Militias target some Iraqis for being gay

USA Today:

The young man turns to the camera and pleads with his tormentors.

"I'm not a terrorist," he tells the Iraqi police who surround him. "I want you to know I am different. But I am not a terrorist."

To some fundamentalist Iraqi Muslims, Ahmed Sadoun Saleh was worse than a terrorist.

He was gay. He wore his hair long and took female hormones to grow breasts. Amused by his appearance, Iraqi police officers stopped him in December at a checkpoint in a southern Baghdad neighborhood dominated by radical Shiite militias. They groped Saleh and ridiculed him.

The assault was captured on video and circulated on cellphones throughout Baghdad, says Ali Hili, founder of London-based Iraqi LGBT, a group dedicated to protecting Iraq's gays and lesbians. Shortly after the video was made public, Hili says Saleh contacted him, fearing for his life, and asked for his help to flee Iraq.

"Unfortunately, it was too late," Hili says. Saleh turned up dead two months later, he says.

At least 82 gay men have been killed in Iraq since December, according to Iraqi LGBT. The violence has raised questions about the Iraqi government's ability to protect a diverse range of vulnerable minority groups that also includes Christians and Kurds, especially following the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraqi cities last month....

Read it all here.

Australian Islamist admits football terror plot

From the Irish Sun:

An Australian Islamic man has told a court in Melbourne he is guilty of being part of a terror cell that plotted to kill thousands of people at major sports events.

Only moments before his retrial, Muslim convert Shane Kent, 33, pleaded guilty to being a member of a terror cell led by radical cleric Abdul Nacer Benbrika.

Kent admitted involvement in the cell's plans to place bombs at a major football event in Melbourne: the Australian Grand Final in 2005, which attracted nearly 100,000 fans and a TV audience of millions.

Kent has been tried once before and was about to face a retrial on charges he had previously denied.

Six other members of the cell, as well as the cleric Benbrika, were last year found guilty on related charges.

Benbrika was jailed for 15 years, but not before he nominated women and children as fair game for terrorists....

Read it all here.

Woman in Sudan to Be Flogged for Wearing Pants

From Yahoo News:

A Sudanese woman journalist was preparing to be flogged 40 times in Khartoum on Wednesday for wearing "indecent" clothes, with 10 women already whipped for similar offences against Islamic law.

Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein, who writes for the left-wing Al-Sahafa newspaper and works for the media department of the United Nations Mission in Sudan, was arrested in Khartoum earlier this month after being caught wearing trousers.

"I received a telephone call from the authorities saying I must appear at 10 am (0700 GMT) on Wednesday in front of the judge," Hussein told AFP on Tuesday.

"It is important that people know what is happening," Hussein said in an invitation to journalists to attend her court appearance and flogging.

"They will lash me 40 times, and also fine me 250 Sudanese pounds (100 dollars)."

Hussein said she was at a restaurant on July 3 when police came in and ordered 13 women wearing trousers to follow them to the police station....

Read it all here.

Muslims attack Hindus, ransack a temple and destroy four houses

From Asia News:

A group of Muslims attacked four Hindu-owned houses after ransacking a Hindu temple in Narsangdi District, about 50 kilometres from the capital Dhaka. The episode occurred at night on 25 July in a village called Charsindhu.

The armed attackers from the local Muslim community stormed a local Hindu place of worship. Local Hindus came running to protect their temple but were beaten up instead. Eventually the attackers turned against the houses of some of the Hindus. Five people were eventually hospitalised

Local police moved in quickly and arrested those responsible for the violence....

Read it all here.

Islamic Extremists Kill Pastor, Raze Churches in Nigeria

From persecution.org:

International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that Islamic extremists killed a pastor and razed five churches in the city of Maiduguri, Nigeria, on July 27. The extremists also attacked two churches in the Nigerian city of Potiskum.

Yakubu Sabo, a husband and father of seven, was hacked to death with a machete by members of a violent Islamic militant group know as Boko Haram (which means “education is prohibited”). Sabo pastored a Church of Christ congregation in Maiduguri....

Read it all here.

Muslim 'miscreants' murder Hindu woman

From persecutionbd.org:

Radha Rani Halder, a newly married Hindu woman of the Shariatpur District under Dhaka Division in central Bangladesh, was raped and killed by a group of Muslim miscreants on June 27, 2009.

Ms. Halder worked for the local NGO, the Shariatpur Development Society (SDS).

Mr. Dipankar Bairagee, husband of the slain woman, said that, at about 11 a.m. on June 27, Ms. Halder went for loan collection, as part of her work with the NGO, to the house of local village leader, Mr. Halim Matubbar, in South Goaldia village.

But when she did not return until afternoon, her co-workers started searching for her as she didn’t return on time to the office with the money, and that her mobile was not responding, said Mr. Quamrul Hasan(Badal), the Sector Chief of SDS.

“Finally after frantic search until on late at night, we discovered the unclothed dead-body of Ms. Halder with her throat half-slit near Hajeer Pukur of Palong Upazila in Shariatpur”, said Sector Chief Hasan.

Mr. Bairagee, the devastated husband of the deceased, said, “We got married about 2 months ago. She took up the job to relieve the family of its hardships, but got killed in this brutal way”.

“We have filed a case with the police, but they failed to arrest any of the perpetrators”, said he.

“Local Muslim Mohammed Kalam, Borhan and Motaleb killed my wife after raping her; and they also snatched an amount of Tk 43,996.00, as well as a golden chain and earring from my wife”, added Mr. Bairagee.

Shariatpur police chief said, “The case is under investigation; we are doing our best; and we have arrested one of the suspect”.

Annie Halder, a Catholic human rights activist, expressed anxiety over growing attacks on the minorities in Bangladesh.

“We demand proper investigation of this case and due justice to the perpetrators”, said she.

US Al-Qaida Member Sentenced to Life for Bush Plot

From Voice of America:

A U.S. court has sentenced an American al-Qaida member to life in prison for plotting to assassinate then-President George W. Bush in 2003.

A judge in the eastern U.S. state of Virginia had originally sentenced Ahmed Omar Abu Ali to a 30-year prison term. But a higher court ruled the punishment was too lenient and sent the case back for re-sentencing.

The U.S.-born Abu Ali was convicted in 2005 of involvement in an al-Qaida plot to kill Mr. Bush and carry out other terrorist acts. Prosecutors said the 28-year-old joined al-Qaida while studying in Saudi Arabia in 2002.

Saudi authorities detained Abu Ali in 2003 in a crackdown on militants and jailed him for 20 months before extraditing him to the United States.

U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee said Monday he increased Abu Ali's sentence to a life term because of his refusal to renounce terrorism and the risk he would pose to the public if released.

Abu Ali says Saudi authorities tortured him into confessing. Judge Lee, a jury and an appeals court all rejected the claim.

In a brief statement to the court Monday, Abu Ali said Judge Lee would have to appear one day before a divine tribunal. Abu Ali said that if the judge was comfortable with such a prospect, he could impose any sentence he desired.

Abu Ali was raised in the Washington suburb of Falls Church, Virginia. His parents attended Monday's sentencing but made no comment.

Attempted Islamic Terror Attacks in North Carolina

From Voice of America:

U.S. federal authorities have charged seven men in the southeastern state of North Carolina with plotting to carry out terror attacks abroad.

A father, 39-year-old Daniel Boyd, and his two sons, ages 20 and 22, are among the defendants. All are charged with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, and conspiracy to murder, kidnap, maim and injure persons abroad.

The Justice Department said Boyd traveled to Afghanistan and Pakistan between 1989 and 1992 for military-style training in terrorist camps, and following the training, allegedly fought in Afghanistan.

It said Boyd traveled to Gaza in March 2006 and attempted to introduce his son to individuals who believed that "violent jihad was a personal religious obligation." The Justice Department said Boyd and several other defendants left the United States for Israel in 2007 to engage in "violent jihad," but their efforts failed and they eventually returned.

Boyd and several other defendants face weapons charges. Authorities allege Boyd and others practiced "military tactics" and using weapons in North Carolina.

If convicted, the seven face life in prison.

The Justice Department said five of the suspects are U.S. citizens, one is a naturalized U.S. citizen, and one is a native of Kosovo who is a U.S. legal permanent resident.

The group made initial court appearances in Raleigh, North Carolina, Monday. They are expected to return to court on Thursday.

200 'groomed' suicide bombers rescued in Pak

From IBN Live:

Two-hundred boys, who were being trained at a secret location to carry out suicide attacks, were rescued by the security forces in northwest Pakistan, a media report said on Monday.

The boys, aged from six to 13 years, were rescued in Mardan in North West Frontier Province (NWFP), Geo TV said.

Meanwhile, the children were shifted to a rehabilitation centre where they will receive psychiatric treatment.

"These children have been brainwashed in a way that now they even want to kill their own parents," Bashir Bilour, a minister in the provincial government said, adding that the children were not administered any drugs during training.

Couple in Kuwait Arrested for Hugging

From the Arab Times:

Hugging in public: Police have arrested an Asian couple for indulging in immoral activities. They were arrested in Sharq, reports Al-Anba daily. According to a security source an unidentified manager of a bank was reportedly looking out the window when he saw the couple in an embrace and called police. The couple has been referred to the concerned authorities.

It wouldn't happen to the Koran: Pope attacks Glasgow art gallery's invitation to vandalise a Bible

The pope made an excellent point this week about vandalism and whether it would be tolerated if Islam was on the receiving end of it. From the Daily Mail:

The Pope has condemned a ' disgusting' taxpayer-funded exhibition in which visitors are urged to deface the Bible.

Visitors were offered pens by gallery bosses so they could scrawl comments on the text - leading to a host of puerile and obscene remarks.

Pope Benedict XVI believes the stunt would not have been contemplated with a copy of the Koran.

His anger over the show, organised by council-funded arts body Culture
and Sport Glasgow, was expressed by a senior Vatican priest.

The adviser to the Pope said: 'It is disgusting and offensive. They would not think of doing it to the Koran.'

Read it all here.

Muslims refuse to use alcohol-based hand gels over religious beliefs

From the Daily Mail:

Some Muslims have refused to use alcohol-based hand gels to combat the spread of swine flu because they claim it is against their religion.

Some of those employed by St Albans Council in Hertfordshire have complained about the antibacterial lotion, which is considered a key strategy in containing the virus.

Officials were concerned because the Koran bans Muslims from consuming alcohol, so council chiefs issued them with non-alcohol hand gels, which studies have shown to be less effective in killing bugs.

But Muslim leaders criticised the council’s decision to change the gel, pointing out that Islamic teachings allow Muslims to use alcohol for medicinal purposes.

The Muslim Council of Britain said: ‘We would advise people to follow the medical advice so we would, of course, encourage people to use hand gel. ‘People need to find ways to accommodate their beliefs.’

Councils, schools and businesses across the country have ordered supplies of alcohol-based hand gels to reduce the spread of swine flu.

A spokesman for St Albans Council said it had issued hand gel to all employees in May.

Read more here.

Dahlan: 'Arafat Deceived the World'

Fatah doesn't want peace, according to senior Fatah official Muhammad Dahlan. From Israel National News:

Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) chief terrorist Yasser Arafat successfully deceived the world about his commitment to wholesale murder, according to a Palestinian Authority lawmaker. Senior Fatah official and PA legislator Muhammad Dahlan announced his belief in a July 22 interview broadcast on PA TV (Fatah) that terrorism is "a legal right," adding that "the international community affirms it for us."

n the interview, translated by the Washington-based media watchdog Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), Dahlan said he "lived with Chairman Yasser Arafat for years. Arafat would condemn [terror] by day while at night he would do honorable things. I don't want to say any more about this."

Arafat was awarded the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize along with then-Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin and then-Foreign Minister Shimon Peres "for their efforts to create peace in the Middle East." Arafat was included in the award due to the belief that he was a sincere participant in the peace process -- a belief based on his public condemnations of terror.

In his acceptance speech at the Nobel award ceremony, Arafat informed the Norwegian monarch and the panel that granted the prize that "Peace, for us, is an asset and in our interest." But within the very same speech, he also insisted on a "comprehensive withdrawal from the West Bank [Judea and Samaria] and the Gaza Strip", that Jerusalem be internationalized, and that all PA terrorist detainees and prisoners be freed so "that their mothers, wives and children may smile again."

According to Dahlan, the PA does not oppose armed conflict, but is merely biding its time. He told the interviewer "it is the responsibility of the leadership to use [violence] when it wants, in the proper place and at the proper time. We cannot leave it in the hands of youth who use their own judgment This is the difference between [the PA] using this right, and just anyone using it."

The PMW noted in its report that the very forces that will be available to fight Israel "in the proper place and at the proper time" deemed by the PA leadership, are currently being trained by U.S. Lt.-Gen. Keith Dayton, and fully supplied by surrounding Arab nations.

Go here for video.

Hamas Teaching Palestinian Kids to Hate

But don't the Palestinian Arabs want to live in peace with their Jewish neighbors? The answer is no.

From the J-Post:

Children in Hamas summer camps reenacted the abduction of IDF soldier Gilad Schalit in the presence of top Hamas officials, according to pictures obtained by The Jerusalem Post.

According to Israeli defense officials, more than 120,000 Palestinian children are spending the summer in Hamas-run camps. In addition to religious studies, the children undergo semi-military training with toy guns.

At a recent summer camp graduation ceremony, the children put on a show reenacting the June 2006 abduction of Schalit. Present was Osama Mazini, a senior Hamas political leader, who is in charge of the Schalit negotiations with Israel on behalf of the terrorist group.

In one picture, obtained by the Post, Mazini is seen standing next to Ahmad Bahar, the acting speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council, distributing Korans to camp counselors.

"This sends a message," one Israeli defense official said, regarding Mazini's participation at the ceremony. "This is Hamas's way of showing Palestinian children that kidnapping soldiers is the correct way of life...."

Read it all here.

UK: Non-Muslim female police officers will wear headscarves when entering mosques

But will Muslim officers in the UK wear a cross when entering a church or a head covering when entering a synagogue? How about showing respect in a Buddhist or Hindu place of worship? Unlikely. From the BBC:

Avon and Somerset Police is issuing head coverings to its female officers so they can enter mosques.

The force says the move will help its officers respect Muslim religious customs while carrying out their job.

The garments, designed to match the force's uniform, were designed in consultation with Muslim groups.

Imam Rashad Azami, of Bath, said: "This will go a long way in encouraging a trustful relationship between the police and the Muslim community."

Mr Azami, director of Bath Islamic Society, said: "The police have been working closely with the Muslim community in the area on many levels for the last few years."

There are two versions of the head coverings, to match the black of a police officer's uniform and the blue of the Police Community Support Officer uniforms.

Both carry the force's crest.

Sikhs, Hindus dread Taliban tax in Pakistan

Minorities in Pakistan suffer at the hands of Muslim fanatics. From the AFP:

Sitting on a broken chair outside a Sikh temple in a crowded part of Peshawar, Aman Deep Singh is frantic about his future after losing his business in Pakistan's tribal district of Khyber.

When the Taliban gave Sikhs and Hindus an ultimatum -- leave the land of your forefathers or pay an Islamic tax in protection money -- Singh packed up and left his native Tirah valley for Peshawar.

"We were living under fear. Fear of militants, fear of Lashkar-e-Islam and fear of other armed groups," said Singh, his hair swept up in a turban, a long beard touching his abdomen and thick moustache covering his upper lip.

He swapped a general store in the mountains for unemployment in the northwest capital, where he struggles to feed the nine members of his family. Aman Deep is a fake name. He wants his real name hidden for his security.

As light fades to dusk, Sikhs gather for evening prayers at the Joga Singh gurdwara (temple) in a narrow street of Peshawar's Dabgari bazaar. Each man removes his shoes, washes his feet in a small pool of water and covers his head.

"I am not the only one. About 400 Sikh and 57 Hindu families migrated from (the town of) Bara and Tirah," said Singh.

Sikhs and Hindus are tiny communities in Pakistan. In the last year, hundreds have fled their homes after receiving death threats from the Taliban and other militant groups in an increasingly unstable northwest.

After US troops invaded Afghanistan in 2001, Taliban and Al-Qaeda ideologues fled to Pakistan, where they have increasingly focused their campaign and where 2,000 people have perished in bomb attacks over the past two years.

Pakistan launched a major offensive in the northwest this summer, under pressure from the United States, after Taliban fighters made deep territorial inroads.

Militants need an endless supply of funds for their weapons, communications and training.

Kidnapping, drugs and extortion are typical sources of income. Taxation and protection scams are others, and vulnerable non-Muslims are easy prey.

Local Sikhs mostly trade in cloth, and also run grocer, garment and herbal medicine shops. They are people who can afford the 1,000 rupees (12 dollars) per man, per year "jizya" tax.

In the region of Orakzai, the Taliban demanded the tax of adult male Sikhs, forcibly occupying Sikh-owned shops and houses. After two months, the tax spread to Khyber, the legendary tribal region on the main supply line to Afghanistan.

It was there that Lashkar-e-Islam, a Pakistani Islamist group headed by Mangal Bagh, announced Sikhs and Hindus would be free to live anywhere -- as long as they paid jizya.

But threats made the situation increasing tense. Hundreds of Sikh and Hindu families fled to nearby areas, especially Peshawar.

"Minorities in Orakzai and Khyber were warned by some militant groups to become Muslims or leave the area. This was a real threat," Singh said.

"They're running a parallel government. Hindu and Sikh families did not feel safe, in Orakzai, in Bara and in Tirah. We preferred to migrate, at least here we can breathe in peace and feel safe," he said.

The same sentiment was echoed by other shopkeepers from Bara.

"No female Muslim or non-Muslim is allowed out without a male relative. All women, even the elderly, have to wear a burka," said Gulab Khan Afridi, a 38-year-old Muslim.

Gulab Khan said growing a beard and wearing a cap had become compulsory, otherwise Lashkar extremists would dole out beatings or a 200 to 500-rupee fine.

"Can you believe it? A man cannot wear a ring in Bara," he added.

Much like the Taliban, Lashkar-e-Islam acts like police, enforces prayers five times a day and punishes people accused of prostitution and other vices....

Read it all here.

Gaza judge tells female lawyers to wear head scarf

Shariah law in Gaza. From Yahoo News, via the AP:

Gaza's top judge said Sunday that he has ordered female lawyers to wear Muslim headscarves when they appear in court, the latest sign that the Islamic militant group is increasingly imposing its strict interpretation of Islamic law on residents of the coastal strip.

Supreme Court chief justice Abdul-Raouf Halabi said female lawyers will be required to wear a headscarf and a long, dark colored cloak under their billowing black robes when the court returns from its summer recess in September.

Halabi said his order was designed to ensure that women dress in accordance with Islamic law, which requires women to cover up in public, wearing loose garments and only showing their hands and faces.

"Showing a woman's hair is forbidden (in Islam)," the Hamas-appointed Halabi told The Associated Press. "We will not allow people to corrupt morals. This (dress code) will improve work in the courts."

Hamas seized power in Gaza in June 2007 and vowed never to impose its conservative values on others. But it has taken a series of steps in recent months that appear to be aimed at forcing residents to accept its Islamic-oriented social agenda.

Police have pressured store owners to cover scantily clad mannequins, and men relaxing on the beach have been ordered to put more clothes on. One secondary girls' school has made wearing a Muslim headscarf and loose robe a mandatory uniform in the upcoming school year....

Read more here.

Police: 3rd bomb in Jakarta attack malfunctioned

From the Associated Press:

The suicide attackers who struck the Indonesian capital last week planted a third bomb intended to send panicked crowds to hotel lobbies where the other bombs would explode, but the device's timer malfunctioned, police said Friday.

The tactic, similar to that used by Jemaah Islamiyah terrorists in the Bali bombings, indicates that the attacks were intended to kill many more than the seven who died in the twin bombings at the two American-owned luxury hotels.

The unexploded device — a laptop computer filled with explosives and bolts — was found on the 18th floor of the J.W. Marriott hotel where the bombers had been staying and should have gone off first, said Ketut Untung Yoga of the national police.

"It is clear that the bomb found inside the hotel was equipped with a timer that shows the time of the (failed) explosion," Untung Yoga said. "It was supposed to explode before the other two."

Last Friday's near simultaneous explosions at the Marriott and Ritz-Carlton killed seven and wounded more than 50, breaking a nearly four-year lull in terrorist activity in the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation.

The two bombers, believed to have been associated with the regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah, also died.

An unknown number of suspects have been picked up in a nationwide manhunt that is also targeting Malaysian fugitive Noordin Mohammed Top, the alleged mastermind of four major bombings in Indonesia.

Jemaah Islamiyah used a combination of stationary, timed explosives and suicide bombers in the 2002 and 2005 Bali bombings that killed more than 220 people. The group was also blamed for the first bombing of the J.W. Marriott in 2003 and an attack on the Australian Embassy in 2004.

Iran dissident murdered in jail

From the Straits Time, via the AFP:

A YOUNG Iranian man arrested in protests against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's disputed re-election has died after over a week in custody, two reformist newspapers reported on Saturday.

'Mohsen Ruholamini, arrested in July 9 gatherings ... was killed,' Etemad newspaper reported, quoting a pro-opposition website.

The newspaper did not elaborate on what actually caused Ruholamini's death in detention.

The Etemad Melli newspaper meanwhile said his family 'was informed of their son's martyrdom three nights ago and was asked to turn up for the body to be handed over.' Reports said the 25-year-old man's father Abdolhossein Ruholamini was a top advisor to the campaign of defeated conservative presidential candidate Mohsen Rezai, a former head of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards.

The candidate offered condolences to the Ruholamini family on their son's 'unexpected death", Tabnak, a news website close to Rezai, reported.

Iranian official reports say at least 20 people died and more than 1,000 were arrested in protests sparked by Ahmadinejad's June 12 re-election, which the opposition say was rigged.

Hundreds of thousands of Iranians poured into Tehran streets to protest about their 'stolen votes' before a crackdown by security forces following an order by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who on June 19 called for an end to rallies and expressed his backing for the president.

Protests continued on a much smaller scale, though thousands took to the streets on July 9 on the anniversary of a bloody student uprising in 1999....

Read more here.

Gay Referee Cries Foul in Turkey

Oppression against homosexuals in more "moderate" Turkey. From Speigel Online:

A gay soccer referee recently suspended in Turkey is planning to sue the country's national football federation on grounds that it discriminated against him because of his homosexuality. Halil Ibrahim Dincdag says he is ready to take his case as far as the European Court of Human Rights.

People say the children in Trabzon grow up with weapons in their hands. Locals from this port town on the Black Sea coast in northeastern Turkey are considered hot-tempered and explosive, quicker with a knife than with their wits. It's a rough place, known for a spicy fish dish called hamsi, for fanatical soccer fans and for its legendary soccer club Trabzonspor -- the only one that's ever been able to offer up resistance against Besiktas, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, the country's big three teams in Istanbul.

Football referee Halil Ibrahim Dincdag, 32, has short hair, a few days' worth of stubble, and striking features. He loves his city. Nowhere is the air as pure and sweet, he says, as on the Black Sea. If Dincdag had his way, he would stay in Trabzon. He would continue working as a referee in his hometown, moonlighting as a radio host for local station Bayrak FM. Simply put, he would like to continue living out his dream, just as he did before....

Read it all here.

Sudan Friday TV Sermon: U.S. 'President Hussein' Should Acknowledge Jews Carried Out 9/11

From MEMRI. The following is an account of a sermon from Sudan:

In a Friday sermon in Khartoum, Sheikh Abd Al-Jalil Al-Karouri asked, "Are 19 young men from the Islamic world really capable of destroying America... can such a thing happen, Mr. Hussein, President of America?" and urged "President Hussein” to “be fair and to study the 9/11 files,” saying, “We consider this to be a Jewish conspiracy."

He added that President Obama “has a longing” for his ideological Muslim roots.

To read the full report, click http://www.memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=SD246009

Dozens of Nigerian pro-Taliban Islamists killed after police station raid

From the Telegraph:

Around 70 fighters from the fundamentalist group armed with guns and grenades attacked a police station in Nigeria's northern Bauchi state early on Sunday, but retreated after officers opened fire.

"Our men succeeded in repelling the dawn attack by the Taliban," Mohammed Barau, Bauchi state police spokesman, told AFP, adding that it appeared the assailants "wanted to steal weapons from the police station".

"We have launched a manhunt for other members of the group that have fled," Mr Barau added.

Hospital sources and witnesses said more than 50 people were killd in the fighting. Police arrested up to 200 people living close to the targeted police station.

The Nigerian Taliban is inspired by the Afghan militia but has no known direct connection.

The group is made up of former students who want hardline Islamic sharia to be the dominant legal system across all of Nigeria. Africa's most populous nation is made up of roughly equal numbers of Christians and Muslims....

Click here to read more.

Possible honor killing in Canada

From The Star:

MONTREAL–Police are investigating the death of three sisters found in their car at the bottom of the Rideau Canal in Kingston three weeks ago as a possible "honour" killing. Three suspects arrested Wednesday in Montreal on their way to the airport, possibly to flee the country, are believed to the sisters' father, Mohammed Shafi, his wife, and his 18-year-old son, the La Presse newspaper reported.

Kingston police have scheduled a news conference for 2 p.m. where Police Chief Stephen Tanner will outline the details of a major change in focus of the investigation. Up to now, police have only gone so far as to call the deaths "suspicious."

The Shafi sisters – Zainab, 19, Sahar, 17 and Geeti, 13 – died along with their aunt, Rona Amir Mohammed, on June 30. The family was returning from a trip to Niagara Falls and Toronto when they stopped for the night at a motel in Kingston.

The car was found that morning, submerged in the Rideau Canal, the bodies of the victims inside.

Officially, Kingston police would only say yesterday there had been a "change in the status" of the investigation based on "what's happened in the last 24 hours."

"It was a suspicious death and that has been changed," said Kingston police spokesman Const. Mike Menor. "We're not saying what that is."

However, Kingston Police have been investigating for the last two weeks the allegation the deaths were an honour killing, police sources told the Kingston Whig Standard.

The family is Muslim and hails from Kabul, Afghanistan. They lived in Dubai for 15 years before arriving in Canada two years ago.

Kingston Police apparently received information that Rona Amir Mohammed is actually the first wife of Mohammed Shafi, that the couple had married in Kabul 30 years ago, and the marriage had been kept secret since their arrival in Canada.

The information came from Rona Amir Mohammed's sister, Diba Masoomi, who lives in France. Masoomi also sent along a photo, claiming it is of the of the couple at their wedding. "We are convinced that this is a crime of honour," Masoomi wrote in an email sent to the police chief's office roughly two weeks ago.

Masoomi said her sister feared for her life. "For some time, my sister, as well as the Shafi couple's oldest daughter, Zainab, had been receiving death threats for social, cultural and family reasons," she wrote.

In the days following the deaths, Shafi, 57, told reporters the dthat [sic] Rona Amir Mohammed was his cousin, and she was always described as the children's aunt. Tooba Mohammad Yhaya, 37, introduced herself as Shafi's wife.

Family members speculated to reporters that one of the older sisters, likely Zainab, might have taken the car out to practise driving. They said she was rebellious and had taken the car in the past. However, the circumstances were always uncertain, particularly how the car made it all the way to the water.

The Shafis are not conservative Muslims, a Montreal relative of Yhaya, Said Fazel, told the Star.

The teenage girls dressed in a modern fashion, though reservedly, and did not even wear headscarves, said neighbour Joyce Gilbert, who lives below the family. She described them as "angels."...

Masoomi told the Kingston newspaper that Rona Amir Mohammed could not have children, and so Shafi took a second wife, a practice not uncommon in Afghani culture. Masoomi said her sister remained with the family and raised the children, even when they moved to Dubai....

Abu Bakar Bashir's warning: the terror will not end

The Australian:

Abu Bakar Bashir has endorsed the deadly work of Southeast Asia's most wanted terrorist, Noordin Top, saying Allah would protect him in his fight for Islam.

The fanatical Muslim cleric, who is the spiritual adviser to the al-Mukmin Islamic school for children on the outskirts of Solo, in central Java, said if the victims of the J.W. Marriott and Ritz-Carlton suicide bombings had ever held any thoughts against Islam, they deserved to die.

Bashir refused to condemn the suicide bombings, saying the use of terror was justified in the war against infidels, or non-Muslims.

Bashir was convicted and jailed for inciting terrorism in relation to the 2002 Bali bombings and has not since moderated his views.

He is seen as the spiritual head of Jemaah Islamiah, and while he is deeply unpopular in Indonesia, he carries dangerous influence that marks him as more than a mere ranting eccentric. The 1000 boys and 1000 girls who board at the al-Mukmin school he co-founded are taught predominantly in Arabic, and are indoctrinated to his views from kindergarten through to their leaving certificate.

Bashir regularly travels across Java to other pesantrens, or Islamic schools, to speak, although on Tuesday, in the east Java town of Malang, Indonesian police reportedly banned him from giving a public lecture.

Yesterday, Bashir attacked the Australian, US and Indonesian governments. "The main cause of this disaster (the bombings) is the Indonesian government, which undermines the supremacy of Islamic law.

"This (terror) will not end until the government follows the right path."

Asked by The Australian whether he felt any sadness for the seven victims of the suicide bombings, Bashir said: "What makes me sad about the bombings was that it involved innocent people being killed....

UAE: 'God' shoes confiscated for breaking Islamic law

From Adnkronos:

A large quantity of women's shoes have been confiscated from a shop by the inspection and customer protection section of the United Arab Emirate's department of economic development because they had the word God, or Allah, printed on them.

Dubai-based daily Gulf News, reported the confiscation on Thursday and said the head of the department said that the shop where the seizure took place is one of the Emirate's biggest fashion showrooms specialising in selling women's shoes.

The official said they confiscated the shoes and issued a fine against the store after receiving multiple complaints from the public.

The deputy director of the economic development department, Hamad al-Shamsi, said that other legal measures will be taken against the shop for infringement of the Islamic moral code.

Al-Shamsi said that their action follows Article 10 of the so-called Violations and Fines List. The article says that the department will punish and impose fines to all those who sell or display publicly products that can directly violate the decency code or Islamic regulations.

This is not the first instance with the printing of Allah on shoewear.

In 1997, the sportswear company Nike was forced to recall a pair of basketball shoes because of a symbol on the back that accidentally resembled that of the Arabic script for Allah.

Nike later apologised after realising what they had done.

Printing God, or Allah, on shoes is considered morally wrong because in the Muslim faith the sole of the shoe is the most unclean part of an unclean object and shoes are considered ritually unclean.

Christian Shot Eight Times for Refusing to Pay Jizya

From assistnews.net:

A human rights organization has learned that a Christian businessman was shot eight times in the legs while driving through Lahore, Pakistan after refusing to pay protection money to a Muslim.

According to a news release from Christian human rights organization International Christian Concern (ICC),Suqlain Shah, a former policeman, and another man, Sudia, stopped Ayub Gill's car at 2:25 p.m. on July 7, as Ayub was going to buy a property in a nearby town.

Ayub's brother Babar was driving and two other relatives were in the back seat. Suqlain pulled out a gun and dragged Babar out of the driver's seat, threatening to kill him.

ICC said Suqlain then got in the driver's seat and shot Ayub eight times in the legs. After stealing $2,500, they fled on bicycles. Ayub is now recovering in the hospital, but the doctors do not know if he will be able to walk again.

ICC said that Suqlain, who lives near Ayub, had threatened him a few days earlier, when Ayub had bought a car for his brother. It was the family's third car.

When Suqlain saw that they had three cars, he approached Ayub and demanded money. ICC reported he said, “You now have three cars, so give me $3,750. You are a wealthy Christian, so it is my right to get as much money as I need from you. If you don't give it to me, I will kill you.”

Immediately following the shooting, Ayub's brothers went to the police station to submit a report, but it was only accepted after five hours of delay and harassment. ICC said that was attributable in part to Suqlain's brother being a constable in the police force. The police have taken no action to prosecute this case....

Cheating wife could face 'honour killing' after acid is poured down her lover's throat

Hat Tip: Anonymous Reader

Thanks to a reader for the tip. The following is from the Daily Mail:

A married Muslim woman has been warned by police that she could be murdered after her lover was attacked with sulphuric acid.

The 24-year-old Muslim man had the acid poured down his throat and was stabbed and beaten with bricks by four men.

He is not expected to live after suffering 90 per cent burns in the London attack, which blinded him and left his tongue destroyed.

The Danish victim, who is of Asian origin, is said to have ‘insulted’ her strictly religious relatives, which includes women who wear the hijab.

Detectives believe the family feared being shamed in the community.

Police are said to be discussing how best to protect the woman.

Her lover was attacked at about 2am on July 2 in Leytonstone close to a room he had rented to be near his married lover. She also lives in East London.

One witness saw the attack from her window. She told the Evening Standard: ‘I saw four men lashing out and kicking him on the ground. I shouted and they ran off, then one went back and started on him again.

‘The poor man got up and ran straight into a tree, then staggered back to his house, tugging at his burning clothes and banging on doors shouting for water.’

Another witness, Kay Dice, 52, added: ‘He was screaming and screaming, but he spoke little English and some people thought he may have just had too much to drink.

'I thought he had a huge cross on his back, but it was where his skin had peeled away.’

The man had moved into a bedsit nearby a few weeks before but residents said they did not know his name.

Community leader Imtiaz Qadir, of the Active Change Foundation, said: ‘Honour crime happens a lot in our community, especially the Pakistani community, but we do try to educate the people.

‘It's a cultural thing from back home. But this type of horrible crime is not exclusive just to Muslims, there have been cases in other religions.’

The man was on life support in Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford, today where his condition is thought to have worsened.

A teenager and a 25-year-old were due to appear in court today charged with trying to kill him by pouring acid down his throat.

The two suspects, who cannot be named for legal reasons, will face Waltham Forest Magistrates this afternoon after being charged with attempted murder, Scotland Yard said.

Police have arrested seven young men in total in relation to the enquiry. Five have been freed on bail.

Honour killings have been recorded among Muslim, Hindu, Sikh and Christian communities but occur predominantly in immigrant families from south Asia and the Middle East....

Muslim woman to be flogged in Malaysia over beer

Flogging ordered for Malaysian woman who drank beer. From the AP:

....Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno was sentenced Monday to six lashes and a fine of 5,000 ringgit ($1,400) for consuming alcohol, said a Shariah High Court official who declined to be identified because he was not authorized to make public statements.

Shukarno, a 32-year-old model, pleaded guilty in the court in eastern Pahang state to a charge of drinking beer when Islamic authorities raided a hotel nightclub in August 2008.

Consuming alcohol is a religious offense in Malaysia only for Muslims, who make up nearly two-thirds of the population. Offenders are prosecuted in Shariah courts, which handle cases mainly related to family and moral issues for Muslims.

Most offenders are fined, but the law also provides for a three-year prison term and caning. Shukarno was the only Muslim caught in the raid at the Pahang nightclub.

Malaysian clubs and lounges typically serve alcohol but are not legally required to check if customers are Muslim before serving them, so the hotel nightclub operators were not charged with any offense.

Shukarno plans to appeal the sentence, the New Straits Times daily reported.

The punishment "is aimed at making the accused repent and serves as a lesson to Muslims," the newspaper quoted Judge Abdul Rahman Yunus as saying....

Attack on Iranian Pilgrims Kills 6, Injures 31

More Sunni and Shi'ite strife in Iraq. From Bloomberg: Six Iranians were killed and 31 were injured in a shooting in Iraq, where they planned to visit Shiite Muslim shrines, Iran’s state-run Mehr news agency said.

The attack, killing five women and a man, took place late yesterday near Khanaqin, an Iraqi town northeast of Baghdad, on a route to the capital from the border with Iran, an official from Iran’s pilgrimage organization told state-run Fars news. The pilgrims probably were from the Iranian city of Mashhad, he said. The bodies of the dead will be handed over to Iran today, a local governor told Mehr. The wounded will also return today.

The Iranians were traveling together, though they weren’t on an organized tour, Mehr cited Gholamreza Rezaian, head of Iran’s Immigration and Foreign Nationals Police, as saying. Independent trips to Iraq by Iranian pilgrims will be banned and they must travel there under the supervision of the pilgrimage organization, Rezaian said.

Shiite pilgrims in Iraq have been targeted by Sunni Muslim insurgents in attacks that Iraqi government officials say are aimed at stoking sectarian violence. Iranians have been traveling to Iraq in greater numbers to visit Shiite religious sites since the fall of President Saddam Hussein and his Sunni- led regime in 2003.

On April 23, as many as 47 people were killed and 69 wounded by a suicide bomber at a roadside restaurant near Baqubah, north of Baghdad, where a group of Iranian pilgrims had stopped to eat, the U.S.-led coalition said at the time.

Feds: US man gave al-Qaida NYC subway information

From the Associated Press:

An American man charged with giving al-Qaida information on the New York transit system and attacking a U.S. military base in Afghanistan has been a secret witness in the fight against terror both here and overseas, authorities revealed Wednesday.

Court papers unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn identified the defendant as Bryant Neal Vinas, nicknamed "Ibrahim" or "Bashir al-Ameriki," who grew up on Long Island.

His identity had been kept secret since his indictment late last year. Court papers show he pleaded guilty in January in a sealed courtroom in Brooklyn and remains in U.S. custody in New York.

Federal prosecutors refused to discuss Vinas' background Wednesday, and no court appearances were scheduled. But a law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to discuss the case, said Vinas provided critical information that led to a security alert about the New York City subway system last year.

Authorities issued an alert around Thanksgiving last year saying the FBI had received a "plausible but unsubstantiated" report that al-Qaida terrorists in late September may have discussed attacking the subway system around the holidays. The origin of that report, the official said, was Vinas.

The official described Vinas as a militant convert who was captured last year in Pakistan.

Prosecutors charged Vinas in a rocket attack on U.S. forces in Afghanistan in September 2008. Court papers allege he also gave "expert advice and assistance ... on the New York transit system and Long Island Railroad."

For five months last year, Vinas received "military-style training" from al-Qaida, according to court papers.

Read it all here.

22 Years for Muslim Who Brutally Murdered Jewish Man in France

22 Years? The monster, Youssouf Fofana, should be on death row for his brutal murder of another human being. Here are the most recent details from the trial regarding the murder of French-Moroccan Jew Ilan Halimi. From the Jerusalem Post:

Fourteen members of the self-proclaimed "Barbarians" gang will be retried in Paris for their role in the killing of Ilan Halimi (pictured), a French Jewish cellphone salesman who was kidnapped, tortured and found dying near a railroad track in February 2006.

All 27 members of the gang had been sentenced in the case on Friday, but in a swift turnaround, the office of prosecutor Jean-Claude Marin agreed to ask the Court of Appeals to seek longer sentences than those originally handed out, after Justice Minister Michèle Alliot-Marie called some of the sentences too lenient.

However, the gang's leader, Youssouf Fofana, a 28-year-old French national born to immigrants from the Ivory Coast, will not be among those facing a retrial.

Fofana, the only defendant convicted of murder, was given a maximum sentence of life in prison on Friday, without the possibility of parole for 22 years.

Two of Fofana's accomplices also received heavy sentences of 15 and 18 years behind bars, respectively, but many of the defendants were given lighter terms, and two were acquitted altogether.

Some received six-month suspended sentences, and the young woman who was used as bait to lure Halimi to his captors received a sentence of nine years in prison, despite the prosecutor's request for 10 to 12 years.

The calls for a retrial were in part a response to criticism from the Halimi family's lawyer and a number of French Jewish associations, which said some of the sentences were too light, given the sheer brutality and anti-Semitic nature of the crime.

Fofana had been quoted in 2006 as saying he wanted to kidnap a Jew because "they had money," and when the trial began at the end of April, Fofana yelled, "Allahu akbar!" upon entering the courtroom. He gave his name during formal questioning as "Arabs African, Salafist revolt, barbarian army."

The trial itself also brought tensions between French Jews and Muslims to the surface, and saw the outbreak of street brawls and other sporadic acts of violence between the two groups during the two months of proceedings.

While many within the Parisian Jewish community were encouraged by the announcement of a retrial - hundreds of demonstrators marched through Paris on Monday night, carrying portraits of Halimi and shouting, "Justice for Ilan!" - some French jurists protested the move, accusing Alliot-Marie of bowing to political pressure.

Halimi was 23 when he disappeared in 2006 after going on a date with a girl he had met at his workplace. The girl, who was 17 at the time, led Halimi to an empty apartment, where he was attacked by Fofana and his accomplices.

Throughout 24 days of brutal torture, Halimi was kept bound to a chair in the basement while the gang tried to extort a ransom of €450,000 from his family.

When it became apparent that the family could not pay, Fofana doused Halimi with alcohol, stabbed him, set him on fire and dumped his naked body by a railway track. Halimi died on his way to the hospital.

Pakistan: Swat Taliban leader vows to seize assets of pro-army 'traitors'

More threats from the Taliban in Pakistan. From Adnkronos:

As thousands of people continued to return to Pakistan's troubled northwest Swat region, local Taliban chief Mullah Fazlullah vowed to seize property belonging to families who have backed the ongoing military operation in Swat.

Militant sources told Adnkronos International they have been waiting for the refugees to return to Swat so they can use them as human shields against the military.

The militants have also been waiting for the onset of winter when snowfalls will cut off military supplies, the sources said

“Once these two things happen, militants will once again occupy 90 percent of the valley,” a militant told AKI.

According to the Pakistani military, more than 2,000 Taliban have been killed and the local Taliban have been completely defeated in the three-month-long offensive to quash insurgents in the restive region.

Some three million people fled the conflict, which began earlier this year in Swat district and spread to the neighbouring districts of Buner and Lower Dir. Militants are fighting to introduce strict Islamic law in Swat and several surrounding areas.

Earlier this month, the Pakistani army said Fazlullah had been seriously injured in the military offensive and another militant leader, Abu Jandal, had been killed.

But residents of Mingora, the largest town in Swat said Fazlullah had been heard last week making illegal FM radio transmissions. It could not be confirmed if the broadcast was a live or a pre-recorded one. Some residents were quoted as saying Fazlullah sounded unwell in the broadcast and that his voice lacked its previous energy.

Pakistani military forces reportedly killed over suspected 50 Islamist militants in a two-day battle on Sunday and Monday in the Lower Dir district.

The Taliban however claimed their command and control structure had remained by and large intact during the military operation in the northwest.

Only two Taliban commanders, Daud and Shah Doran, had been killed, while command of the Swat militants is in the hands of Bin Yameen, according to the Taliban.

The Pakistani army earlier claimed Yameen had died in the military operation.

Bangladesh, a minor pregnant after rape: beaten and forced to marry her torturer

A woman who was raped is forced to marry her rapist, an iman, in Bangladesh. The woman was also sentenced to lashings. From Asia News:

The victim of repeated rapes who has become pregnant is being forced by local leaders to marry the man who abused her and sentenced to a beating for the "crime" committed. This is the story of a teenager in the village of Char Padma in Faridpur district of central Bangladesh.

Omar Faruk is a teacher from the "Maktab", the village Islamic school. The imam has long abused the minor, taking advantage of the position of prestige within the local community. The girl is in the seventh month of pregnancy, her physical and mental health are not good, and she risks a premature birth.

For several months she hid the violence and pregnancy, for fear and shame. When her belly started to grow, the news spread throughout the village. On July 18 last the Arbitration Council met, consisting of a group of experts led by Fazlur Rahman Fazal, to discuss the matter and issue a verdict. The meeting ended with a conviction of 101 lashings a head for the young girl and the imam, author of the violence.

Local sources revealed that both have already received 25 beatings, pursuant to the decision. The girl will even have to marry her torturer, who has two previous marriages behind him. In Bangladesh, women are often victims of violence and abuse, most of which goes unpunished. AsiaNews in recent years has repeatedly documented instances of women and young girls raped, disfigured, victims of family feuds, excluded because they convert to Christianity and repudiated by their family....

Read it all here.

Girls pay with life for getting education

From the Tribune:

Nageena (18) and Parveena Akhtar (17) were the most educated members of their families who hoped that would one day land jobs and pull them out of their impoverished existence. Both were shot dead by militants in their homes in Keller, about 50 km from Srinagar.

The motive for their murders on the nights of June 3 and July 23 in full view of their family members is the militants’ attempt to thrust their moral code on society, police sources say. “They do not want girls to study and they would go to the extreme to implement their agenda.”

Militants claim that girls worked for security agencies, a usual excuse floated by them for civilian killings, but the police and villagers have dismissed their claims....

Read it all here.

Taliban suicide bombers dressed in burkas hit cities

Taliban suicide bombers dressed in burkas killed six people in eastern Afghanistan. Interesting that other Islamic jihadists- including Palestinian terrorists- have also dressed up as women in order to carry out missions. From the Telegraph:

The attacks in Gardez and Jalalabad came amid a surge in violence ahead of presidential and provincial elections on Aug 20.

Six suicide bombers, some of them also carrying guns, tried to enter several government buildings but were shot dead before reaching their targets.

Rohullah Samoon, provincial spokesman, said: "One of the bombers detonated in front of the intelligence department, killing three intelligence officers. The other bombers were killed by security forces."

Two police officers were killed in the attacks when two of the bombers managed to detonate explosives strapped to their bodies.

In Jalalabad, two bombers and a policeman were killed in a shoot-out as the militants tried to fight their way into the city airport, a base for Afghan and foreign troops.

Zabihullah Mujahed, Taliban spokesman, said the Islamist militia were responsible for both attacks.

"Fifteen of our mujahideen – suicide bombers who also have guns – entered the governor's compound and other government buildings [in Gardez, Mujahed]," he said.

"Four of our mujahideen entered the Jalalabad airbase – they have killed several Afghan and foreign forces," he added....

Egyptian Security Refuses to Return Abducted Christian Coptic Girl

Female Christians in Egypt are targeted for forced conversion. The Egyptian government won't do anything to stop the persecutuon. From the Assyrian International News Agency:

Two incidents of abduction of Coptic girls to force them to convert to Islam took place within one week in Upper Egypt. In both cases the Egyptian security predictably played a key role in the outcome of the cases.

Rania Asaad was returned to her family, while Irene Labib is still missing, in spite of pleas from human rights organizations to the security authorities to end this Coptic family's misfortune.

In view of the security authorities' complete neglect in the handling of Irene's case, and false government media reports that Irene was returned to her family, a spokesman for the Coptic Church's Sohag Diocese issued a statement on 7/16/09 calling for the immediate return of the abducted girl.

Irene Hanna Labib, 20-years old, disappeared on 7/1/2009 from Sahel Tahta, Sohag Governorate, 500 km south of Cairo.

After carrying out their own investigations, the well to do Labib family discovered that Irene was abducted by Muslim Hisham Saad Mohamed, who works as a waiter in the IT institute where she studies.

"Her brother Girgis Labib went and met with the abductor Hisham, who confessed to Irene being in his possession," said Reverend Sawires Rady pastor of St. Shenouda Church, Sahel Tahta in Sohag."The Labib family filed a report with the police and accused Hisham Mohamaed of abducting their daughter. The police detained Hisham and Irene's brother Girgis, who was subsequently released after taking a pledge not to harass Hisham." Hisham was released three days later after promising security to bring back Irene at 8 pm of the same day, but he has subsequently disappeared. Reverend Sawires said "the abductor never kept his promise and I now ask security to bring back the abducted girl as they know her whereabouts."

Mamdouh Nakhla, head of Al Kalema Human Right Organisation told Copts United "Security must disclose the whereabouts of the girl kidnapped by the Muslim man, as they know her whereabouts from the confessions of the abductor who pledged to bring her back on the same day." Nakhla holds security responsible for bringing the girl back to her family safe and unharmed. Also the Bareek Center for Anti-Violence Against Women Advocacycriticized the role of security. Until her return, the Labib family is keeping quiet about the circumstances of their daughter's disappearance.

The family of 21-year old pharmacy student Rania Tawfik Asaad from Samalut, Minya Governorate, were successful in getting back their daughter, one week she disappeared on 6/27/2009; she was held by her abductor in the small village Of Taha Bosh, Nasser district, in the Beni Suef Governorate.

Rania was approached by Muslim army officer Mohamed Sayed Farag, 29 years old, who posed as a Copt called Mina who was living in Cairo. After a brief courtship, the army officer proposed to her and asked her to meet his elderly mother. According to Ayman Eid of Free Copts advocacy Rania knew the true identity of her abductor only when she arrived at a secluded house in Beni Suef.

Mohamed was also discovered to be a member of the Islamic Welfare Association, which is affiliated to the Muslim Brotherhood. He asked Rania to convert to Islam and marry him, but she refused. After a great ordeal her family discovered her whereabouts and learnt that she was forced to convert to Islam by the Association and married Captain Mohamed two days after her abduction.

Her father reported the incident to security and accused the army officer of abducting his daughter. According to an eyewitness who asked to remain anonymous, the State Security had made a deal with Rania's father to bring her back on condition of dropping all changes against the army officer, as he would be subjected to trial by the armed forces and due to the negative publicity to the reputation of the Defence Ministry, in return for his daughter's safe return.

The issue of abduction of Coptic girls forms one of the most explosive problems in the relations between Christians and Muslims of Egypt -- especially as abductions are carried out in cooperation between Arab-funded legitimate associations and the State Security.

In the opinion of Magdy Khalil, political analyst and researcher that abduction of Coptic girls is an organized crime. "Abducting and converting Coptic girls to Islam is not only a result of the paranoid and racist incitation against the Copts, it is an organized and pre-planned process by associations and organizations inside Egypt with domestic and Arab funding, as the main role in seducing and luring Coptic girls is carried through cunning, deceit, and enticement, or through force if required," he said....

Read it all here.

Ten Saudis seek asylum after princess is allowed to stay

It is generally unacknowledged by UK politicians that many Saudis are oppressed. The following is an excerpt from an article discussing Saudis that have petitioned for asylum in the UK. From the Independent:

Ministers are considering asylum applications for 10 Saudi Arabian nationals who claim they are at risk of persecution if they are forced to return to the Middle Eastern kingdom, it emerged last night.

The new cases were made public after The Independent revealed the plight of a Saudi princess who was granted asylum in Britain after she had an illegitimate child with a British man.

The young woman, who has also been granted anonymity by the courts, won her claim for asylum after she told a court that she faced execution if her husband found out about her adultery and she was forced to return to Saudi Arabia.

Immigration and asylum experts said last night that asylum cases from women fleeing the kingdom were very rare. But Keith Vaz, chairman of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, said of the case: "This is the kind of person that our asylum laws are designed to protect. A woman and her unborn child should under no circumstances be sent back to a country where it is likely that they will be harmed. I welcome the decision made in this case."

New figures released by the Home Office also showed that a further 15 Saudis were refused asylum by the Government last year. There are no details about the sex of each of the applicants nor for the number of asylum applications received this year....

Read the full report here.

Saudi man marries Filipino woman for kidney

A Saudi man married a Filipino woman for a kidney, but a Philippine hospital caught on and did not perform a transplant. From Al Arabiya:

A Saudi man who married a Filipino woman was hoping to exchange a kidney in addition to wedding vows, Philippine officials said Monday. But his wedding bliss was cut short as authorities caught on to the scam and blocked the planned transplant.

The wealthy foreigner proposed to the woman, whose name was not given, in an attempt to bypass the Philippines' strict regulations set up to fight the country's widespread organ trafficking.

Foreigners are banned from receiving organ transplants from local donors and organ sales are punishable by up to 20 years in jail. Exceptions are made for family members.

The Saudi man, however, did not succeed in marrying the woman to circumventing the rules....

Surviving Terrorist of Mumbai Massacre Names Pakistani Terror Group as Mastermind Behind the Slaughter

From IBN:

Mohammad Ajmal Amir Kasab, the only terrorist captured for the Mumbai terrorist attacks, has alleged that an Indian taught him Hindi and he was making a confession because Pakistan had abandoned him.

Kasab, the main accused in the terror attacks, on Monday confessed to his role, admitted he was a Pakistani and narrated in chilling detail the events leading to the killing spree that left 180 people dead in the boldest terror assault India has seen.

Kasab also recounted how he and his associates undertook the sea voyage from Karachi to Mumbai on the night of November 26, 2008.

His sudden and unexpected confession took Special Judge M L Tahilyani and others by surprise. Kasab started by addressing Tahilyani in Urdu: "Sir, I want to make a confession in the court. I plead guilty to the crimes for which I have been charged."

Kasab's confession included minute details of his role in the attacks on the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) and Cama Hospital nearby.

He revealed in the court names of his Pakistani handlers, including Abu Hamza, Abu Jindal, Abu Kafa and Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, who saw them off when they boarded a ship at Karachi.

Hamza, who Indian intelligence agencies believe was behind the attack on the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore in December 2005, advised them on how to go about the terror attacks, said Kasab. He also described how he placed a bomb in a taxi that later exploded at Mazagaon, a south Mumbai area.

Naming Lakhvi of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) as "the mastermind" behind the Mumbai mayhem, Kasab recounted how he and his associate Abu Ismail (who was shot by the police) went to a CST public toilet and assembled one of the bombs by installing a timer on it for use later....

Read it all here.

Family Uses Dinner to Set Up Young Couple for Honor Killing

The Daily Times of Pakistan has the gruesome details of this latest so-called honor killing:

The family of a young woman allegedly killed her and her husband in the name of “honour” after inviting the couple to have dinner at a house in Yakki Gate police precincts.

Victims Shafiq Ahmed and Saba got married two months ago against the wishes of Saba’s family. Muhammad Adil, Shafiq’s cousin, told Daily Times Saba’s family had invited the couple to dinner at their house two days ago. He said Shafiq had initially refused, but had agreed to go after Saba’s mother, Kausar, claimed he was displaying cowardice by not coming to her house.

Adil said that his uncle, Malik Riaz, suspecting ulterior motives, accompanied the young couple to the dinner. He said that Riaz claimed that Kausar and all three of Saba’s brothers – Zeeshan, Ahsan and Abbas – welcomed them and had a perfectly pleasant dinner. However, he said, Zeeshan and Kausar convinced his uncle to leave early, claiming they would take the couple home in another half-an-hour. He said Ahsan accompanied Riaz to his house.

Pool of blood: According to Adil, Riaz tried to phone the couple after half-an-hour but their mobile phones were not being attended. He said his uncle then tried to contact Zeeshan and Ahsan, but those calls also went unheeded. He said Riaz, accompanied by a friend, went back to the house but found it locked from the outside. He said they tried to call Shafiq again, and heard his phone ringing from inside the house. Convinced that something had happened, he said Riaz broke into the house and found the bodies of the couple lying in a pool of blood next to half-eaten food.

Read it all here.

Iranian Militia "Wed" Dissident Girls Before Their Execution

Why? Because it allows men, under shariah law, to rape them. Thanks to the J-Post:

In a shocking and unprecedented interview, directly exposing the inhumanity of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's religious regime in Iran, a serving member of the paramilitary Basiji militia has told this reporter of his role in suppressing opposition street protests in recent weeks.

He has also detailed aspects of his earlier service in the force, including his enforced participation in the rape of young Iranian girls prior to their execution.

The interview took place by telephone, and on condition of anonymity. It was arranged by a reliable source whose identity can also not be revealed.

Founded by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1979 as a "people's militia," the volunteer Basiji force is subordinate to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and intensely loyal to Khomeini's successor, Khamenei.

The Basiji member, who is married with children, spoke soon after his release by the Iranian authorities from detention. He had been held for the "crime" of having set free two Iranian teenagers - a 13-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl - who had been arrested during the disturbances that have followed the disputed June presidential elections.

"There have been many other police and members of the security forces arrested because they have shown leniency toward the protesters out on the streets, or released them from custody without consulting our superiors," he said.

He pinned the blame for much of the most ruthless violence employed by the Iranian security apparatus against opposition protesters on what he called "imported security forces" - recruits, as young as 14 and 15, he said, who have been brought from small villages into the bigger cities where the protests have been centered.

"Fourteen and 15-year old boys are given so much power, which I am sorry to say they have abused," he said. "These kids do anything they please - forcing people to empty out their wallets, taking whatever they want from stores without paying, and touching young women inappropriately. The girls are so frightened that they remain quiet and let them do what they want."

These youngsters, and other "plainclothes vigilantes," were committing most of the crimes in the names of the regime, he said.

Asked about his own role in the brutal crackdowns on the protesters, whether he had been beaten demonstrators and whether he regretted his actions, he answered evasively.

"I did not attack any of the rioters - and even if I had, it is my duty to follow orders," he began. "I don't have any regrets," he went on, "except for when I worked as a prison guard during my adolescence."

Explaining how he had come to join the volunteer Basiji forces, he said his mother had taken him to them.

When he was 16, "my mother took me to a Basiji station and begged them to take me under their wing because I had no one and nothing foreseeable in my future. My father was martyred during the war in Iraq and she did not want me to get hooked on drugs and become a street thug. I had no choice," he said.

He said he had been a highly regarded member of the force, and had so "impressed my superiors" that, at 18, "I was given the 'honor' to temporarily marry young girls before they were sentenced to death."

In the Islamic Republic it is illegal to execute a young woman, regardless of her crime, if she is a virgin, he explained. Therefore a "wedding" ceremony is conducted the night before the execution: The young girl is forced to have sexual intercourse with a prison guard - essentially raped by her "husband."

"I regret that, even though the marriages were legal," he said.

Why the regret, if the marriages were "legal?"

"Because," he went on, "I could tell that the girls were more afraid of their 'wedding' night than of the execution that awaited them in the morning. And they would always fight back, so we would have to put sleeping pills in their food. By morning the girls would have an empty expression; it seemed like they were ready or wanted to die.

"I remember hearing them cry and scream after [the rape] was over," he said. "I will never forget how this one girl clawed at her own face and neck with her finger nails afterwards. She had deep scratches all over her."

Returning to the events of the last few weeks, and his decision to set free the two teenage detainees, he said he "honestly" did not know why he had released them, a decision that led to his own arrest, "but I think it was because they were so young. They looked like children and I knew what would happen to them if they weren't released."

He said that while a man is deemed "responsible for his own actions at 13, for a woman it is 9," and that it was freeing the 15-year-old girl that "really got me in trouble.

"I was not mistreated or really interrogated while being detained," he said. "I was put in a tiny room and left alone. It was hard being isolated, so I spent most of my time praying and thinking about my wife and kids."

Foreign Jihadists Are Living in Gaza

No surprise here since many Arab leaders in Gaza and the West Bank vocally speak about their desire for "jihad" and destroying non-Muslims. Gaza terrorists receive foreign support from Iran, which is controlled by Islamic lunatics. From the AP:

The head of Israel's Shin Bet internal security service says foreign nationals linked to the global jihadist movement have infiltrated the Gaza Strip.

Service chief Yuval Diskin told ministers at Sunday's meeting of the Israeli Cabinet that there had been "a steady trickle into Gaza of foreigners linked to global jihad," according to an official present at the closed-door meeting....

Convert From Islam Shot Dead in Somalia

A terror organization in Somalia linked to Al Qaeda has beheaded a man who converted to Christianity 15 years ago. From Compass Direct News:

Al Shabaab Islamist rebels shot Mohammed Sheikh Abdiraman to death at 7 a.m., eyewitnesses told Compass. They said the Islamic extremists appeared to have been hunting the convert from Islam, and when they found him they did not hesitate to shoot him.

The sources told Compass that Abdiraman was the leader of an underground “cell group” of Christians in Somalia.

“We are very sad about this incident, and we also are not safe,” one eyewitness said by telephone. “Pray for us.”

The sources were too distraught to share more details about Abdiraman’s death. Another eyewitness who requested anonymity said Abdiraman had been a Christian for 15 years. He is survived by two children, ages 15 and 10. His wife died three years ago due to illness.

Intent on “cleansing” Somalia of all Christians, al Shabaab militia are monitoring converts from Islam especially where Christian workers had provided medical aid, such as Johar, Jamame, Kismayo and Beledweyne, sources said. Mahadday Weyne, 22 kilometers (14 miles) north of Johar, is the site of a former Christian-run hospital.

Linked with Islamic extremist al Qaeda terrorists, al Shabaab rebels have mounted an armed effort to topple President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed’s Western-backed Transitional Federal Government with the intention of imposing sharia (Islamic law). The group is already enforcing sharia in large parts of southern Somalia that they control....

Read it all here.

Somali terrorists ban UN agencies

Islamists in Somalia are boycotting UN peacekeeping agencies. A bit ironic considering the UN has a history of weakness when confronted with Islamic radicalism. Here is an excerpt from the Daily Nation:

Somali insurgent group Al-Shabaab has banned the activities of United Nations agencies for engaging in "anti-Islamic activities."

The Islamist movement, which strongly opposes the Transitional Government has accused UN agencies such as United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS) and United Nations Department of Safety and Security (NDSS) of being engaged in undesirable activities, hence banning them.

“The banned agencies have been engaged in anti-Islamic activities,” a statement by the group said. "They have been helping the TFG and the pro-government forces stationed at the Somali borders to defeat the Islamist groups,” it added.

In the press release issued by the office of Al-Shabaab in-charge of Policies And Regional Affairs, local Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and international bodies will be required to register with an Islamist agency empowered to supervise the work of the agencies. The instruction shall be applied to organisations operating in parts of Somalia controlled by Al-Shabaab.

Effective today, Monday 20th of July, the supervisory office will control the work of all the local and international agencies. The organisations will also be required to report their activities to the office.

“All NGOs are instructed to the supervisory office,” asserted the statement.

The UN organisations have been blamed for spearheading a campaign to secure a financial pledge amounting to US$ 250 million on April 23, 2009 by the international community in Brussels, Belgium to support the TFG and the African Union Mission in Somalia, a peacekeeping operation better known as Amisom. “These agencies are against the establishment of an Islamic state in Somalia,” said the statement....

Read the full article here.

Christians Fearful in Iraq

Christians are fearful in Iraq. From Asia News:

The Iraqi Christian community “attended Sunday mass regularly”, despite a “climate of fear for possible new attacks”. “I asked the faithful to have courage”, but the “fear” of a possible "new exodus of Christians from Iraq” remains. Mgr. Shlemon Warduni, auxiliary bishop of Baghdad, speaks to AsiaNews one week from attacks - July 12 last – that targeted several churches in the country, in Baghdad and Mosul.

“It went well”, commented Msgr. Warduni. “There was a high level of participation among the faithful, both in the morning and evening masses, which recorded only a slight decline” The prelate urged the Christian community “to come to mass” and the faithful “responded with courage. "

In recent days a feeling of “powerlessness and despair” is spreading among Christians, which could lead to a new mass exodus. To everyday problems, such as unemployment, concerns over restarting businesses after years of war, fear over the recent wave of violence is added. Msgr. Warduni does not hide the danger of “a new exodus of Christians from Iraq” and says that “this feeling of fear, fuelled by deaths, injuries and destruction is normal”. “I asked the faithful to stay – he said - but we must also give them security guarantees, job opportunities, a future. Without these basic prerequisites, what can we say to them?”.

In Mosul, the Christian community condemns the lack of a strong position after the attack on the church of Our Lady of Fatima, 13 July. Maroan Bhnam, a Christian in Mosul approached by the Arabic website Ankawa.com, wonders why “neither of the two Christian representatives in the Council” issued a statement of condemnation. He added that the representatives of other communities in the event of attacks, have “raised their voice: from the Christians nothing”. Aiub Ibrail says he is "surprised" at the absence of the “local tv Moussalia, the first to film the scene of attacks. " Amer Petros wants “representatives who can be relied on”.

Sources for AsiaNews in Mosul confirmed the deployment of forces around churches; the police has set up several check points to ensure regular Sunday celebrations....

Read it all here.

Saudi princess gets asylum in Britain

A princess from Saudi Arabia has been granted asylum in the UK. From the Indian Express:

In an unpublicised case, a young Saudi Arabian Princess has been granted asylum by the British government after she pleaded that she would face death penalty if she returned home with her illegitimate child.

The young woman, married to an elderly member of the Royal Family of Saudi Arabia, won her claim for refugee status after telling a judge that her adulterous affair with her non-Muslim English boyfriend made her liable to death by stoning if she returned to her country, 'The Independent' reported.

She met her boyfriend here, struck up a relationship and became pregnant the following year. However, she persuaded her husband to let her return to the UK so that she could give birth in secret. Since she fled her own country, her husband's family and her own have broken off contact with her.

The case of the Saudi Princess, who has been granted anonymity, is one of a small number of claims for asylum which was brought by citizens of Saudi Arabia and are not openly acknowledged by either government.

n fact, such cases are not generally acknowledged by the British government for fear that highlighting persecution of women in the strict Muslim nation where people are executed by stoning and beheading, would strain relations with House of Saud, according to British diplomats.

The Home Office has declined to discuss the case. Even Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia has not commented on the issue.

According to Amnesty International, there were at least 102 executions of men and women by stoning, flogging, beheading and hangings last year and the charity claims there are at least 136 more people on death row.

Reporter faces death for pro-Israel view

Moderate Muslim's life is at risk. From the J-Post:

Since 2003, Bangladeshi journalist and peace activist Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury has been investigated by Bangladeshi authorities on charges of sedition, treason and insulting religious belief.

Choudhury, 44, has spent years opposing Muslim extremism through his writings, especially the Weekly Blitz which he started in 2003. He has called for interfaith dialogue and for normalizing relations between Muslim countries and Israel.

On Wednesday, Choudhury returns to court. He is accused of insulting Islam and harming the state's reputation abroad, charges which, when couched as "sedition," carry a possible death penalty.

"According to my lawyers in Bangladesh, the government is determined to conclude the trial as soon as possible," he wrote in a public letter over the weekend. "No one knows what will be the verdict. But, of course, seeing the past track record, we cannot hold any hope for a good [result] because the court is not applying its judicial mind, but trying to appease the Islamists."

Choudhury's newspaper offices were bombed on July 6, 2006, after he expressed public sympathy for the Ahmadiyya sect of Islam....

Read it all here.