France Launches Raids to Arrest 10 Suspected Islamist Suspects

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Elite police arrested 10 Islamist suspects in early morning raids across France on Wednesday ordered by President Nicolas Sarkozy after seven people were killed by an al-Qaeda-inspired gunman last month.

The DCRI domestic intelligence service, supported by elite police commandos, carried out arrests in the southern cities of Marseilles and Valence, two towns in the southwest and in the northeastern town of Roubaix, a police source said.

The raids follow the arrest of 19 people on March 30, a week after police snipers shot dead al-Qaeda-inspired gunman Mohamed Merah, who killed three Jewish schoolchildren, a rabbi and three soldiers in a spate of attacks around Toulouse.

"Those arrested have a similar profile to Mohamed Merah," a local police source said. "They are isolated individuals, who are self-radicalised."

He said the suspects were tracked on Islamist forums expressing extreme views and said they were preparing to travel to areas including Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Sahel belt to wage jihad (holy war). » | Source: Reuters | Wednesday, April 04, 2012

Florida Imams Arrested for Aiding Pakistani Taleban
ARAB NEWS: MIAMI: The imam of a Florida mosque and his two sons, one also a Muslim spiritual leader, were arrested on Saturday on charges of financing and supporting the Pakistani Taleban, US officials said.

The three Pakistan-born US citizens were among six charged in a US indictment that accused them of “supporting acts of murder, kidnapping and maiming in Pakistan and elsewhere” carried out by the Pakistani Taleban, which Washington calls a terrorist organization.

The indictment, announced by US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Wifredo Ferrer and the FBI, charged the six with creating a network that transferred funds from the United States to Pakistani Taleban supporters and fighters in Pakistan, including for the purpose of buying arms.

If convicted, each faces up to 15 years in prison for each count of the indictment.

The charges were revealed as US relations with Pakistan are strained over the US raid that killed Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan.

Pakistan’s parliament on Saturday condemned the raid that killed Bin Laden and called for a review of relations with the United States. » | Kevin Grey | REUTERS | Sunday, May 15, 2011

Royal Wedding: Three Arrested for 'Mock Execution' Plan
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Three protesters who were planning on staging mock executions outside Westminster Abbey this morning have been arrested by Scotland Yard.

Watch YouTube video here

Christian Militia Group Members Arrested by FBI
THE TELEGRAPH: FBI agents have arrested seven people in a series of raids targeting a Christian militia group.

The raids took place in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio over the weekend and were reportedly carried out by the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force.

The suspects are expected to make an initial appearance in US District Court in Detroit later today.

A source close to the investigation in Washington, D.C. told the Detroit News that FBI agents were conducting activities in connection to Hutaree, a Christian militia group whose members describe themselves as Christian soldiers preparing for the arrival and battle with the anti-Christ. >>> | Monday, March 29, 2010

News Hub: Saudi Arabia Arrests Al Qaeda Suspects

Far-right Group, the English Defence League, in Disarray after Birmingham Fracas
TIMES ONLINE: A rightwing group, which has promised a summer of demonstrations against British Muslims, was in disarray today after its first significant protest ended in violence and 35 arrests.

The English Defence League staged a march near the Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham this weekend but its small band of supporters was drastically outnumbered by anti-fascist campaigners and riot police. The protest ended in violent skirmishes and running battles through the city’s busy shopping streets on Saturday evening.

Members of the League resorted to bitter in-fighting today as supporters labelled the organisers “ridiculous” and the event a “shambles”.

At least three people were injured as hundreds of police, some in full riot gear, broke up fights between anti-Islamic protesters and anti-fascist groups who came to disrupt the demonstration. At one point officers were forced to seal off New Street with a steel barrier.

Emily Bridgewater, who was shopping when violence broke out, told the Birmingham Post: “It kicked off very suddenly and there was stampeding and screaming.

“We ended up being herded into Primark, where they brought the shutters down to protect us. It was very frightening.” >>> Nico Hines and Costas Pitas | Monday, August 10, 2009

Reformist Leaders Arrested as Protesters Continue to Defy Marching Ban
THE TELEGRAPH: Iran's regime arrested leading reformist politicians yesterday as thousands defied an official ban by staging another march against the outcome of last week's presidential election.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader, appeared on state television to urge "unity" and calm. But another demonstration against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election filled central Tehran on the fifth day of protests, with a river of people stretching through the city to Vali Asr Square.

Earlier, the security forces carried out a series of arrests, detaining Mohammed Atrianfar, a leading reformist politician and a close ally of Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former president who remains one the regime's most powerful figures. Saeed Laylaz, an economist who gives frequent interviews to Western journalists and had predicted bloodshed in the wake of the election, was also arrested.

Reformists fear the regime is trying to weaken protests by silencing their leading voices and Mr Atrianfar's arrest signals that people with powerful connections are not immune. The intelligence ministry said 26 alleged "masterminds" of the post-election unrest had been detained yesterday alone.

Members of the pro-regime Basij militia have also conducted overnight raids on university dormitories, with several students reported to have been killed.

But Mir-Hossein Mousavi, the opposition's leading candidate in last week's election, urged his supporters to gather again today (THURS) and mourn those who have been killed. He asked for a "peaceful rally" against the "shameful fraud" of last week's election.

This openly defies Ayatollah Khamenei, who wields ultimate power in Iran. On Sunday, the Supreme Leader met Mr Mousavi and urged him to refrain from calling any more protests while the Council of Guardians, a committee of hardline clerics, investigated his claims of vote rigging.

But in a blunt letter to the Supreme National Security Council, released on his website, Mr Mousavi also accused pro-regime militias of "savage acts and killing of people who only want to get their rights".

They had attacked peaceful demonstrators with "batons, chains, iron bars or sometimes firearms," said Mr Mousavi, adding that "plainclothes forces" had been responsible for "this evil phenomenon". >>> By David Blair, Diplomatic Editor | Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Saudi Police Arrest Shi'ites, Search for Preacher
REUTERS: RIYADH - Saudi police have arrested at least 11 Shi'ites in eastern Saudi Arabia after a firebrand preacher attacked the Sunni authorities over recent sectarian clashes, police and Shi'ite sources said on Sunday.

Tewfik al-Saif, an intellectual from the Eastern Province, said a total of 14 Shi'ites were arrested in Awwamiyya during several days of sit-ins in protest against police raids in search of preacher Nimr al-Nimr, who has gone missing.

Shi'ite website Rasid.com also reported the arrests.

Interior Ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki confirmed that 11 men were detained on Saturday on suspicion of "disturbing public order" and an act of vandalism that caused an electricity black-out in the Shi'ite town of Awwamiyya.

He said police wanted Nimr for questioning but did not know for what reason.

Saif and a member of Nimr's family said that in a sermon in Awwamiyya this month Nimr had suggested Shi'ites could one day seek to secede from Saudi Arabia, a country that sees itself as the bastion of mainstream Sunni Islam.

Most Saudi Shi'ites live in the eastern, oil-producing part of the country. They are thought to form 10 to 15 percent of the population of 17 million Saudis, and often complain of second-class status in the kingdom. >>> © Thomson Reuters 2009 | Sunday, March 22, 2009

49 Arrested for 'Satanic' Clothes
Two plucky Iranian gals cocking a snook at the stifling dress restrictions of the mullahs of Iran. Photo courtesy of Google Images
NEWS.COM.AU: POLICE have arrested 49 people this week in a northern Iranian city during a crackdown on "satanic" clothes, according to an IRNA news agency report.

The measures are the latest in a country-wide campaign against Western cultural influence in the Islamic Republic, where strict dress codes are enforced.

"Police confronted rascals and thugs who appeared in public wearing satanic fashions and unsuitable clothing," Qaemshahr city police commander Mahmoud Rahmani told IRNA.

Mr Rahmani also said that five barber shops were shut and 20 more warned for "promoting Western hairstyles".

In the past, such crackdowns have lasted a few weeks or months, but the current campaign was launched in 2007 and has not let up.

It includes measures against men sporting spiky "Western" hairstyles or women wearing tight trousers and high boots.

Women are supposed to wear clothing that covers their hair and disguises the shape of their bodies. But some, particularly in cities, wear headscarves pushed back well beyond their hairlines and sport tight-fitting outfits. >>> From correspondents in Tehran | December 4, 2008

Hat tip: Dhimmi Watch

The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Paperback – Australia) >>>
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Hardback – Australia) >>>

Official: Yemen Detains 9 People for Converting to Christianity
FOXNEWS: SAN'A, Yemen — Yemeni police have detained at least nine people this year for converting from Islam to Christianity, a security official said Tuesday.

The nine were arrested between May and early August and remain in police custody, said the official.

Converting from Islam to any other religion is illegal in Yemen and can be punishable by death. But in previous cases, those arrested are usually released after they revoke their new faith and pledge to return to Islam.

Three of the nine were detained in west of the capital, San'a, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. He declined to provide details about the others.

A family member of one of the detained said he fears those arrested could face torture or abuse in prison. The family member, who declined to be named because of security concerns, said Hani el-Dahayni, 30, was detained in May after police stormed his office and confiscated computers and compact discs.

Separately, police detained six Iranians who are followers of the Baha'i faith and have lived in Yemen for three decades, the security official said. The six were accused of being members of a rebel group, he said. Official: Yemen Detains 9 People for Converting to Christianity >>> Associated Press | August 19, 2008

The Dawning of a New Dark Age – Dust Jacket Hardcover, direct from the publishers (US) >>>
The Dawning of a New Dark Age – Paperback, direct from the publishers (US) >>>