Monday, January 12, 2015

Pegida wird konkret

FRANKFURTER RUNDSCHAU: Ein Trauermarsch für „Charlie Hebdo“, sechs Forderungen an die „Etablierten“ und so viele Teilnehmer wie nie zuvor. Es wird weniger gerufen, gebrüllt und geschrien bei Pegida, es ist nicht so hitzig und aggressiv wie beim letzten Mal.

Es wäre interessant, irgendwann einmal zu erfahren, ob Lutz Bachmann auch wirklich meint, was er so sagt, wenn er Reden hält. Bachmann, 41, ist einer der Organisatoren und Köpfe der Dresdner Pegida-Bewegung. Es ist Montagabend, ein kalter Südost weht über den Platz hinter dem Hygienemuseum, russische, niederländische, deutsche und viele französische Flaggen knattern im Wind. Es ist die zwölfte Kundgebung seit Oktober, Tausende sind auf dem Platz, so viele wie nie zuvor. „Ha, endlich wieder Sturm und Drang“, freut sich ein junger Mann und reibt sich die kalten Hände. Ein anderer neben ihm zielt mit seinem grünen Laserpointer auf die Leute, die aus dem Hochhaus gegenüber die Menschenmenge betrachten.

Heute Abend ist alles ein wenig anders als bei früheren Demos. Es gibt nur wenige Gegenkundgebungen mit weniger Teilnehmern. Es wird weniger gerufen, gebrüllt und geschrien bei Pegida, es ist nicht so hitzig und aggressiv wie beim letzten Mal. Es beginnt mit einer Schweigeminute für die ermordeten Karikaturisten des französischen Magazins „Charlie Hebdo“ und die in Nigeria von islamistischen Mörderbanden umgebrachten Männer, Frauen und Kinder. Tatsächlich tragen einige Trauerflor, einige sogar Transparente: „Je suis Charlie.“ Ein Mann hält ein Bild von Angela Merkel hoch: Verschleiert und Mundwinkel ganz nach unten. » | Von Bernhard Honnigfort | MOntag, 12. Januar 2015

Angela Merkel: “Der Islam gehört zu Deutschland”


Im Netz der Salafisten - Islam in Deutschland (ARD Doku) : Sie verteilen den Koran massenhaft in der Fußgängerzone. Die Radikalen unter ihnen gehen auf Demos gegen Mohammed-Karikaturen mit Gewalt auf Polizisten los.

Schauen Sie den ARD Dokumentarfilm an und dann können Sie entscheiden, ob Frau Merkel Recht hat oder nicht.

Merkel Says Islam 'Belongs to Germany' ahead of Dresden Rally


REUTERS.COM: (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday Islam "belongs to Germany", in a clear repudiation of anti-immigration protesters gathering in Dresden and other cities.

A day after walking arm-in-arm with French President Francois Hollande at the front of a massive march in Paris to honor the victims of killings by Islamic militants, Merkel received the Turkish prime minister and urged dialogue among religions.

The conservative chancellor pointed to comments made by former German president Christian Wulff, who said in 2010 that Islam was part of Germany, triggering a fierce debate.

"Former president Wulff said Islam belongs to Germany. That is true. I also hold this opinion," Merkel said at a news conference with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who also took part with other world leaders in the Paris march on Sunday.

She was speaking hours before marches by a movement dubbed PEGIDA, or Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West, were due to begin in several German cities. » | Andreas Rinke | Monday, January 12, 2015

Pegida: Erneut Tausende bei Pegida-Kundgebung in Dresden

FRANKFURTER RUNDSCHAU: Die Pegida-Bewegung in Dresden zieht erneut eine große Menschenmenge an. Tausende Anhänger der asyl- und islamkritischen Bewegung gehen am Montagabend auf die Straße.

Die Anhänger der islamfeindlichen Pegida-Bewegung sind in Dresden zu ihrer ersten Kundgebung seit den islamistischen Anschlägen in Frankreich zusammengekommen. In der sächsischen Landeshauptstadt versammelten sich am Montagabend mehrere tausend Demonstranten, wie eine AFP-Reporterin berichtete. Offizielle Schätzungen der Polizei zu der Teilnehmerzahl wurden erst im Verlauf des Abends erwartet. Am Montag vor den Anschlägen in der vergangenen Woche waren in Dresden rund 18.000 Pegida-Anhänger auf die Straße gegangen.

In Dresden hatten die Pegida-Organisatoren die Teilnehmer aufgefordert, mit Trauerflor für die Toten von Paris zu erscheinen. Einige der Demonstranten hielten den Spruch "Je suis Charlie" (Ich bin Charlie) in die Höhe, mit dem sich nach den Anschlägen weltweit hunderttausende Menschen sowie Zeitungen und andere Medienunternehmen mit den Opfern des Angriffs auf die französische Satirezeitung "Charlie Hebdo" solidarisch erklärt und für die Meinungsfreiheit demonstriert hatten.

Auch auf weiteren Plakaten und Transparenten bezogen sich die Demonstranten in Dresden mit Sprüchen wie "Meinungsfreiheit statt Salafistenterror" und "Feige Presse, ihr seid nicht Charlie" auf die Anschläge von Paris. Ein anderes Bild zeigte Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel (CDU) mit einem Schleier. » | afp | Montag, 12. Januar 2015

US Centcom Twitter Account 'Hacked by Islamic State'

BBC AMERICA: US Central Command's Twitter and YouTube accounts have been hacked by a group claiming to back Islamic State.

One message said: "American soldiers, we are coming, watch your back."

It was signed by Isis, another name for the Islamic State. Some internal military documents also appeared on the Centcom Twitter feed. » | Monday, January 12, 2015

US Media Questions Why Neither Barack Obama Nor Top US Officials Attended Paris Charlie Hebdo Rally

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Barack Obama did not attend the Paris Charlie Hebdo rally, nor were any of his top US administration officials among the 44 foreign dignitaries

The absence of President Barack Obama or any top members of his administration from a huge march in Paris on Sunday to honour victims of Islamist militant attacks raised eyebrows among some in the US media.

French President Francois Hollande and some 44 foreign dignitaries, including leaders from Germany, Italy, Britain, Turkey, Israel and the Palestinian territories, led up to two million people in what commentators said was the largest crowd in Paris since its liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944. » | Reuters | Monday, January 12, 2015

Charlie Hebdo's Wednesday Edition to Include Prophet Mohammed Cartoons

The previous issue of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Wednesday's edition of Charlie Hebdo will 'naturally' contain cartoons of Prophet Mohammed, the magazine's lawyer has announced

The next edition of Charlie Hebdo, out on Wednesday with a million-copy print run, will "naturally" contain cartoons of Prophet Mohammed, along with jibes against politicians and religions across the board, said the stricken weekly's lawyer.

Richard Malka was among the first to call for the magazine to continue functioning after nine of its contributors, including famed cartoonists Cabu and Wolinski and its publishing director, Charb, were gunned down last Wednesday by Chérif and Saïd Kouachi.

When asked whether that meant more cartoons of Mohammed, which have been a regular feature in the magazine until last Wednesday's attack, he replied: "Naturally."

"We will not give in otherwise all this won't have meant anything," he told France Info radio on Monday, which broadcast from the magazine's heavily guarded temporary offices at Libération newspaper. » | Henry Samuel, Paris | Monday, January 12, 2015

Merkel empfängt Davutoglu: "Der Islam gehört zu Deutschland"


TAGESCHAU.DE: Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel räumt dem Islam einen festen Platz in der deutschen Gesellschaft ein. Bei einem Besuch des türkischen Ministerpräsidenten Ahmet Davutoglu sagte sie: "Von meiner Seite möchte ich sagen, dass unser früherer Bundespräsident Christian Wulff gesagt hat, der Islam gehört zu Deutschland. Und das ist so, dieser Meinung bin ich auch." » | Montag, 12. Januar 2015

These Crimes Have Everything to Do with Islam


THE AGE: When French president Francois Hollande addressed the nation on Friday in the wake of terrorist attacks that left 20 dead, he uttered the predictable mantra: "These fanatics have nothing to do with the Muslim religion".

His comment is understandable given that France has more than five million Muslims, a stagnant economy, 24 per cent youth unemployment and endemic social alienation among young Muslims.

His comment is also nonsense. A de facto world war is under way and it has everything to do with Islam. It is not thousands of lone wolfs [sic]. It is not un-Islamic conduct. It involves thousands of Muslims acting on what they believe is their religious duty to subjugate non-believers, as outlined in the Koran.

And the problem is growing, not contracting. There was once a tradition among young Australians to travel overland from Singapore to London. That route has become a hell-hole:

Pakistan is dangerous. Afghanistan is a no-go area. Iran is an oppressive theocracy. Iraq is disintegrating. Syria is a disaster area. Lebanon is dangerous. In Turkey, for the first time, Australians travelling to Gallipoli will be going under a security alert.

All these Muslim countries used to be safe for transit. The intimidation being practised in the name of Islam by a small minority is a by-product of something much larger – the state-mandated conservatism that is systemic in the majority of Muslim societies. Most of them are dictatorships, monarchies, theocracies or failed states. » | Paul Sheehan | Sydney Morning Herald columnist | Monday, January 12, 2015

Barack Obama’s French Kiss-off

POLITICO: Obama’s public reactions to the attacks in Paris have been muted.

Barack Obama n’est pas Charlie — or at least, he wasn’t this weekend.

Don’t look for the president or vice president among the photos of 44 heads of state who locked arms and marched down Boulevard Voltaire in Paris. Nor did they join a companion march the French Embassy organized in Washington on Sunday afternoon.

Indeed, Obama’s public reactions to the attacks in Paris last week have been muted. His initial response Wednesday to the killing of 12 people at the Charlie Hebdo newspaper offices was delivered as he sat calmly in an armchair in the Oval Office speaking about the “cowardly” acts and defending freedom of the press. Two days later, as a gunman took hostages and went on to kill four people in a kosher grocery, Obama took a few seconds away from a community college proposal roll-out in Tennessee because he said with events unfolding, “I wanted to make sure to comment on them” — but never then or afterward specifically condemned that attack.

Obama wasn’t far from the march in D.C. on Sunday that wended silently along six blocks from the Newseum to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial. Instead, he spent the chilly afternoon a few blocks away at the White House, with no public schedule, no outings.

Joe Biden was back home in Wilmington, Delaware.

Neither they nor any high-level administration official attended either event.

France’s top American diplomat, diplomatically, tried to make the best of it. » | Edward-Isaac Dovere | Sunday, January 11, 2015

Related »

German Anti-Islam Rally Monday to Raise New Tensions


USA TODAY: BERLIN — A massive march by anti-Islam nationalists planned for Monday threatens to raise new religious tensions — and potential violence — in Europe in the wake of last week's terrorist attacks in Paris by radical Muslims.

Germany's justice minister on Sunday urged the group called Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West (PEGIDA) to cancel its demonstration, but the group vowed to go ahead with a rally that will commemorate the 17 people killed in the Paris attacks.

The group has held weekly rallies to protest Germany's growing immigrant population, mainly Muslims fleeing the war in Syria in recent years.

"It's outrageous they want to commemorate victims that until last week they insulted as liars," Justice Minister Heiko Maas told the popular tabloid Bild, calling for the group to cancel Monday's rally.

Many fear another march by the group could stoke violence and anti-immigration sentiment after Wednesday's attack at the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris.

"The people at the heart of PEGIDA must be delighted," said Mohammed Majoka, a spokesman for the Muslim group Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat Germany. "This is what they have been trying to show people all along, that Islam is dangerous and Muslims should be kicked out." » | Angela Waters | Special for USA TODAY | Sunday, January 11, 2015

Attack on German Newspaper Raises Tension before Anti-Islam Rally


REUTERS.COM – EXTRACT: …BERLIN, Jan 11 (Reuters) - A Hamburg daily that reprinted satirical cartoons from French newspaper Charlie Hebdo was hit by arsonists at the weekend, raising security concerns in Germany on the eve of a planned mass rally against Islam in the city of Dresden.

Islamist militant attacks on Charlie Hebdo and a kosher deli in Paris this week that killed 17 people have fuelled fears of similar assaults in other European countries and prompted a warning from German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere. ... Read the whole article here » | Sunday, January 11, 2015

Verbunden »

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Lord Monckton: Why Won’t the Left Tell the Truth about Islam?


WND: Exclusive: Lord Monckton reveals dangers of remaining 'culpably silent' in face of terror

President Hollande of France, a hard-left socialist of the sort who began bankrupting that once-great nation in 1789, said this about the Muslim terrorists who committed the Charlie Hebdo massacre and the Jewish grocery siege:

“Those who committed these acts have nothing to do with the Muslim religion.”

Now, why did President Hollande say that? Is he not aware of the vicious anti-Semitism of the Islamic extremists in his country? Is he not aware that the terrorist murders in France were carried out by thugs screeching “Allahu Akbar“?

Of course, the effete and ineffectual occupant of the Elysée Palace is aware of these things. But he does not care. What matters to him is that 93 percent of the Muslims who voted in the presidential election voted for him. What matters to him is that the more Muslim immigrants he lets into France, the more socialist votes he will get.

Hence his cynical pretense that the slaughterers of his fellow countrymen “have nothing to do with the Muslim religion,” when the truth is that they have everything to do with it.

Here, as in so many other fields, the left will simply lie because the lie is politically advantageous to it. President Hollande knows that there are at least 9 million Muslims in France. They are arriving at such a rapid rate that no one knows for sure just how many there are. But there are a lot. And very, very nearly all of them vote socialist. Totalitarians will always stand by other totalitarians. » | Lord Monckton | Sunday, January 11, 2015

Paris Shootings: Marseille Muslims Condemn Violence


BBC AMERICA: More than two million people have taken to the streets of cities across France, in a show of unity after three days of terror attacks.

Seventeen people were killed during the violence, and police are still hunting one of the people believe to be responsible.

One million people of all faiths and origins marched in Paris, while hundreds of thousands of others staged demonstrations elsewhere.

Fergal Keane reports on one march in Marseille, the French city with the largest population of Muslims. (+ BBC video) » | Sunday, January 11, 2015

Shocking!


The American president’s henchman, Eric Holder, was in Paris today. But it seems that he did not take part in the million-man march. What does this tell us about the Obama administration? The more one observes Obama and reads his remarks about Islam, one cannot help but ask oneself one simple question: Is Obama America’s first Muslim president?

"The Future Must Not Belong To Those Who Slander The Prophet Of Islam" – President Barack Obama addressing the UN General Assembly [Source: Real Clear Politics]

Paris Attacks Boost Support for Dutch Anti-Islam Populist Wilders


YAHOO! NEWS: AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Support for the anti-Islamic Freedom Party of Dutch populist Geert Wilders has jumped to its highest level in more than a year after the Islamist militant attacks in Paris.

Wilders, known for his inflammatory rhetoric, said after the Paris bloodshed that the West was "at war" with Islam, drawing a rebuke from Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Sunday.

If elections were held now, his party would be the single largest in the Netherlands, with 31 seats in the 150-member parliament, more than twice as many as it won in the last elections, according to a Sunday poll.

The governing Liberal and Labour parties, damaged by persistent sluggish growth, would have just 28 seats between them, compared to the 79 they held after the 2012 elections. » | Reuters | Sunday, January 11, 2015

„Wer die MOPO [Hamburger Morgenpost] angreift, greift ganz Hamburg an“


HAMBURGER MORGENPOST: Es geschah im Schutz der Dunkelheit: In der Nacht zu Sonntag ist auf das Verlagsgebäude der Hamburger Morgenpost in Bahrenfeld ein Brandanschlag verübt worden. Die MOPO-Mitarbeiter sind geschockt – verletzt wurde aber zum Glück niemand. Der Hintergrund der Tat ist noch unklar. Die Polizei hat zwei verdächtige Männer festgenommen.

Laut Behörden „liegt die Vermutung nahe“, dass die Tat in Zusammenhang mit der MOPO-Titelseite vom 8. Januar steht. Neben der Schlagzeile „So viel Freiheit muss sein“ standen Karikaturen des Satiremagazins „Charlie Hebdo“, auf das zuvor ein tödlicher Terroranschlag verübt worden war. Beweise für eine Verbindung gab es laut Polizeisprecherin Karina Sadowsky zunächst aber nicht. mehr » | Sonntag, 11. Januar 2015

YAHOO! NEWS: Firebombing at German paper that ran Charlie Hebdo cartoons » | Deborah Cole | Sunday, January 11, 2015

'We are Charlie': Across France, Nearly 4 Million March to Honor Victims of [Islamic] Terrorist Attacks


FOX NEWS: At least 3.7 million people including more than 40 world leaders are marching throughout France on Sunday in a rally of national unity to honor the 17 victims of a three-day terror spree that took place around the French capital.

The French Interior Ministry said the rally for unity against terrorism is the largest demonstration in France's history, more than the numbers who took to Paris streets when the Allies liberated the city from the Nazis in World War II.

The ministry said between 1.2 million and 1.6 million marched the Paris streets. But it said a precise account is impossible given the enormity of the turnout in the capital.

The aftermath of the attacks remained raw, with video emerging of one of the gunmen killed during police raids pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group and detailing how the attacks were going to unfold. Also, a new shooting was linked to that gunman, Amedy Coulibaly, who was killed Friday along with the brothers behind a massacre at satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in nearly simultaneous raids by security forces.

"Today, Paris is the capital of the world," said French President Francois Hollande. "Our entire country will rise up toward something better." (+ FoxNews video) » | FoxNews.com | Sunday, January 11, 2015

Netanyahu Holds Out Israeli Haven for French Jews

REUTERS.COM: (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu coupled a show of solidarity with France on Sunday with a reminder to shaken French Jews that Israel is keen to welcome them as immigrants.

Netanyahu and two far-right members of his cabinet flew to Paris on Sunday to join dozens of foreign leaders and hundreds of thousands of French citizens in a march honoring the victims of Islamist militant attacks this week.

The timing of his message that "Israel is also your home" could clash with attempts by French leaders to reassure Europe's largest Jewish community after the shock assaults that included hostage-taking at a kosher supermarket.

In a statement late on Saturday, Netanyahu said an Israeli governmental committee would convene in the coming week to find ways to boost Jewish immigration from France and other European countries "which are being hit by terrible anti-Semitism".

"To all the Jews of France and to all the Jews of Europe, I wish to say: the State of Israel is not only the place to which you pray, the State of Israel is also your home," he said. » | Jeffrey Heller | Jerusalem | Sunday, January 11, 2015

Trauermarsch in Paris: Christen, Juden, Muslime - vereint gegen den Terror


Crisis in Ukraine Could Trigger Nuclear War, Warns Gorbachev

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: The former Russian leader warns that Moscow does not trust the West, and the West does not trust Moscow

Mikhail Gorbachev, the former Soviet leader, has warned that the world is at risk of a “nuclear war” because of the tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine.

In an interview with the German magazine Spiegel, Mr Gorbachev said that if either side lost its nerve in the current stand-off, it could lead to nuclear war, and spoke of his fears that the world “will not survive the next few years”.

“I actually see all the signs of a new Cold War,” Mr Gorbachev said. “It could all blow up at any moment if we don’t take action. The loss of confidence is catastrophic. Moscow does not believe the West, and the West does not believe Moscow.” » | Justin Huggler, Berlin | Sunday, January 11, 2015

Germany Protests: Dresden Marches Against Anti-Islamists Pegida

BBC AMERICA: About 35,000 people have marched through the German city of Dresden in protest against recent so-called anti-Islamisation rallies, organisers say.

The turnout is nearly double that of the largest demonstration by anti-Islamists Pegida, held last Monday.

Saturday's counter-demonstration observed a minute's silence for the 17 victims of this week's terrorist attacks in France.

The next Pegida protest in Dresden will be held on Monday.

Some analysts say that numbers may grow as a result of the violence in France. » | Saturday, January 10, 2015

Boko Haram Is Now a Mini-Islamic State, with Its Own Territory


THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Boko Haram controls about 20,000 square miles of territory and is fast becoming a terrorist state razing villages and killing innocent victims, writes David Blair

After days of razing villages and pitiless massacre, Boko Haram finished the week with its most chilling atrocity.

As people bustled through the Saturday market in the Nigerian city of Maiduguri, a device borne by a ten year-old girl exploded near the entrance.

A witness said the girl probably had no idea that a bomb had been strapped to her body.

The explosion just before lunch killed 20, including the girl, and injured 18, according to the police.

Boko Haram did not immediately claim the attack, but the Islamic insurgents have increasingly used young girls as human bombs as they carve an African “Caliphate” from the plains of northern Nigeria.

Today, Boko Haram controls about 20,000 square miles of territory - an area the size of Belgium.

Within this domain, the black flag of jihad flies over scores of towns and villages scattered across the neighbouring states of Borno and Yobe.

The latest conquest was the fishing town of Baga on the shores of Lake Chad, which fell to the Islamists last Wednesday. » | David Blair | Saturday, January 10, 2015

German Anti-Islamic Rallies May Grow on Terror Fears after Paris Attacks

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The anti-Islamic movement, Pegida, plans to rally on Monday which comes after Saturday's anti-Pegida protest in Dresden

Germany's new anti-Islamic Pegida movement plans to rally again on Monday, when analysts expect its ranks to swell by thousands following the attacks in Paris.

Leaders of the so-called "Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the Occident" have asked marchers to wear black armbands and observe a minute's silence for "the victims of terrorism in Paris".

About 35,000 people, organisers said, took to the streets on Saturday in Dresden against the anti-Islam group's marches. The crowd estimate is a record and nearly double the 18,000 who attended a previous counter-protest.

Many observers of the rise of the far-right populist movement in the eastern city of Dresden now expect it to seek to make political capital from the massacre at the French satirical magazine, Charlie Hebdo, and its bloody aftermath. » | AFP | Saturday, January 10, 2015

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Going Underground: Press Freedom After Charlie Hebdo Massacre


Paris Shootings: Jews 'Don't Feel Safe in France'


BBC AMERICA: The Jewish community in Paris is still in shock after an attack on a kosher supermarket at Porte de Vincennes on Friday in which four Jews were killed.

Many came to the scene of the attack on Saturday to lay flowers and pay tribute to the victims.

The attack has left some French Jews considering moving to Israel and other countries because they do not feel safe in France. (+BBC video) » | Video Journalist: Bruno Boelpaep | Saturday, January 10, 2015

British Hostage John Cantlie Gives Tour of ISIS-Held Mosul: Life Here Is "Business as Usual"


Cleric Bechir Ben Hassen Praises European Tolerance toward Muslims, Calls to Purge Tunisia of the Shiites


France Friday Sermon: Muslims Are Forbidden to Celebrate Christmas and New Year's Eve


Paris Shooting: Hero Police Officer Who Begged For His Life Was Married Muslim

DAILY EXPRESS: A MUSLIM police officer begged for his life as masked gunmen shot him to death on the streets of Paris as part of the Charlie Hebdo magazine massacre.

Chilling footage of the attack on the satirical magazine offices shows Ahmed Merabet on the ground and begging for mercy as he is killed by a gunshot to the head.

After being shot the first time, the gunmen wearing balaclavas and wielding Kalashnikov rifles are seeing running past the police officer - who had his hands up in surrender - before they shoot him again point-blank as he lies on the pavement outside the offices in the 11th arrondissement of Paris.

Mr Merabet, 42, is reportedly said to have asked his killers "Do you want to kill me?" before they allegedly replied: "Okay chief." He is survived by his wife. » | Rebecca Perring | Friday, January 09, 2015

«Sie haben den Propheten Gottes beleidigt»


TAGES ANZEIGER: Nach dem Anschlag auf das Satiremagazin «Charlie Hebdo» ist die Solidarität mit Frankreich und der Zorn auf die Attentäter gross in der muslimischen Welt.

Zahlreiche Zeitungen kritisierten am Samstag die von Islamisten verursachte Gewalt. Beispielsweise schrieb die überregionale arabische Tageszeitung «Al-Sharq al-Awsat» von einem «Tag des Horrors», die ägyptische «Al-Masri al-Joum» titelte: «Frankreich nimmt Rache für die Opfer». Die ägyptische Zeitung «Al-Masri al-Joum» zeigte einen mit einem Stift bewaffneter Zeichner, der ein gehörntes Ungeheuer jagt, auf dem «Intoleranz» geschrieben steht.

Mit einem Doppelschlag hatte die französische Polizei am Freitag zwei Geiselnahmen beendet und dabei drei Islamisten getötet, darunter auch die beiden Brüder, die den Anschlag auf das Satiremagazin verübt haben sollen. Handyaufnahmen belegten, dass die Attentäter nach ihrem Massaker in der Redaktion des Satiremagazins «Charlie Hebdo» «Allahu Akbar» – «Gott ist gross» – gerufen hatten. Insgesamt gab es innerhalb von drei Tagen 20 Tote. » | Samstag, 10. Januar 2015

Anjem Choudary Asks Newsmax Host Steve Malzberg If He Is Jewish



Read the Mediaite article here

US Use of Shannon Airport Makes Ireland a Target - Anjem Choudary

THE IRISH TIMES: Preacher says Charlie Hebdo attack victims were to blame for their own deaths

Ireland is a legitimate target for attack because of its decision to allow American planes refuel at Shannon Airport on their way to bombing Muslim countries, a radical Muslim preacher based in the UK has warned today.

Anjem Choudary, who has described those behind the 9/11 attacks in the US as ‘magnificent martyrs’, warned that Muslims fighting American foreign policy do not see Ireland as a neutral country because of its willingness to allow American planes refuel at Shannon.

“You allow the Americans, who are the biggest butchers in the world, to stop at Shannon Airport to refuel and go on to kill people in Muslim countries... if you believe the Americans are terrorists, the Irish government is colluding with them and aiding and abetting terrorism,” he said. » | Barry Roche | Friday, January 09, 2015

As Search Goes On, French Premier Declares War on Radical Islam


THE NEW YORK TIMES: PARIS — Prime Minister Manuel Valls declared Saturday that France was at war with radical Islam, as new details emerged of the harrowing sieges that led to the deaths of three gunmen and four hostages the day before, and as the authorities mounted a frantic hunt for a suspected accomplice who remained on the loose.

“It is a war against terrorism, against jihadism, against radical Islam, against everything that is aimed at breaking fraternity, freedom, solidarity,” Mr. Valls said during a speech in Evry, south of Paris. » | Dan Bilefsky and Maïa de la Baume | Saturday, January 10, 2015

Stop Pretending Terrorism Has Nothing To Do With Islam


THE FEDERALIST: And while you're at it, stop treating criticism of religion as racism

Guess what? An idea isn’t a human being. Neither is a sacred cow. And those who confront, dismiss, debunk, sneer at and fear them aren’t necessarily bigots.

Not long ago, Saudi blogger Raif Badawi was sentenced to 10 years in jail and 1,000 lashes for blasphemy. His first 50 lashes will be publicly administered this week. Taking them all at once would kill the guy. But, then again, Badawi might be fortunate to be alive at all. The theocratic monarchs of Saudi Arabia don’t need the terrorists to punish their satirists, they can get the job done in-house.

I don’t know about you, but I’m lash-phobic. I tend, as a matter of principle, to have a low opinion of people who dispense lashes. Religion, of course, is merely incidental to Badawi’s fate–as it is in the massacre of journalists in Paris or the bloodbath in Nigeria, where Boko Haram may have killed 2000 people this week. Or so I’m told. All of these instances of violence are perpetrated by random people, who by some happenstance share the same religious affiliation.

And to bring this up–according to Vox and other some outlets–may be Islamophobic. Islamophobia is defined, at least by Wikipedia (and it’s fair to say it’s a pretty decent reflection of how we use the word), as a term for prejudice against, hatred towards, or fear of the religion of Islam, Muslims, or of ethnic groups perceived to be Muslim.

Only half of this definition should be true. Most often, only half of it is. The late Christopher Hitchens never actually said “Islamophobic is a word created by fascists, and used by cowards, to manipulate morons,” but he did call it a “stupid neologism” that “aims to promote criticism of Islam to the gallery of special offenses associated with racism.” » | David Harsanyi | Friday, January 09, 2015

Paris Attack Highlights Europe's Struggle with Islamism


BBC AMERICA: In the heart of Europe in 2015, the killing of cartoonists and journalists for allegedly insulting God still comes as a shock, despite the rising number of such attacks in recent years.

In rational, post-Enlightenment Europe, religion has long since been relegated to a safe space, with Judaism and Christianity the safe targets of satire in secular western societies.

Not so Islam. The battle within Islam itself between Sunni and Shia, so evident in the wars of the Middle East, and the fight between extremist interpretations of Islam such as those of Islamic State and Muslims who wish to practice their religion in peace, is now being played out on the streets of Europe with potentially devastating consequences for social cohesion.

These latest shootings may be the work of "lone wolves" but their consequences will ripple across Europe and provoke much soul-searching about the failure of integration over the past decades.

Immigrant communities are already being viewed with increasing suspicion in both France and Germany, with their significant Muslim populations, and even in the UK. » | Caroline Wyatt, Religious affairs correspondent, BBC News | Wednesday, January 07, 2015

Friday, January 09, 2015

Palestinian Imam and Hamas TV Host Abu Funun Justifies Hitler: The Jews Spread Corruption Everywhere


Kuwaiti MP Nabil Al-Fadhl Challenges Ban on Alcohol: It Is Part of Our Heritage



Related »

Marine Le Pen: We Must Respond to War Declared by Islamic Fundamentalism


Maher Rips Liberal ‘Pussy Nation’ That’s Too Scared to Insult Islam


Robert Spencer on Hannity on Sharia No-Go Zones in France and the Charlie Hebdo Jihadists


Pegida und AfD kultivieren die gefühlte Gefahr durch den Islam


TAGES ANZEIGER: Laut einer Studie empfinden 57 Prozent der Deutschen den Islam als Bedrohung.

Seit Spätherbst demonstrieren in Dresden regelmässig Tausende gegen eine angebliche islamische Gefahr. Jetzt, nach dem Anschlag von Paris, fühlen sich die selbsternannten «Patriotischen Europäer gegen eine Islamisierung des Abendlandes» (Pegida) in ihrer Furcht bestätigt. «Die Islamisten, vor denen Pegida seit nunmehr 12 Wochen warnt, haben in Frankreich gezeigt, dass sie eben nicht demokratiefähig sind, sondern auf Gewalt und Tod als Lösung setzen», heisst es auf der Facebook-Seite der Bewegung. Die nächste Pegida-Demo vom Montag soll deswegen in «Demut und Trauer und in Solidarität mit den Familien der französischen Redaktoren» stattfinden. Teilnehmer sind dazu aufgerufen, schwarzen Trauerflor zu tragen. » | Tages-Anzeiger | Donnerstag, 08. Januar 2015

The Muslim Occupation of Europe


YNET NEWS – OPINION: Op-ed: Paris attack should become a milestone in the war against Muslim terror; but it won't, because the Western world is not physically or mentally prepared to fight the enemies rising up to destroy it.

France will hesitate on the day after the attack against satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, and its leaders will say a few words of grief and threaten the Muslim world. The French police will continue searching for the three terrorists who murdered a dozen people in the heart of Paris on Wednesday.

But France will not say out loud what millions in Europe are thinking in their hearts: It's either them, the Muslims, or us, the Europeans (most of whom are Christian Catholic).

The Muslim empire struck again on Wednesday, and it will strike the European community, which it envies, again and again. Millions of Muslims have already occupied a significant part of Europe's countries a long time ago.

The Muslim invasion of the continent requires every European politician to consider the many voices of the Muslim population. Even a European politician who despises the Muslims, their religion and their lifestyle would be unwilling to risk making harsh comments, although he is expected to make them, at least today. » | Eitan Haber | Thursday, January 08, 2015

Islam vs. West: An Ongoing Clash of Civilizations


YNET NEWS – OPINION: Op-ed: Journalists murdered in Paris were not victims of a battle over freedom of press; they were victims of a war between radical Islam's world view and Western liberalism's world view.

It would be a big mistake to see the terror attack in Paris as an attack on the freedom of the press. Such a statement puts the massacre in the French capital in line with attacks against journalists by members of a Colombian drug cartel or the Chechen mafia.

That's not the case. The goal of the attack on the office of satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo was not to frighten newspaper editors so that they would not publish one cartoon or another. The goal was to show and prove who controls the streets and consciousness of the French Republic: The Western liberalism or the fanatical Islam.

This is a clash of civilizations, not a gang's intimidation campaign.

Many in Europe are finding it difficult to accept this perspective, let alone agree with it. As far as they are concerned, the Muslim terror in the continent has no supreme goal apart from just sowing terror. » | Sever Plocker | Friday, January 09, 2015

François Hollande: Adresse à la Nation à la suite des évènements des 7 et 8 janvier 2015


Radical Cleric Abu Hamza Jailed for Life by US Court

BBC AMERICA: Radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri has been sentenced to life in prison by a court in New York for supporting terrorism.

He was convicted in May of multiple charges, including hostage-taking and plotting to set up a terrorism training camp in the US.

His trial followed a lengthy extradition process from the UK.

During the sentencing, his lawyers asked the judge to take into account his missing hands and eye.

They also argued a plan to imprison Abu Hamza in Colorado's Supermax federal prison would violate assurances the US made to judges in London to secure his 2012 extradition.

Prosecutors argued on Friday that the US government had never made such a promise to the UK and life in prison was the only appropriate sentence. » | Friday, January 09, 2015

"Charlie Hebdo": Marine Le Pen regrette d'être la seule à parler de "fondamentalisme islamiste"

LE POINT: À l'issue d'une rencontre à l'Élysée avec François Hollande, la présidente du FN affirme avoir demandé diverses mesures en réponse à cet attentat.

La présidente du FN Marine Le Pen a regretté vendredi être la seule responsable politique, selon elle, à parler de guerre contre le "fondamentalisme islamiste" après l'attentat contre Charlie Hebdo. À l'issue d'une rencontre à l'Élysée avec François Hollande, elle a également affirmé à la presse avoir demandé au chef de l'État diverses mesures en réponse à cette attaque sanglante de mercredi, dont la suspension de l'appartenance de la France à l'espace Schengen. D'après elle, "il faut se mettre en situation de répondre à la guerre déclarée par le fondamentalisme islamiste". "J'ai regretté d'ailleurs que ce mot n'ait pas été prononcé ni par lui ni par d'autres responsables politiques. La première des choses quand on veut mener la guerre, c'est d'être capable de savoir contre qui on se bat. On se bat contre une idéologie, celle du fondamentalisme islamiste. Ne pas le dire, c'est déjà une preuve de faiblesse", a accusé la fille de Jean-Marie Le Pen. » | Source AFP | vendredi 09 janvier 2015

Frankreich: Geiseln fliehen aus dem Supermarkt


Our Politicians Like Talking About Free Speech. Now Will They Let Us Have It?


THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Our leaders must now come out as liberals, rather than rather narrow[-]minded opportunists

As a victim of terrorism myself, when the terrorists strike as they have done in Paris, my first thoughts are for the victims, their families and friends.

After that of course we begin to think more deeply about the factors behind the outrages.

We should not discount the existence in all societies of a tiny minority of mentally ill, psychopathic individuals seeking notoriety by committing particularly foul crimes.

When such people live in minority communities harbouring resentment and grudges against the mainstream society, there is a natural seed bed for the cultivation of the grapes of wrath.

Mr Farage put that more bluntly with his comments about fifth columns within multicultural societies. That is, groups within minority cultural groups who work for the overthrow of the broader society in which they live. Or once again as Mr Farage put it: "people living in these countries (Britain and France) holding our passports who hates us." » | Norman Tebbit | Friday, January 09, 2015

Antisemitism in France: The Exodus Has Begun


THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: As gunmen attack a kosher supermarket in Paris, Jews there will pack their bags even faster

The least surprising thing about today’s turn of events in Paris is that Jews are the target. Because when it comes to home grown anti-Semitism, France leads the world.

A survey last year from the European Jewish Congress and Tel Aviv University found that France had more violent anti-semitic incidents in 2013 than any other country in the world. Jews were the target of 40 per cent of all racist crimes in France in 2013 – even though they comprise less than 1 per cent of the population. Attacks on Jews have risen sevenfold since the 1990s.

No wonder Jewish emigration from France is accelerating. From being the largest Jewish community in the EU at the start of this decade, with a population of around 500,000, it is expected by Jewish community leaders to have fallen to 400,000 within a few years. That figure is thought by some to be too optimistic. Anecdotally, every French Jew I know has either already left or is working out how to leave. » | Stephen Pollard | Friday, January 09, 2015

'Hacktivist' Group Anonymous Says It Will Avenge Charlie Hebdo Attacks by Shutting Down Jihadist Websites


THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Hacker group Anonymous have released a video condemning the Paris attacks, saying "freedom of expression has suffered an inhuman assault"

Hacker group Anonymous have released a video and a statement via Twitter condemning the attacks on Charlie Hebdo, in which 12 people, including eight journalists, were murdered.

The video description says that it is "a message for al-Qaeda, the Islamic State and other terrorists", and was uploaded to the group's Belgian account.

In the clip, a figure wearing the group's symbolic Guy Fawkes mask is seated in front of a desk with the hashtag #OpCharlieHebdo - which stands for Operation Charlie Hebdo - featured on screen.

The figure, whose voice is obscured says: "We are declaring war against you, the terrorists." » | Keely Lockhart, Video source YouTube / anonymous belgique | Friday, January 09, 2015

Islamists Slam Kuwaiti Lawmaker for Call to Allow Dancing, Alcohol


LA TIMES: liberal Kuwaiti lawmaker has come under fire by Islamists for his appeal to lift bans on dancing and alcohol consumption, calling the oil-rich Persian Gulf state "a country with no joy.

Nabil Fadhl provoked angry objections from fellow members of parliament when he proposed repeal of a 2004 law that prohibited dancing at concerts and festivals as contrary to the mores of Islam that dictate separation of unrelated men and women in public.

Asked by Islamist lawmakers -- apparently with sarcasm -- whether he also would support the legalization of alcohol, Fadhl reportedly replied, "Why not?" He said that drinking was tolerated in earlier times and that banning alcohol had led to the emergence of a black market where a bottle of spirits can be sold for more than $400. » | Carol J. Williams | Monday, January 05, 2015

Saudi Rights Advocate Flogged On Charge Of Insulting Islam


LA TIMES: Rejecting international appeals for clemency, Saudi Arabia on Friday publicly flogged a rights advocate and blogger who was convicted of insulting Islam, news accounts said.

Rights activists citing eyewitness reports said Raif Badawi, who had previously run a reformist website, was lashed outside a mosque in the Red Sea city of Jeddah, following Friday prayers. The flogging was the first of 20 such sessions mandated by Badawi’s sentence -- a total of 1,000 lashes, 50 lashes at a time.

Badawi was also sentenced to 10 years in prison and fined more than $250,000. » | Laura King | LA Times | Reporting from Cairo | Friday, January 09, 2015

Obama’s Remarks on Paris Shooting ‘Shariah-compliant’


WND: President submitting to Islamic moral code, says expert

UNITED NATIONS – By refusing to associate the Paris terrorist attacks with Islam, President Obama is engaging in “Shariah compliant” speech, charges Joy Brighton, author of the 2014 book “Sharia-ism is Here: The Battle to Control Women; and Everyone Else.”

“President Obama defends free speech vehemently, and the press lauds him for this; however, he refuses to use the words “Islam,” “radical Islam,” “Muslim,” “jihad” or “Shariah” when condemning the Shariah-driven shootings in Paris,” she said.

Shariah is Islamic law, the moral code of Islam that encompasses all realms of life, from the personal to the criminal, economic and political. In addition to Obama’s comments Wednesday in the immediate aftermath of the Paris shooting, Brighton referenced his speech to the United Nations General Assembly in New York Sept. 25, 2012, in which he said, “The future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam.” » | Jerome R. Corsi | Thursday, January 08, 2015

Salafism Spreads as Europe Fiddles


NEW YORK DAILY NEWS: "In terms of effectiveness in the fight against terrorism, the effect is zero.”

The jihadist attack on the offices of Charlie Hebdo, a French magazine known for lampooning Islam, has cast a glaring light on the growing problem of Muslim radicalization in Europe.

While there are millions of European Muslims who worship in peace and pose no threat whatsoever to others, increasing numbers of Muslims on the continent are embracing a radical form of Islam and its call to wage violent jihad against all nonbelievers for the sake of Allah.

The trend can be seen in the increasing appeal of Salafism, the fastest-growing Islamic movement in Europe.

Salafism takes its name from the Arabic term salaf, which means predecessors or ancestors. Salafists trace their roots to Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Muhammad, and glorify an idealized vision of what they claim is the true, original Islam practiced by the earliest generations of Muslims, including Muhammad and his companions and followers, in the 7th and 8th centuries.

The aim of Salafism is to re-create a pure form of Islam in the modern era. » | Soren Kern | New York Daily News | Friday, January 09, 2015

Nick Clegg Silences Radio Caller Who Tries to Justify Charlie Hebdo Shootings



Read the Pnik News article here | Joseph Patrick McCormick | Thursday, January 08, 2015

Egypt’s Sisi: Islamic “Thinking” Is “Antagonizing the Entire World”


Thursday, January 08, 2015

Al-Qaeda Plotting Attack on Britain


THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: After the Charlie Hebdo attack, the head of MI5 warns of a Paris-style atrocity on UK soil

Al-Qaeda is planning a Paris-style terrorist atrocity against Britain, according to the head of MI5.

Andrew Parker, the Director General of the Security Service, warned that the threat of a “mass casualty attack” was growing and that intelligence pointed to the existence of specific plots.

Security was stepped up yesterday at British ports, and armed police were put on patrol at the Eurostar terminal at London’s St Pancras station.

Mr Parker warned that although three terrorist plots had been foiled in recent months, it was almost inevitable that one would eventually succeed. » | Tom Whitehead, Security Editor | Thursday, January 08, 2015

Pegida: Kundgebung in Wien geplant

NEWS.AT: Deutsche Bewegung schwappt auf Österreich über - Aktion für 2. Februar angemeldet

Die deutsche Pegida-Bewegung dürfte nun offenbar auch auf Österreich überschwappen. Der Wiener Ableger der Bewegung gegen die "Islamisierung des Abendlandes" plant für 2. Februar eine erste Kundgebung, wie die "Wiener Zeitung" berichtete. Laut einem Eintrag auf der Facebook-Seite von Pegida Wien stehen die Organisatoren derzeit noch in der Planungsphase. » | Von apa/red | Donnerstag, 08. Januar 2015

Attacke in Paris - Reaktionen


VORARLBERG ONLINE: Außenminister Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) und auch die deutsche Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel zeigten sich in ersten Reaktionen auf die Pariser Attacke erschüttert.

"Demokratische Gesellschaften wie unsere dürfen sich dadurch nicht einschüchtern lassen. Wir müssen weiterhin unsere Grundwerte wie die Presse- und Meinungsfreiheit mit Nachdruck verteidigen.", sagte Kurz laut einer Aussendung am Mittwoch.

Strache verurteilt Terrorakt

Über die Attacke auf das Satiremagazin "Charlie Hebdo" in Paris herrscht in Österreich Entsetzen. Nach Außenminister Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) brachte auch FPÖ-Chef Heinz-Christian Strache sein Mitgefühl zum Ausdruck und verurteilte den Terrorakt. Er wünsche "den französischen Behörden viel Erfolg für eine rasche Ergreifung der feigen Mörder und ihrer Hintermänner." » | APA | Mittwoch, 07. Januar 2015

Europe’s Islam Debate Erupts as Paris Killers at Large


BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK: The bodies haven’t been buried and the killers are on the loose, but that didn’t prevent anti-Islam politicians across Europe from seizing on yesterday’s massacre in Paris.

The rhetoric varied in intensity across the European Union’s 28 countries, each with its own religious and social phobias, many gripped by an economic recession that makes convenient scapegoats out of immigrants -- especially those with veils, turbans and non-white skin.

“I wish my daughter will be free tomorrow to go around without a veil and without any fears,” Matteo Salvini, head of Italy’s anti-immigration Northern League, said on Twitter. Nigel Farage, leader of the U.K. Independence Party, spoke on LBC radio of a “Fifth Column” gnawing away at Britain and “a really rather gross policy of multi-culturalism.” Geert Wilders, head of the Freedom Party in the Netherlands, said it is time to “de-Islamize our country.” » | James G. Neuger | Thursday, January 08, 2015

Charlie Hebdo Attack: Magazine to Publish Next Week

BBC AMERICA: French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo will go to print next week, in defiance of Wednesday's apparent militant Islamist attack.

Ten journalists and two police were killed when masked attackers opened fire at its Paris headquarters.

Columnist Patrick Pelloux said the decision to continue to publish will show that "stupidity will not win".

It will have a print run of one million copies, compared with its usual 60,000 a week.

It will be half its usual length at eight pages long. » | Thursday, January 08, 2015

Russia Says Drivers Must Not Have 'Sex Disorders'


BBC AMERICA: Russia has listed transsexual and transgender people among those who will no longer qualify for driving licences.

Fetishism, exhibitionism and voyeurism are also included as "mental disorders" now barring people from driving.

The government says it is tightening medical controls for drivers because Russia has too many road accidents.

"Pathological" gambling and compulsive stealing are also on the list. Russian psychiatrists and human rights lawyers have condemned the move.

The announcement follows international complaints about Russian harassment of gay-rights activists.

In 2013 Russia made "promoting non-traditional lifestyles" illegal. » | Thursday, January 08, 2015

The West Is Paying the Price for Its Own Policy of Appeasement


IRISH INDEPENDENT: Every now and then something happens which is so horrible that it can only be described as 'shocking'.

Yesterday's atrocity in the Parisian offices of satirical magazine 'Charlie Hebdo', and the footage of the prone French policeman pleading for his life before being shot in the head by the Islamic gunman is undeniably shocking. But it is not surprising.

Europe, and the West in general, has been agonising for years over the best way to accommodate its Muslim populations. And these efforts have failed. Whether it's the burka, ignoring the cruelty of halal meat production, Islamic faith schools, self-censorship or zealous prosecutions of the new secular sin of 'Islamophobia', the depressing truth is that these various policies of appeasement and accommodation have created a climate where the only surprise about the attack on this magazine is that it took until now for it to happen.

Unlike most publications in Europe, 'Charlie Hebdo' has a long history of offending delicate Muslim sensibilities. In fact, it has a long history of offending everybody's sensibilities which, after all, is what a satirical magazine is meant to do.

The publication first came to attention when its offices were fire-bombed in 2011 after it published a special edition proclaiming Mohammed as its 'guest editor', while it was also one of the few organs which reprinted the infamous 'Danish cartoons' in 2008, which led to riots and murders by Muslims who were outraged that their so-called 'religion of peace' had been linked to violence.

There is an argument that the editor, Stephane Charbonnier, who was murdered yesterday, and the cartoonists who were also among the 12 deaths, somehow brought this act of savagery on themselves.

Only in the debate about Muslim 'offence' is the victim seen as responsible for their attack, as if Islam is so protected and precious that anyone who mocks it deserves to be killed and can't complain when they're murdered. » | Thursday, January 08, 2015

German PEGIDA Group Says Paris Shooting Shows Islamist Threat


NEWSWEEK: Germany's new anti-immigration movement seized on Wednesday's deadly attack by militants on a Paris magazine, saying it highlighted the threat of Islamist violence it has been warning against.

Chancellor Angela Merkel and her government have condemned the grassroots movement PEGIDA, or Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West, which drew a record crowd of 18,000 to its latest rally on Monday in Dresden.

Gunmen stormed the Paris offices of a French satirical magazine known for lampooning radical Islam on Wednesday. At least 12 people were killed in the attack, the worst by militants on French soil in decades. One gunman was seen on video shouting "Allah!" as shots rang out.

"The Islamists, against whom PEGIDA has been warning over the last 12 weeks, showed in France today that they are not capable of (practicing) democracy but instead see violence and death as the solution," PEGIDA wrote on its Facebook page.

"Our political leaders want us to believe the opposite is true," the group added.

"Does a tragedy like this first have to happen in Germany?" » | Reuters | Wednesday, January 07, 2015

Charlie Hebdo Attacks: Anti-Islam Parties Are Now On The March Across Europe


THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Religion should be able to cope with being satirised

The French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo had no qualms about lampooning Islam. Why should it? In a free and liberally-inclined country like France it routinely took the mickey out of politicians and creeds whatever their source. But the editors knew they were running a risk by sending up Islam because militants will simply not accept that their religion be traduced in any way – and are prepared to kill or threaten to make their point.

Salman Rushdie discovered this more than 20 years ago after the publication of Satanic Verses brought a fatwa upon his head from Iran and forced him into hiding for years. Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard found out in 2005 when he was asked by his newspaper, Jyllands-Posten, to draw the prophet Muhammad "as you see him". The resulting cartoon was deemed blasphemous by hard-line Muslims around the world and provoked death threats. Ten Years ago, Dutch film maker Theo van Gogh, who made a controversial film about Islamic culture, was stabbed and shot dead in Amsterdam for insulting the Prophet.

Staff at Charlie Hebdo had already tasted this murderous backlash three years ago when their offices were firebombed when the magazine reprinted the Danish cartoons and named Mohammed editor-in-chief for a week’s edition. It also published a “halal” comic book on the life of the Prophet. To most Western sensibilities all of these publications were the warp and weft of what it means to live in a free country. Even if Christians or Jews object to their religions being satirised, they put up with it. But militant Islamists were not prepared to do so. Two gunmen in Paris have now exacted bloody vengeance in an act of violence that will send shock waves around Europe.

Anti-Islamist attitudes are beginning to move away from the far-Right extreme and more into the mainstream of popular discontent. In Germany since last October weekly marches have been held in a number of towns and cities staged by an organisation called Pegida which campaigns against what it sees as the "Islamisation" of Europe. Nearly 20,000 turned out to one rally in Dresden. The marches have been denounced by political parties and religious leaders across Germany but its supporters do not appear to be drawn from the usual neo-Nazi quarters. » | Philip Johnston | Wednesday, January 07, 2015

Wednesday, January 07, 2015

Charlie Hebdo Attack: 'Who Dares to Publish Anything after This?' – Cartoonist Lars Vilks


Charlie Hebdo Massacre: 'Attack Will Heighten Anti-Islamic Tensions Across Europe'


At least 12 people have been killed after two gunmen opened fire in the headquarters of the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in central Paris

Thousands of Believers Gather to Celebrate Orthodox Christmas


Millions of Orthodox Christians across the world are celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ on the night of January 6th, in accordance with the Julian calendar. In Moscow, hundreds of people, including the country’s leaders, are attending a Christmas service in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour.

Charlie Hebdo Attack: Thousands Join Vigils in Paris, London and around the World

THE INDEPENDENT: People held up pens to symbolise freedom of expression and wore stickers saying "je suis Charlie"

Thousands of people have flooded Paris’ Place de la Republique in a vigil to pay tribute to the victims of the attack on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Journalists held up their press cards as members of the public silently raised pens in the air in a poignant symbol against what is being seen as an attack on freedom of speech.

The phrase “je suis Charlie” (“I am Charlie”) has become a rallying call for people expressing solidarity with the victims around the world, with many Paris protesters wearing the slogan on stickers and painting it on giant placards.

The mood was said to be sombre but defiant, with groups of friends quietly talking and comforting each other, trying to come to terms with the day's horrifying events.

A vigil has also started in London’s Trafalgar Square. » | Lizzie Dearden | Wednesday, January 07, 2015

'Islamophobic' Michel Houellebecq Book Featured by Charlie Hebdo Published Today


Submission, the latest controversial work by Michel Houellebecq, was featured on this week's Charlie Hebdo cover - but its author denies the book is Islamophobic


Read the Telegraph article here | Henry Samuel, Paris, and Andrew Marszal | Wednesday, January 07, 2015

Monday, January 05, 2015

German Anti-Muslim Protesters Rally Despite Merkel Plea


REUTERS.COM: (Reuters) - Protesters marched in several German cities on Monday against higher levels of immigration and what they see as the growing influence of Islam, in defiance of an appeal from Chancellor Angela Merkel to spurn rallies she views as racist.

The rallies, organized by a new grassroots movement known as PEGIDA, or Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West, have become an almost weekly event in the east German city of Dresden in recent months.

Some 18,000 people, the biggest number so far, turned out in Dresden on Monday but similar rallies in Berlin and the western city of Cologne were heavily outnumbered by counter-protesters who accuse PEGIDA of fanning racism and intolerance.

The PEGIDA protesters waved Germany's black, red and gold flag and brandished posters bearing slogans such as "Against religious fanaticism and every kind of radicalism".

One poster in Cologne called for "potatoes rather than doner kebabs", a swipe at ethnic Turks who at around three million represent Germany's largest immigrant community. » | Oliver Barth | Dresden, Germany | Monday, January 05, 2015

Egypt’s al-Sisi Makes Extraordinary Speech on Islam


PJ MEDIA: Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi made an extraordinary speech on New Year’s Day to Cairo’s Al-Azhar and the Awqaf Ministry calling for a long overdue virtual ecclesiastical revolution in Islam. This is something no Western leader has the had the courage to do, certainly not Barack Obama, despite his Muslim education.

Accusing the umma (world Islamic population) of encouraging the hostility of the entire world, al-Sisi’s speech is so dramatic and essentially revolutionary it brings to mind Khrushchev’s famous speech exposing Stalin. Many have called for a reformation of Islam, but for the leader of the largest Arab nation to do so has world-changing implications. » | Roger L Simon | Saturday, January 03, 2015

Sunday, January 04, 2015

Religionsfreiheit: Türkei genehmigt erstmals Neubau christlicher Kirche


SPIEGEL ONLINE: Das hat es seit Gründung der Türkischen Republik im Jahr 1923 nicht gegeben: Die Regierung hat den Neubau einer christlichen Kirche genehmigt. Das Gotteshaus für die aramäisch-assyrischen Christen soll schon bald in Istanbul entstehen.

Ankara/Istanbul - Vor 92 Jahren wurde die Türkische Republik gegründet. Bislang hat es im laut Verfassung laizistischen Staat keinen einzigen Neubau einer christlichen Kirche gegeben. Das wird sich nun offenbar bald ändern. Die Regierung hat laut übereinstimmenden Zeitungsberichten den Bau einer Kirche genehmigt. Das Gotteshaus für die Minderheit der aramäisch-assyrischen Christen soll im Istanbuler Stadtteil Yesilköy am Marmarameer auf städtischem Grund und Boden entstehen. » | fdi/AFP | Samstag, 03. Januar 2015

A Muslim-run France? Novel Sparks Islamophobia Row


FRANCE 24: France most notorious and internationally best-known novelist Michel Houellebecq insisted Saturday that his new book “Submission”, which envisions a future France ruled by a Muslim government, is not a far-right racist scare story.

“Submission”, which is released in French on Wednesday, has been the subject of intense debate in recent weeks, particularly for its portrayal of Islam.

In 2001 Houellebeck described Islam as “the stupidest of all religions”, a position he has since vocally distanced himself from.

But his latest book has stirred criticism from all quarters and been attacked widely by the French media and on social media. France’s Muslim community accuse the author of inciting Islamophobia in a country with Europe’s biggest Muslim population.

Leading the barrage is Laurent Joffrin, editor-in-chief of left-leaning newspaper Libération, who argues that the novel “will mark the date in history when the ideas of the far-right made a grand return to serious French literature”.

“This is a book that ennobles the ideas of the [far right anti-Europe and anti-immigration] National Front (FN) party,” he added.

Not so, said philosopher Alain Finkielkraut, a member of France’s prestigious Academie Française, who described Houellebecq as a man, “with his eyes wide open and who is not intimidated by political correctness”. » | Sunday, January 04, 2014

Related »

Facebook and Twitter are 'Allowing Islamophobia to Spread by Refusing to Report Offensive Postings'


MAIL ONLINE: Posts include accusations of Muslims being rapists and paedophiles / Inflammatory messages flagged up to social sites by interfaith organization / But several accounts have not been suspended and posts not removed / Faith Matters said it is 'morally unacceptable' to leave up 'bigoted' views / Facebook says it has to 'strike balance' between freedom of expression and maintaining'safe and trusted environment' / Twitter said all threats reported against site's rules are investigated

Facebook and Twitter have been accused of allowing Islamophobia to flourish by refusing to remove hundreds of inflammatory posts which have been reported by anti-racism campaigners.

Some of the posts which have been flagged up to the two social media sites include accusations of Muslims being rapists, paedophiles and comparable to cancer.

In one shocking example, a Facebook user, who was referring to the beheading of Westerners in Syria said: 'For every person beheaded by these sick savages we should drag 10 off the streets and behead them, film it and put it online.

'For every child they cut in half … we cut one of their children in half. An eye for an eye.'

But, in several cases, the accounts behind the abusive messages have not been suspended, nor have the posts been removed, according to a report by The Independent. » | Steph Cockroft for MailOnline | Saturday, January 03, 2014

Enfant terrible's Literary Vision of an Islamic France

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Michel Houellebecq, who first stirred controversy with sex novel Atomised, makes waves with book describing country after Islamist becomes president

Put France’s literary enfant terrible together with Europe’s most combustible political talking point, and sparks were always going to fly.

Michel Houellebecq, whose tale of sex, mother-hatred and cloning Atomised was the French literary scandal of the Nineties, is turning his attention to “Islamisation”.

His new novel Soumission (Submission), will not be published until January 7 but has already triggered a flurry of accusations that he is pandering to the growing Islamophobia gripping France.

It is set in 2022 and imagines the country electing a Muslim president, who goes on to convert France to his vision of society.

In a twist, he is not only able to implement his programme - but it works. France becomes more positive about its future, and more prosperous too.

Houellebecq has already been accused of aligning himself with so-called neo-réactionnaire writers and intellectuals such as Eric Zemmour and Renaud Camus who argue that France’s national identity has been irreversibly diluted by mass immigration and the growth of Islam. » | Rory Mulholland, Paris | Saturday, January 03, 2015

Saturday, January 03, 2015

Cologne Cathedral Will Go Dark in Protest at Anti-Islam March


THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Church authorities show their dismay at growing movement, as politicians call for faster deporting of failed asylum seekers

The floodlights of Cologne cathedral will be switched off as a counter-protest against a planned anti-immigrant march, due to take place in the city on Monday night.

Thousands of marchers, coordinated by a new far-Right protest movement, have demonstrated in Dresden in recent weeks against what they say is the “Islamisation” of the country by Muslim immigrants.

The announcement came as Angela Merkel's Bavarian coalition partners urged a radical overhaul of Germany’s asylum system, including the swift deportation of those turned down for refugee status.

Bavaria’s ruling Christian Social Union, which is also a member of Mrs Merkel’s federal coalition, has proposed a new fast-track asylum process, based on the system used in Switzerland, in which “simple” cases would be decided in just six weeks. A senior CSU figure, Joachim Hermann, the Bavarian interior minister, has called for those whose applications are rejected to be deported. » | Justin HUggler, Berlin | Friday, January 02, 2015

Friday, January 02, 2015

India Outrage over Mock 'Muslim' Terror Drills


BBC: There has been outrage in India after police in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state of Gujarat conducted mock security drills using fake "militants" dressed as Muslims.

A video of a drill in Surat district showed police restraining men wearing long tunics and white skullcaps.

Another video shot in the Narmada district had the "militants" shouting "Islam Zindabad (Long live Islam)".

Muslim leaders have called the videos "atrocious and highly condemnable".

Critics say the videos stereotype Muslims, who make up nearly 14% of the country's 1.2 billion population. » | Friday, January 02, 2015

Florida Man Decapitates Mother on New Year's Eve


BBC: US police say they have charged a man with first-degree murder after he decapitated his mother on New Year's Eve.

Florida officials said that 23-year-old Christian Gomez killed his mother with an axe on Wednesday.

Officers found the body of Maria Suarez-Cassagne outside the family home in Oldsmar, Pinellas County. » | Friday, January 02, 2015