsbury Park mosque attack as a “revenge attack”.

The far-right activist, whose real name is Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon, tweeted that the place of worship “has a long history of creating terrorists and radical jihadists”.

He later responded to criticism, adding: “Facts are facts. I didn’t create this mosque’s history.”

Responding to Robinson on Twitter, one angry user said: “Does that make it OK then? Because that’s exactly what it sounds like you’re trying to say.”

Another added: “Sorry but what on earth does this have to do with the fact that innocent lives were lost? Are you trying to justify these acts?”

The attack took place outside the Muslim Welfare House, a few hundred metres away from Finsbury Park Mosque.

The mosque once became known as a “haven” for extremists, when radical Islamic cleric Abu Hamza was iman there between 1997 and 2002.

However, it was raided and shut down by police in 2003. Since then it has been run with a board of trustees supported by the Muslim Association of Britain (MAB).

In November 2014, it was given a Visible Quality Mark by national body Community Matters for stamping out extremism.

A spokesperson for HopeNotHate said: “The problem with ‘Tommy Robinson’ is that he gravitates around these incidents like a carrion crow, waiting to pump out his message of division and civil strife and blaming all Muslims for the actions of a few.

“Far from being the answer, Robinson is very much part of the problem. Pushing out messages attacking Muslims is hardly likely to take down the temperature: in fact, the very opposite. Those who push anger and hatred should look closely into their consciences when that is reflected back on the streets.”

Just a few weeks ago, Robinson said militias would be set up to “clean out this Islamic problem” in comments many said were inciting racial hatred.

He was widely condemned for launching into a rant about Islamic extremism moments after the Westminster bridge attack.

The former British National Party member has attempted to shake off his far-right image and ties to football hooliganism after leaving the EDL in 2013.

Robinson joined think tank Quilliam to discuss “alternative ways” of tackling extremism in the UK, but last year announced he was to become the UK co-ordinator for the anti-Islamist movement Pegida, which was founded in Dresden.

Josef Schuster, chairman of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, has described the group as a mix of “neo-Nazis, far-right parties and citizens who think they are finally allowed to show their racism and xenophobia openly.”

Cheers

[RCase]

Isn't is surprising that a non-Islamic attacker's identity was revealed to the press fairly quickly - Darren Osborne and the charges that he faces; whereas the three Islamic attackers on the London bridge took quite a few days!

[Pathik]

That should leave no doubt that the UK is run by islamists now. They should now prove to the world that they are champions (morons) of secularism by electing a muslim pm

[Singha]

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/06/19/europ ... index.html

another car based attack in france yesterday on champs des elysses

[IndraD]

Woman, 28, is 'raped nine times by three asylum seekers who filmed the brutal attack on her mobile phone after ambushing her at a town fair in Germany

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z4kXW5TYSq

[ArjunPandit]

Full on taqia

This month alone, a Muslim woman wearing a head scarf told police in Lancashire her car was struck by a bag of vomit. Worshippers at the Omar Faruque mosque in Cambridge found strips of ham attached to their vehicles. Several Muslim families have reported receiving letters warning, "You are no longer welcome in this country." Scores say they have been spat on.

We are easy targets because of the way we dress and when we pray,

"I feel unsafe," said Emma Salem, a 15-year-old Muslim who lives in the neighborhood targeted on Monday.

"Far-right fascists and Islamic terrorists are driven by the same hatred of difference, same ideology of supremacy & use of same tactics," he wrote on Twitter.

Here comes minority apologists, hain jee, lets take some body count...and that too unprovoked

[vinod]

Isn't is surprising that a non-Islamic attacker's identity was revealed to the press fairly quickly - Darren Osborne and the charges that he faces; whereas the three Islamic attackers on the London bridge took quite a few days!

Well, you would want to nip this in bud. Don't want to start a cycle of violence and feed into already existing feelings of victimhood amongst peacefuls. Already the security forces are stretched. This only adds to the recruits. The Imam did a sensible thing and he is being given rightful exposure. His conduct should be made as the example to be followed by true peacefuls.

[Peregrine]

Piers Morgan brands ex-EDL leader Tommy Robinson a 'bigoted lunatic' in 20 minute GMB

In his latest on-air clash, Piers Morgan and the former leader of the English Defence League, Tommy Robinson, went head to head over Islamophobia.

On Monday morning Darren Osborne ploughed a white van into a crowd of Muslims outside a mosque in Finsbury Park, north London, killing one man and injuring 10 people.

Following an inflammatory tweet accusing the mosque of ‘creating terrorists’, Robinson, 34, appeared on GMB where he brandished a copy of the Koran live on air, calling it a ‘violent and cursed book’ and adding: ‘This book is the reason we are in such a mess.’

But Piers, who is known for aggressively challenging his guests, responded with: ‘Show some damn respect for people’s religious beliefs.

‘You’re sounding like a complete lunatic. You’re sounding like a bigoted lunatic. You’re stirring up hatred. You’re being a complete disgrace.’

‘We’re in this mess because people take Islam, they are terrorists and they abuse the nature of Islam and… perpetrate evil.’

But Robinson, a dad-of-three, refused to accept Islam was a religion, saying: ‘Islam is an idea – a bad idea.’

And when asked if he was Islamophobic, he replied: “There’s no such word as Islamophobia. A phobia is an irrational fear, it’s not irrational to fear these things.”

Earlier this year Robinson was given a suspended jail sentence after ‘gatecrashing’ a courthouse where four men were on trial for gang rape.

He was arrested after filming outside Canterbury Crown Court – which is illegal and in contempt of court – and creating a ‘piece to camera’ for his far right website Rebel News.

The QC asked for a prison sentence to be suspended because Robinson had received death threats after his association with the right-wing EDL – although he has not been a member since 2013.

Cheers

[Shankas]

Fireworks in Brussels train station as per CNN

[Shankas]

Brussels train station explosion sees suspect ‘with explosives belt’ shot by troops as passengers flee

[Peregrine]

Finsbury Park mosque chief: 100% rise in Islamophobia in UK

LONDON: The CEO of the Finsbury Park mosque targeted by a right-wing terrorist said on Tuesday that hate crime directed at it has risen since the EU referendum in June last year. The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, warned that the police will take a zero-tolerance approach to these crimes.

Chief executive Toufiq Kacimi told TOI that the Muslim Welfare House had to be evacuated eight months ago after a package with white powder arrived — amid frequent threats in the post and insulting videos. He said Islamophobia was on the rise in the UK "100 per cent".

"No one has been arrested or charged as the police could not find out who did it. The hate crime against us increased dramatically since the EU Referendum," Kacimi, 48, said.

Eleven Muslims were injured and one man died following prayers at the mosque on Sunday night after a man deliberately drove a van into them at high speed, reversed and drove into them again.

"A Moroccan man was dragged under the van and they had to lift the van to get him out," Kacimi said. "Some of the injured are of South Asian origin," he added.

The Moroccan is in hospital with critical injuries and a Somali woman is in a coma, Kacimi said, adding, "Tension is extremely high." Three victims of the attack remain in hospital in critical condition.

The mosque attracts thousands of worshippers of more than 30 nationalities including Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi, but only a few hundred have come to prayers since the attack.

"The community are feeling vulnerable and very angry not just because of this but because of lots of things," Kacimi said. "They feel marginalised and isolated because they are Muslim. Our sisters with scarves get abused and pushed and their scarves get pulled off, especially when they are on public transport. The problem is they don't want to report it."

Explaining why the mosque's imam Mohammed Mahmoud prevented a mob from beating the driver up, Kacimi said, "We should not take justice into our hands... We can't kill for the sake of killing... We are not savages like this guy."

The year ending March 2017 saw the highest number of terrorism-related arrests in the UK in any financial year on record, driven by an increase in arrests of people from 'White' ethnic groups which has gone up 66% in 2016/17 compared to the previous year, a home office report said.

Hate crime has also risen. Statistics for 2015-16 show an increase of 19% in reported hate crimes compared with the previous year. The report states that hate crimes increased sharply in June and July 2016 following the EU Referendum.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said, "Following a significant spike in incidents of hate crime and Islamophobic incidents, the Mayor has warned that the police will take a zero-tolerance approach to these crimes and that anyone who commits a hate crime will face arrest."
Cheers

[Singha]

Fireworks in Brussels train station as per CNN

has become a weekly occurrence in europe now. the champs elysses car attack on police was not even widely reported in MSM - par for the course now

[Peregrine]

Turkey says liberal German mosque ´incompatible´ with Islam

ISTANBUL: Turkey´s religious affairs agency has expressed distaste over a new mosque in Berlin where men and women mingle freely, saying it was incompatible with the principles of Islam.

Diyanet, which oversees religious activity in Turkey, said that such ideas were in line with projects led by the group of Fethullah Gulen, who Turkey blames for the July 15 failed coup.

Men and women pray side by side at the mosque that opened earlier this month in Berlin, which has female imams and where Muslims of all sects of the faith are welcome to worship together.

Supporters of the Berlin mosque said it would allow liberal Muslims to worship freely but in a tough statement Diyanet took a different stance.

It said that the mosque "neglects" the basic principles of Islam and was "incompatible with the worship, knowledge and methodology" accumulated since the faith was founded by the Prophet Mohammed 14 centuries ago.

"It is clear that this has been a project carried out for many years by FETO and other ill-gotten structures for the engineering of religion," it added.

"We are convinced that all fellow believers will keep their distance from such provocations and show wisdom in the face of this," Diyanet said in the statement published late Tuesday.Turkey says that the failed coup was carried out by the Fethullah Terror Group (FETO) led by the US-based Gulen. Gulen denies leading any terror organisation and rejects having any hand in the coup bid.

Diyanet has influence over Muslim worship among the Turkish diaspora through the Ditib organisation controlled by Ankara that manages some 900 mosques or religious communities in Germany. Diyanet sends clerics to work in its mosques.

Earlier this year, a furore erupted when German police raided the homes of four Turkish Muslim clerics working for Ditib suspected of spying for the government on the movement of Gulen.

Diyanet later said it had recalled six clerics from Germany for exceeding their authority but lashed out at German police for raiding the homes of the preachers.

Cheers

[RCase]

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1441162/br ... dentified/

BRUSSELS: Belgian security forces have identified the man who set off an explosion at one of Brussels’ busiest train stations before he was shot and killed, in the latest attack to hit Europe, authorities said Wednesday.

Interior Minister Jan Jambon said the attack Tuesday evening could have been much worse because the “big explosion did not happen,” adding more details about the device would be released shortly. Witnesses said the suspect shouted “Allahu Akbar” [God is Greatest] before setting off the blast, which triggered a small but intense fireball in the station’s underground hall.

Taking wagers on the origins of the AoA shouting suspect...!

[Peregrine]

An atrocity of piece in India :

UP: Man hacks brother’s hand off over scratch on bike

MEERUT: In a horrifying incident, a man got so enraged during an argument over a scratch on a bike that he attacked his brother with a sickle, hacking one of his hands off.

The incident happened in Butrada village of Shamli, where one Gulzama Ahmad, 37, scolded his nephew for leaving scratches on his bike late on Tuesday night. Soon, the child's father and elder brother of Ahmad, Mohammad Kaalu, came out in support of his child.

A verbal argument ensued, ending with Kaalu getting hold of a sickle and hacking both arms of his brother. One of the hands was completely severed from the body.

Chand Bibi, wife of Ahmad, said, "There was no issue as such. We are a joint family and it was just a scratch on the bike. My husband had only scolded the boy and did not even touch him but my brother-in-law became really angry and brutally attacked my husband."

According to circle officer of Thanabhawan, Sunil Kumar, "We have received a written complaint by the victim's wife and raids are being conducted on the possible hideouts of the accused who is absconding right now. We will soon nab him. Meanwhile, Ahmad has been admitted to hospital."

Cheers

[Peregrine]

List of Islamic Terror Attacks

List of Killings in the Name of Islam: Last 30 Days

This is part of the list of killings in the name of Islam maintained by TheReligionofPeace.com. Most of these incidents are terror attacks. A handful are honor killings or Sharia executions.

During this time period, there were 163 Islamic attacks in 29 countries, in which 1453 people were killed and 1518 injured.

(TROP does not catch all attacks. Not all attacks are immediately posted).

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Continuing from the above post :

List of Islamic Terror Attacks

List of Killings in the Name of Islam: 2016

This is part of the list of killings in the name of Islam maintained by TheReligionofPeace.com. Most of these incidents are terror attacks. A handful are honour killings or Sharia executions.
During this time period, there were 2478 Islamic attacks in 59 countries, in which 21,237 people were killed and 26680 injured.

(TROP does not catch all attacks. Not all attacks are immediately posted).

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Muslim Diaspora bear the brunt of global terrorism, say researchers

In the wake of the recent terror attack on a London mosque targeting worshippers, researchers have hypothesised that Muslims are the worst affected by terrorism globally, according to ABC News.

While attacks by Muslims against non-Muslims in Europe have been under the spotlight in headlines recently, researchers from the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (Start), a research and education centre at the University of Maryland, believe that Muslims are in fact the most likely victims of terrorism throughout the world. Must be funded by the Saudis

Start Executive Director William Braniff and his team studied the causes and human consequences of terrorism, compiling details about attacks like the one that occurred in London. What they have found is that — although they did not always have information about the religious beliefs of the victims — Muslims were the most affected on a whole.

“In the Middle East, Muslims are the most likely victims of both terrorism and counter-terrorism efforts,” Braniff told.

His point of view may come as a surprise to Westerners who think about terrorism only as high-profile attacks carried out in the US and Europe, such as the 9/11 attacks and the mass shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando back in 2016. But when he and his team looked at terrorism more closely, including regions like the Middle East and Africa, it became manifest that Muslims are most frequently targeted, he said.On May 30, for example, Islamic State killed 31 people in Iraq in dual bombings. One attack used a car bomb, and the other targeted a popular ice cream shop in central Baghdad, according to The Associated Press.

Attacks by Muslims ‘receive 4.5 times more media coverage’ than those by non-Muslims

But those bombings drew significantly less attention from Western media than the suicide bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester that took place May 22.

In the Manchester attack, Salman Abedi killed more than 20 people and left dozens of others injured, according to authorities.

But Braniff underscored that Muslims face threats from terrorism outside the Middle East as well. He said that Start researchers found an increase over the past several years in terrorism-related violence against Muslims in the 35 member nations of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, an intergovernmental economic organisation that includes the US and much of Europe.

“Here, we have seen a rise in attacks perpetrated by extremists but also terrorist attacks targeted against Muslims,” he said.

ATTACKS ON THE RISE IN THE WEST BUT RESULT IN FEWER FATALITIES

Erin Miller, the program manager of Start’s Global Terrorism Database, which tracks attacks going back to 1970, agreed that attacks against Muslims are on the rise and offered some insight into why they do not always get the same media attention.

“There are many attacks against Muslims in the West, but they are frequently less lethal,” she said.

Miller cited a report by a German media group that said there were 3,533 attacks on refugees and refugee hostels in Germany in 2016. Those attacks injured 560 people, including 43 children, according to the report, but did not result in any deaths. If the refugees had been in an Islamic Country they would have faced DEATH!

Monday’s attack in London, outside the Finsbury Park Mosque, injured at least 10 people, and one person died, but it is not clear if his death was a direct result of the attack.

Miller said that it is frequently difficult to determine the difference between what is referred to as a hate crime in the US and terrorism directed against Muslims, although that distinction is not the most important one to make when determining what groups are most often targeted by violence.

“The distinction between whether something is terrorism or a hate crime is often not very useful in this discussion,” she said. “It’s an artificial distinction.”

The FBI defines a terrorist act as “a violent act or an act dangerous to human life, in violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any state, to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.”

The bureau defines a hate crime as “a traditional offence like murder, arson or vandalism, with an added element of bias.”

Muslims are threatened by both terrorism and hate crimes in the West, according to Miller. Solution : Go to an Islamic Country . Don't go to Non-Islamic Countries!

Cheers

[Anindya]

Dated, but even if the numbers below are close to correct, should not CPEC first setup a sperm bank to improve the gene pool in Pakistan....

THE COST OF ISLAMIC INCEST

Today, 70% of all Pakistanis are inbred and in Turkey the amount is between 25-30% (Jyllands-Posten, 27/2 2009 “More stillbirths among immigrants“).

Statistical research on Arabic countries shows that up to 34 percent of all marriages in Algiers are consanguine (blood related), 46 percent in Bahrain, 33 percent in Egypt, 80 percent in Nubia (southern area in Egypt), 60 percent in Iraq, 64 percent in Jordan, 64 percent in Kuwait, 42 percent in Lebanon, 48 percent in Libya, 47 percent in Mauritania, 54 percent in Qatar, 67 percent in Saudi Arabia, 63 percent in Sudan, 40 percent in Syria, 39 percent in Tunisia, 54 percent in the United Arabic Emirates and 45 percent in Yemen (Reproductive Health Journal, 2009 Consanguinity and reproductive health among Arabs.).

A large part of inbred Muslims are born from parents who are themselves inbred – which increase the risks of negative mental and physical consequences greatly.

The amount of blood related marriages is lower among Muslim immigrants living in the West. Among Pakistanis living in Denmark the amount is down to 40 percent and 15 percent among Turkish immigrants (Jyllands-Posten, 27/2 2009 More stillbirths among immigrants”.).

More than half of Pakistani immigrants living in Britain are intermarried:

The research, conducted by the BBC and broadcast to a shocked nation on Tuesday, found that at least 55% of the community was married to a first cousin. This is thought to be linked to the probability that a British Pakistani family is at least 13 times more likely than the general population to have children with recessive genetic disorders.” (Times of India, 17/11 2005 Ban UK Pakistanis from marrying cousins).

Also Muslims suffer insanity, low IQ, recessive disorders from 1400 years inbreeding

from a Lockheed employee in Saudi Arabia.

During the pilot transition program with the KV-107 and C-130 with Lockheed, we found that most Saudi pilot trainees had very limited night vision, even on the brightest of moonlit nights.

Their training retention rate was minimal including maintenance personnel. Some had dim memories and had to be constantly reminded of things that were told to them the day before. An American, British or any other western instructor is burned out pretty quick. It actually took Muslim C-130 pilots years before they could fly in the dark safely and then would be reluctant to leave the lights of a city.

[RCase]

Dated, but even if the numbers below are close to correct, should not CPEC first setup a sperm bank to improve the gene pool in Pakistan....

Do you mean having more slit-eyed, yellow skinned, polk flied lice eating Pakis? No sperm bank will be needed for the colonized!

[Anindya]

[JE Menon]

I'd like to know the religious composition of the sample in the above by country.

Plus can you please give a source? It does not seem to be on the Yougov website.

[JE Menon]

Meanwhile, Italians showing the love:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfIkiny_O14

Extremely hostile and inflammable language.

[JE Menon]

And, in the Islamic Emirate of Londonistan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTl2pMFWj6I

In case you haven't seen it

[JE Menon]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5z8z4Fi7oz4

The Green Prince, Full Movie narrated by Mosaab Al Hassan, son of the prominent Hamas leader who was turned by Shin Bet. The movie is narrated by him and his Shin Bet handler.

This guy's story is incredible. He escaped, obviously to avoid the death of a collaborator, is making a new life in the US. He first abandoned Islam for Christianity, then moved on from that into Indic systems. He is married now. He has spoken extensively, and many of his lectures are on Youtube.

[Rudradev]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5z8z4Fi7oz4

The Green Prince, Full Movie narrated by Mosaab Al Hassan

... He first abandoned Islam for Christianity, then moved on from that into Indic systems.

A lightbulb went on for me when I read this.

True, lasting peace and economic development in West Asia will have this effect.

Masses of people will turn away from Abrahamic religions and to Indic systems.

Abrahamic systems draw sustenance from a constant state of war and conflict in West Asia (and other places) in exactly the same way as war-profiteers (like black-marketeers, smugglers, arms-dealers, human traffickers, speculators) reap huge dividends from constant war and conflict. They thrive on chronic deprivation and hostility. It is NOT in their interest to achieve "Mid-East Peace". EVER.

The cycle of Islamism and Islamophobia is a necessary dynamic for all Abrahamic systems in order to ensure their continued dominance, and contain the spread of Sanatan Dharma, which would otherwise flourish by default in any civilized global society.

[Peregrine]

X Posted on the STFUP Thread

Suicide bomber targeting Makkah hurts six: Saudi police

RIYADH: Six foreign pilgrims were hurt on Friday in Saudi Arabia when a suicide bomber targeting Islam´s holiest site of Makkah blew himself up, the Interior Ministry said.

The incident happened around the Grand Mosque, where hundreds of thousands of worshippers gathered for early afternoon prayers on the last Friday of this year´s Ramazan, the Muslim fasting month.

Ministry spokesman General Mansour al-Turki told Saudi television that police "foiled the terrorist plan that targeted the security of the Grand Mosque, pilgrims and worshippers."

In dawn raids on Makkah and the Red Sea city of Jeddah officers arrested five suspects, including a woman, before surrounding the bomber´s location around the Grand Mosque.

"Unfortunately he started shooting towards security personnel once he noticed their presence in the area, which led to an exchange of fire before he blew himself up," Turki said.

The blast partially collapsed the building where he had taken refuge, injuring the six pilgrims, Turki said.

He added that four had already been released from hospital, and five security men were also slightly hurt.

Since late 2014 Saudi Arabia has faced periodic bombings and shootings claimed by the Daesh group.

Purported images from the scene that circulated on social media showed an alley filled with bricks and other debris apparently from a blast.

Video showed what appeared to be a bearded man´s head lying among rubble from a collapsed structure.

Counter-terrorism capabilities

Near the end of Ramazan last year in the Saudi city of Madinah four security officers died in an explosion close to Islam´s second holiest site, the Prophet´s Mosque.

It was one of three suicide blasts around the kingdom on the same day, in which a total of seven people were believed killed. The others occurred in Jeddah and in the Gulf city of Qatif.

The US Central Intelligence Agency said those attacks bore the hallmarks of IS.

Most of the targets in Saudi Arabia have been the Shiite minority and security forces, killing dozens of people.

IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has called for attacks against the kingdom, a member of the US-led coalition battling the group in Syria and Iraq.

Since July last year police have arrested around 40 people, including Saudis and Pakistanis, for alleged extremist links.

Saudi Arabia´s counter-terrorism capabilities -- which for years were led by Prince Mohammed bin Nayef -- are well-regarded internationally.

On Wednesday Prince Mohammed was ousted from his posts of crown prince and interior minister, replaced as heir to the throne by King Salman´s son Mohammed bin Salman.

Friday´s counter-terrorist operation was the first to take place under the new interior minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef, who is in his early 30s.

Prince Abdulaziz is the nephew of the deposed minister.

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Ominous News for India and possibly China (Xinjiang) :

Hezbollah says future Israel war could draw fighters from Iran, Pakistan, Iraq, elsewhere

BEIRUT: Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Friday that a future war waged by Israel against Syria or Lebanon could draw thousands of fighters from countries including Iran and Iraq.

His comments indicated that the same array of Iranian-backed militias - but not countries - currently fighting in Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad could take part in any future conflict with Israel.

Tensions have risen between Hezbollah and its longtime foe Israel in recent months since Donald Trump became U.S. president with his tough talk against Iran.

Israel´s air force chief said his country would use all its strength from the start in any new war with Hezbollah.

"The Israeli enemy must know that if an Israeli war is launched against Syria or Lebanon, it is not known that the fighting will remain Lebanese-Israeli, or Syrian-Israeli," Nasrallah said in a televised speech.

"This doesn´t mean there are states that might intervene directly. But this could open the way for thousands, even hundreds of thousands of fighters from all over the Arab and Islamic world to participate - from Iraq, Yemen, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan," he said.

Nasrallah has repeatedly warned Israel against attacking Lebanon, where the Iran-backed group is based, and from where it sends fighters to support Assad against insurgents.

Experts on the group say the warnings are part of a policy of deterrence that has also included revealing some of its military capabilities.

Nasrallah said in recent months Hezbollah´s rocket arsenal can hit any military target in Israel, which is Lebanon´s southern neighbour.

He said any Israeli war with Lebanon or the Gaza Strip, which is run by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, would
be "very costly" and that Israel would not be able to win.

Israel has targeted senior Hezbollah commanders in air raids on Syrian soil. But there has been no major confrontation between Hezbollah and Israel in Lebanon since a month-long war between the two sides in 2006.

Cheers

[Anindya]

JEM - the source for those images was the article on the role of Germany....

Looking to Germany to Protect the World Order

[IndraD]

ummas come out in massive number in Moscow to pray on road on Eid

[JE Menon]

Thanks Anindya.

[Peregrine]

X Posted on STFUP Thread

Green on Green Attack - Six hurt as car hits Eid crowd

LONDON: Six people, including three children, were injured on Sunday after a car ran into a large crowd gathered to celebrate Eidul Fitr in the northern English city of Newcastle. Police said there was no information suggesting the incident was terror-related.

Police believe a woman who had been celebrating Eid with her family was driving the car that struck the crowd outside the Westgate Sports Centre, Assistant Chief Constable Darren Best said. Northumbria Police arrested the woman, 42, who remained in custody. The force said it was not looking for other suspects.

Cheers

[Falijee]

Malsi Fatwa ?

Imam Tawhidi‏Verified account @Imamofpeace 10h10 hours ago

Radical Wahabi cleric on Saudi TV just said it's a great sin to share a heart or flower emoji when chatting.

[SBajwa]

[Falijee]

Filipino woman working in Saudi Arabia for only 2 weeks found dead under suspicious circumstances, employers claim suicide

More likely a case of slavery and /or sexual slavery, harassment, overwork, non payment of wages . It has happened before. Doubt justice can be done in this corrupt county

[Peregrine]

US sets new visa rules for 6 mainly Muslim nations, refugees

WASHINGTON: The Trump administration on Wednesday set new criteria for visa applicants from six mainly Muslim nations and all refugees that require a "close" family or business tie to the United States. The move came after the Supreme Court partially restored President Donald Trump's executive order that was widely criticized as a ban on Muslims.

Visas that have already been approved will not be revoked, but instructions issued by the State Department say that new applicants from Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Iran and Yemen must prove a relationship with a parent, spouse, child, adult son or daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law or sibling already in the United States to be eligible. The same requirement, with some exceptions, holds for would-be refugees from all nations that are still awaiting approval for admission to the US.

Grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, fiancees or other extended family members are not considered to be close relationships, according to the guidelines that were issued in a cable sent to all US embassies and consulates late on Wednesday. The new rules take effect at 8pm Eastern Daylight Time on Thursday (0000GMT on Friday), according to the cable, which was obtained by The Associated Press.

Cheers

[vinod]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-no ... e-40420511

Fore skin is not a birth defect. Stop Cutting Babies!

[abhik]

"Three-quarters of American adult men are circumcised"
Is that true?