The EU should be stronger and more united. Great Britain should belong to the Union.
Die EU sollte stärker und geeinter sein. Großbritannien sollte der Union angehören.
L'UE devrait être plus forte et plus unie. La Grande-Bretagne devrait appartenir à l'Union.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Liliane Bettencourt, L’Oréal heiress and France’s richest woman. Photo: Google Images
L'Oréal Heiress Liliane Bettencourt Writes Photographer Out of Her Will
THE TELEGRAPH: The celebrity photographer accused of abusing the trust of L'Oreal [sic] heiress Liliane Bettencourt, France's richest woman, has been written out of her will - depriving him of an estimated 1.25 billion euros.
Mrs Bettencourt's lawyer, Georges Kiejman, said that the 87-year-old billionairess has decided "enough was enough" and that Francois-Marie Banier should no longer be named in the will.
"Liliane Bettencourt feels she had already given a lot to Mr Banier, so she ended the arrangement which made him her sole named heir," he said.
Mr Kiejman said the change had been made in France in mid July, and no one else had been added to the will in his place.
Mr Banier, 63, was Mrs Bettencourt's sole legatee in the will drawn up in December 2007.
He was set to receive around eight percent of Mrs Bettencourt's fortune, or an estimated 1.25 billion euros, a member of Bettencourt's entourage said in July.
Mrs Bettencourt's estranged daughter Françoise Bettencourt-Meyers and grandchildren would have received the rest of her fortune. >>> | Saturday, August 28, 2010
Banier n'est plus le légataire universel de Bettencourt
Liliane Bettencourt et Francois-Marie Banier. Photos : Le Point
LE POINT: Le photographe François-Marie Banier n'est plus le légataire universel de Liliane Bettencourt, a affirmé samedi à l'AFP l'avocat de la milliardaire, Me Georges Kiejman, confirmant ce qu'il a déclaré au journal Le Monde daté de dimanche-lundi. C'est à la mi-juillet que Mme Bettencourt a mis fin à cette disposition, prévue dans son testament daté du 11 décembre 2007, a ajouté l'avocat. Elle a rédigé cette révocation sur une simple feuille, sans choisir de nouveau légataire, et ce document papier a été remis fin juillet à son notaire, Jean-Michel Normand. >>> Source AFP | Samedi 28 Août 2010
Bradford: Smoke Bombs Thrown at English Defence League Protest
THE GUARDIAN: More than 1,600 officers on horseback and in riot gear pen in 700 activists, including BNP members and soccer thugs
EDL supporters and police clash in Bradford. Photograph: The Guardian
Far-right activists threw smoke bombs and missiles and fought with the police as trouble flared in a protest organised by the English Defence League.
Bricks and bottles and smoke bombs were thrown at anti-racist supporters and police as around 700 EDL activists – including known football hooligans and BNP members – held a "static protest" in Bradford city centre. Mounted officers and others in riot gear were attacked as they pushed the EDL into a penned area. Skirmishes continued as EDL speakers addressed the crowd and there was more violence as its supporters were put back on coaches.
More than 1,600 officers from 13 forces were involved in the police operation amid fears the demonstration would descend into violence. Police said there had been five arrests.
The EDL, which has held demonstrations in towns and cities across the country over the past 12 months, had predicted that thousands of its supporters would turn out in Bradford for what was dubbed "the big one", but police said there were around 700 people.
Earlier in the afternoon coachloads of EDL activists had chanted "Allah, Allah who the fuck is Allah?" and "Muslim bombers off our streets". >>> Matthew Taylor and Martin Wainwright | Saturday, August 28, 2010
Bradford Braces for English Defence League Protest
GUARDIAN VIDEO: Filmmaker Navdeep Singh Kandola speaks to members of the Muslim and Sikh communities in advance of an English Defence League demonstration this weekend
DIE PRESSE: Die Brüder David und Ed kämpfen immer verbissener um die Labour-Führung. Beide arbeiteten für Tony Blair und Gordon Brown. David hält bis heute an „New Labour“ fest, Ed sieht das anders.
LONDON. David und Ed Miliband sind auf dem Weg, die beiden Brüder mit dem schlechtesten öffentlichen Verhältnis seit Kain und Abel zu werden. Beide bewerben sich um die Führung der britischen Labour Party und je näher die Entscheidung rückt, desto erbitterter wird die Auseinandersetzung. Ex-Außenminister David, mit 45 Jahren der ältere der beiden Brüder, warf Bruder Ed, 40 Jahre jung und zuletzt Energieminister, vor, naiv zu sein und die Partei „in der Wohlfühlzone“ einzulullen.
Ed wies das umgehend zurück und warf David umgekehrt nicht nur „schlechtes Benehmen“ vor, sondern ein „Verharren in der Wohlfühlzone von New Labour“. Bei soviel Vorwürfen des Wohlfühlens ist es kein Wunder, dass sich mittlerweile keiner der beiden mehr richtig wohlfühlen kann. Der Bruderkampf der Milibands schadet nämlich dem Image beider Protagonisten und verhindert eine Auseinandersetzung mit ihren inhaltlichen Anliegen. >>> Axel Reiserer | Freitag, 27. August 2010
Why Can't Barack Obama Tell The World About American Tolerance?
Barack Hussein Obama. Photo: The Telegraph
THE TELEGRAPH – EXTRACTS: The controversy over the 'Ground Zero mosque' has portrayed the United States as a land of bigots. Toby Harnden wonders why the US President has helped fuel this myth.
Obama's ill-judged intervention, and the shrill outrage of his allies in the intelligentsia, has damaged America's standing in the world by fuelling anti-American stereotypes.
…
Many Americans are incensed by the way that legitimate protest and questioning of Obama's policies is routinely branded as racist or ignorant. They are tired of being told what to think and when to think it.
During the 2008 campaign, for instance, you were a bigot if you mentioned Obama's middle name or his Muslim background. Yet once he was elected, he went to Ankara and Cairo to proclaim that his full name was "Barack Hussein Obama".
Ahmed Sharif, a victim of real anti-Muslim bigotry, stated that the attack on him was an aberration and that America is a land of tolerance and opportunity. What a shame that Obama, despite his much-vaunted gift with words, appears unable to speak about such things with similar eloquence. Read the whole article >>> Toby Harnden's American Way | Saturday, August 28, 2010
Kadhafi débarque à Rome avec ses cavaliers
Le colonel Kadhafi. Photo : Le Temps
LE TEMPS: Le leader libyen entame lundi une visite officielle dans la Péninsule pour célébrer le deuxième anniversaire du Traité d’amitié entre les deux pays
Cette fois, le colonel Kadhafi ne viendra pas seulement avec ses «amazones», ses séduisantes gardes militaires chargées de sa protection. Pour sa quatrième visite à Rome, dans la capitale de l’ancienne puissance coloniale, le leader libyen a prévu de débarquer lundi avec pas moins de trente cavaliers qui défileront mardi soir sur des montures berbères aux côtés d’un régiment à cheval de carabiniers.
Deux ans après l’accord historique entre Silvio Berlusconi et le «guide de la révolution» à travers lequel l’Italie a officiellement demandé pardon pour le passé et promis un chèque de 5 milliards de dollars de dédommagements payables en vingt ans, les deux hommes ont ainsi voulu célébrer l’anniversaire en grande pompe. Car, pour l’heure et en dépit de certaines critiques, le «traité d’amitié» entre les deux pays tient et produit les effets escomptés par les deux signataires.
Fin août 2008, à Benghazi, en Libye, Silvio Berlusconi avait ainsi déclaré: «L’Italie s’excuse pour les massacres, les destructions et la répression contre le peuple libyen durant l’occupation coloniale.» A la suite de cette déclaration, Mouammar Kadhafi s’était senti en droit, l’année suivante, de descendre de son avion à Rome en exhibant sur son uniforme le portrait du héros de la résistance anticoloniale libyenne, Omar al-Mokhtar. Une partie de l’opinion publique italienne avait modérément goûté la provocation. Cette année, le dirigeant africain devrait plus discrètement participer à un colloque sur les rapports entre les deux pays à l’ambassade de Libye en présence d’historiens et d’intellectuels des deux bords. >>> Eric Jozsef | Samedi 28 Août 2010
Anjem Choudary: Islam Is Not a Religion of Peace
Laura Ingraham's Beef With Michelle Obama
FOX NEWS: Radio host takes issue with first lady's nutrition agenda
Mayor Bloomberg's Faith Frames Mosque Debate
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Mayor Bloomberg was raised Jewish, but hasn't been known for wearing his religion on his sleeve. His defense of the Islamic Cultural Center and Mosque near Ground Zero shows that he's more passionate defending freedom of religion, than he has been in displaying his religiosity.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Steve McVey and other e-cigarette makers say their smoking devices are a safe alternative to tobacco. The FDA says they should be regulated -- no buts about it. WSJ's Danny Yadron reports.
Well, Burn My Koran and Call Me Extremist
NEW ZEALAND HERALD: You'd think in America's bible belt there wouldn't be a big demand for copies of the Koran. But you can bet in Gainesville, Florida, they're flying off the shelves as fast as pregnancy tests after the school prom.
Because despite being denied a fire permit by the local fire chief, the Dove World Outreach Centre is planning a book burning session to mark the September 11, 2001 attacks. That's right, the church is hosting "International Burn a Koran Day".
It's anti-Islamic but it's not an isolated case. Muslims, who make up only about 2 per cent of the nation's population, are seeing their right to practise their religion challenged across the United States. And nowhere more than in New York's Lower Manhattan where plans to build a 13-storey Islamic centre have set off street protests and given Republicans a grandstanding opportunity that is too hard to resist.
Opponents, who say it is offensive to those who lost loved ones in the September 11 attacks, have labelled the centre the ground-zero mosque, even though it is more a centre with a prayer room and is two blocks away from the World Trade Centre site.
The American Muslims behind the project have given it the name Park51. No doubt opponents will point out that you only need to change a few of the letters around for it to read Death To America.
The Islamic centre will cost US$100 million ($142 million) and feature, among other things, a swimming pool and basketball court. If bomb-making facilities are planned, they've so far kept that quiet.
The driving force behind the project has been the Kuwaiti-born Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, who has been used by the Bush and Obama administrations to spread a message of religious tolerance in Muslim countries.
But to Republican Newt Gingrich he is an extremist trying to spread "moral confusion about the nature of radical Islamism". Continue reading and comment >>> Duncan Gillies | Saturday, August 28, 2010
Bloomberg Questions Motives of Mosque Opponents
FOX NEWS: New York City mayor claims uproar is due to election season
New York Student Charged with Attack on Muslim Taxi Driver
THE GUARDIAN: Michael Enright, who volunteered in Afghanistan, accused of slashing neck and face of Bangladeshi driver in Manhattan
Ahmed Sharif displays his wounds from the alleged attack. Photograph: The Guardian
A college student who did volunteer work in Afghanistan has been charged with slashing the neck and face of a Bangladeshi taxi driver who said he was Muslim.
A criminal complaint alleges Michael Enright uttered an Arabic greeting and told the driver: "Consider this a checkpoint" before the brutal attack occurred on Tuesday night inside the yellow cab on Manhattan's East Side. Police say Enright, 21, was drunk at the time.
Enright is being held on charges of attempted murder and assault as hate crimes, and possession of a weapon. The handcuffed defendant did not enter a plea during the brief court appearance.
In addition to a serious neck wound, cab driver Ahmed Sharif suffered cuts to his forearms, face and one hand while trying to fend off his attacker, prosecutor James Zeleta said while arguing against bail.
Jason Martin, defending, told the judge his client was an honours student at the School of Visual Arts who lived with his parents in suburban Brewster, New York. >>> Associated Press | Thursday, August 26, 2010
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani's Family Turned Away From Prison Visit
THE GUARDIAN: Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning was told by guards she had been abandoned by her children, says son
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, right, pictured in 2004 at a nursery in Osko, Iran, where she worked for almost two years. Photograph: Family handout for the Guardian
The Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning has been denied visits by her lawyer and family, her son told the Guardian today, as it emerged that her lawyer has been subjected to fresh harassment.
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani has been detained in Tabriz jail since 2006 and was sentenced to death on charges of adultery. She was acquitted of murdering her husband, but Iranian authorities have since accused her of being an accomplice.
Arriving for a prison visit yesterday, her son Sajad, 22 and daughter Saeedeh, 17, were told she was unwilling to see them.
Later, when she was allowed to phone her son, it emerged she had been told by guards that no one had come to visit and that her children had abandoned her, Sajad told the Guardian. "[The officials] have become obstinate – they are seeking just different ways to mistreat my mother and us as her children," he said.
Mohammadi Ashtiani's government-appointed lawyer, Houtan Kian, has been unable to visit her since she appeared on TV this month and confessed to involvement in her husband's murder. Human rights campaigners say the confession was made under duress. >>> Saeed Kamali Dehghan | Friday, August 27, 2010
About Muhammad the ‘Prophet’
Crispin Blunt Leaves Wife as He 'Comes to Terms with Being Gay'
THE TELEGRAPH: A Government minister announced today he had separated from his wife and was ''coming to terms with his homosexuality''.
Crispin Blunt, the Tory MP and prisons minister, said there was nobody else involved and appealed for his family's privacy to be respected.
In a statement, his office said: ''Crispin Blunt wishes to make it known that he has separated from his wife Victoria.
"He decided to come to terms with his homosexuality and explained the position to his family. The consequence is this separation. >>> | Friday, August 27, 2010
150 Auschwitz Surgical Instruments Found in Nearby Polish Home
THE TELEGRAPH: More than 150 surgical instruments from the Nazi German Auschwitz death camp have been found in a nearby house in Oswiecim, according to an Auschwitz museum spokesman.
The gynaecological and surgical instruments were found in a house that was located inside a strictly closed zone surrounding Auschwitz during the war.
Describing it as “one of the greatest discoveries in recent years”, Bartosz Bartyzel said the instruments were most likely used by the physician Carl Clauberg. >>> | Thursday, August 26, 2010
El-Gamal – Waiter-To-Real-Estate-Mogul – Paid Cash for Ground Zero Mosque
Allah's Little Benighted Helpers: NYC Islamic Center Gets New Support
Jimmy Carter Secures Release of US Hiker Aijalon Gomes from North Korea
THE TELEGRAPH: Former US president Jimmy Carter has secured the release of an American held in North Korea for nearly seven months after crossing the border from China on foot.
Aijalon Gomes, 31, left Pyongyang on a plane accompanied by Mr Carter, who had flown to the North Korean capital three days earlier on a private visit to negotiate the release.
The former president "courteously requested" a special pardon for Mr Gomes, which leader Kim Jong-il granted, North Korean state media said. Mr Gomes had been sentenced in April to eight years of hard labour and a hefty fine for trespassing and committing a "hostile act."
A committed Christian, Mr Gomes is thought to have travelled to the country on a one-man peace mission.
The[y] pair are due to arrive in Boston today to be reunited with Mr Gomes' mother and other family members.
In Washington, the State Department welcomed the news.
We "are relieved that he will soon be safely reunited with his family," State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said. "We appreciate former President Carter's humanitarian effort and welcome North Korea's decision to grant Mr. Gomes special amnesty and allow him to return to the United States."
North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency said Carter's visit included cordial talks with Kim Yong Nam, North Korea's number two official, [sic]
Mr Kim relayed Pyongyang's interest in resuming the six-nation disarmament talks and reiterated the regime's commitment to denuclearisation, KCNA said.
However, Mr Carter does not appear to have met Kim Jong Il, who was making a surprise trip to China. A year ago, Kim sat down for talks and a photo with former US president Bill Clinton when he went to Pyongyang on a similar journey to negotiate the release of two American journalists. >>> | Friday, August 27, 2010
SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: A restaurant soon to open in Berlin has disgusted residents of the German capital by hinting that human flesh will be on the menu and asking for people to donate body parts. Local politicians are not amused and believe it is a tasteless PR stunt.
What in the world is Wari cuisine? It is a question that many in Berlin have been asking themselves lately after a number of ads have appeared in local papers promoting a mysterious new restaurant. The future location of the eatery is secret for the time being, but the menu has raised eyebrows. Indeed, the restaurant's website is requesting donations -- of human body parts.
"Donors wanted! Become a member today!" reads an announcement on the website. On the menu page, the restaurant, called Flimé, is careful only to indicate "meat" without giving away what kind -- surely an effort to keep the ruse going. Those who want to become members must submit a form complete with responses about health and exercise habits.
"After the medical check, you can decide which body part you want to donate!" the website says. The form tells prospective members that "Flimé only covers the costs for hospitalization.... The designated use of the donated body part is free to Flimé." The German version of the website is also advertising for a job opening for an "open-minded surgeon." >>> cgh | Thursday, August 26, 2010
The Worst Publicity Stunt of the Year? Putting President Obama on a Dollar Bill Is Simply Ridiculous
THE TELEGRAPH – BLOGS – NILE GARDINER: British graphic design firm Dowling Duncan has come up with a series of controversial ideas for the Dollar Redesign Project, an open competition run by New York designer Richard Smith (and not associated with the US government). According to their ambitious PR spiel: “we want to rebrand the US Dollar, rebuild financial confidence and revive our failing economy.”
The new garish multicolour notes conceived by the firm bear a striking stylistic resemblance to the Euro, and remove America’s Founding Fathers altogether. The company has proposed replacing George Washington with Barack Obama on the new dollar bill, and Benjamin Franklin with Franklin D. Roosevelt on the $100 dollar note.
Dowling Duncan, whose corporate clients include some big names such as Apple, Gap, Google, HP and Microsoft, obviously think this is a smart PR move, designed to win it global publicity and enhance its profile in the States where it has an office in San Francisco. But I very much doubt it will play well outside of diminishing left-wing circles on the East and West Coasts. If anything the publicity it gains with its Barack Obama stunt is highly likely to lose it business rather than bring in more revenue, especially in Middle America. Continue reading and comment >>> Nile Gardiner | Friday, August 27, 2010
Sleazy Cameron Thinks More of Himself Than He Should!
MAIL ONLINE: David Cameron is offering rich businessmen the chance to dine with him – if they give £50,000 a year to the Conservative Party.
Donors can enjoy exclusive lunches after Prime Minister’s Questions in the Commons, or meet the Premier at drinks receptions and campaign launches.
They can also mingle with other senior Cabinet members in what critics call a clear case of ‘cash for access’ – with the wealthy buying the chance to put their case directly to the Prime Minister.
It comes just months after Mr Cameron made a major speech attacking the murky world of ‘secret corporate lobbying’.
The donor clubs began when Mr Cameron was Leader of the Opposition, but the Tories admitted yesterday that the Leader’s Group, which allows businessmen to rub shoulders with the Premier, still exists.
According to the party’s website, for an annual payment of £50,000 ‘members are invited to join David Cameron and other senior figures from the Conservative Party at dinners, post-PMQ lunches, drinks receptions, election result events and important campaign launches’.
THE TELEGRAPH: Iranian authorities have banned all advertisements for pets, pet food and other pet products.
The decision by Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance comes after the fatwa was issued by powerful cleric Grand Ayatollah Nasser Makarem Shirazi.
While keeping dogs as pets has become increasingly fashionable in Iran in recent years, the fatwa cited Islamic tradition, which dictates that dogs are unclean. >>> | Thursday, August 26, 2010
Cuba Ends Smoking Subsidy for Elderly in Attempt to Reduce Spending
THE TELEGRAPH: Elderly Cubans will no longer be entitled to state-subsidised cigarettes after President Raul Castro axed the programme in the latest austerity cuts designed to jump-start the country's sputtering economy.
Beginning next month, some 2.5 million Cubans over the age of 54 no longer will get their four packs of cigarettes as part of the country's ration programme, the government announced on Wednesday.
"The Council of Ministers has resolved to eliminate cigarettes from the rationed family basket as of September as part of the measures gradually being adopted to limit state subsidies," an official statement said.
The cigarettes "are not a primary necessity", it added.
Mr Castro last month said that communist-ruled Cuba's ration system eventually will be eliminated as he moves to modernise the island's economy. >>> | Thursday, August 26, 2010
Cuba Stubs Out Cigarette Rations for Older People
THE GUARDIAN: Government to end monthly handouts of heavily subsidised cigarettes to over-54s as part of attempts to revive economy
While Fidel Castro gave up his cigars in 1985 for health reasons, the country's older population continued to receive cigarette rations when many other subsidised items were cut in the recession of the 1990s. Photograph: The Guardian
Cuba's more mature cigarette smokers will soon discover that economics is no respecter of borders, trade embargoes or even vices.
From next month the Cuban government will cease its monthly handouts of four packs of heavily subsidised cigarettes to around 2.5 million Cubans over the age of 54.
The measure has not been prompted by concerns for the health of the island's senior citizens. Cuban authorities describe it as another measure aimed at jump-starting the spluttering economy.
"The council of ministers has resolved to eliminate cigarettes from the rationed family basket as of September as part of the measures gradually being adopted to limit state subsidies," read an official statement. Cigarettes, it went on, "are not a primary necessity". >>> Sam Jones and agencies | Thursday, August 26, 2010
Profile: The Imam Behind the Islamic Centre Near Ground Zero
FRANCE 24: Feisal Abdul Rauf is widely known as a moderate Islamic cleric, but also as someone who once accused the US of complicity in the 9/11 attacks. Now he's sparked a virulent debate over religious freedom in the US.
PROGRAMME ALERT: Watch the FRANCE 24 debate on the Islamic Centre near Ground Zero tonight at 7:10pm Paris time (GMT+1)
Feisal Abdul Rauf is the soft-spoken yet determined Muslim cleric who is the driving force behind plans to build a controversial Islamic centre two blocks away from the Ground Zero site in Lower Manhattan. Although the Egyptian-born imam is a leader in inter-faith dialogue, he has also sparked a virulent debate over religious freedom in the United States.
The proposed Islamic facility in lower Manhattan known as the “Ground Zero Mosque” is neither a mosque nor located at Ground Zero. Yet those semantic shortcomings have done little to cool what is now a raging debate across the United States about religious freedom and the place of Islam in American society.
The man behind the New York project prefers to describe the new complex in lower Manhattan in far more benign terms. Rauf, who is widely known as a leading moderate cleric, chose the name “Project Park 51” – a reference to the building’s address – as a means to downplay the religious symbolism of the proposed facility. While the new complex will, in fact, have a mosque, Rauf contends that it will not be the main focus. Instead, “Project Park 51” will serve as an Islamic cultural centre with sports, childcare and library facilities among other amenities. Nonetheless, those subtleties have not made their way into the broader debate that is now becoming a critical issue in the upcoming mid-term elections in the United States. >>> Céline Curiol | Vendredi 26 Août 2010
Conservative Party Advertises Against The Mosque
England: No-Go Areas for Kuffar (Infidels)
Brits Are Sick of Islam
Deutscher (Karim) konvertiert zum Islam
Israël rend l'arabe obligatoire à l'école
BBC: En Israël, le gouvernement de Benyamin Netanyahu a introduit un nouveau programme rendant les etudes arabes obligatoires dans les etablissements publics.
Selon les responsables du secteur de l'education, la nouvelle initiative intitulee, 'Ya Salam', vise a faire de la langue un pont culturel et a promouvoir la tolerance entre les juifs et les arabes.
Jusqu'a present en Israël, l'apprentissage de l'arabe etait une option pour les jeunes juifs, tandis que les élèves des écoles arabe étaient tenus d'apprendre l'hebreux. Le nouveau programme va changer cet état des faits.
Il rendra obligatoire pour les enfants juifs l'etude de la langue et de la culture arabe a partir du CM1 ou la cinquieme année du primaire. >>> | Mercredi 25 Août 2010
THE INVESTIGATIVE PROJECT ON TERRORISM: The United States has more Muslim blood on its hands than al-Qaida has of non-Muslims, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the leader of the effort to build a mosque near the site of the 9/11 terror attacks in New York, told an Australian audience in July 2005.
In a taped speech, Rauf made a number of comments that would make anyone who is not concerned about the mosque at the Ground Zero site rethink their support for the man tasked with heading the "bridge-building" center. Among them [click on the play button to hear each one]:
"We tend to forget, in the West, that the United States has more Muslim blood on its hands than al Qaida has on its hands of innocent non Muslims. You may remember that the US-led sanctions against Iraq led to the death of over half a million Iraqi children. This has been documented by the United Nations. And when Madeleine Albright, who has become a friend of mine over the last couple of years, when she was Secretary of State and was asked whether this was worth it, said it was worth it." >>> IPT News | Monday, August 23, 2010
Zakat Fund Grants AED 1 Million to Newly [sic] Converts to Islam
CPIFINANCIAL: To help them learn more about Islam and adjust their lives to the new religion. Chaired by HE Abdullah Aqeeda Al Muhairi, Secretary General of Zakat Fund, said that people who have recently converted to Islam “are those whose hearts are to be brought together in Islam. They were clearly mentioned in Verse 60 of Al Tawbah Soura in the Holy Quran as one of the eight categories who deserve to receive Zakat money along with the poor, the needy and others.”
The Disbursement Committee of Zakat Fund has decided to grant AED 1 million to 100 people who newly embraced Islam to encourage them learn more about the religion and start their new lives as Muslims. The newly Islam converts are one of eight categories specified by the Holy Quran and the Islamic Shari’ah to deserve being given Zakat money.
Chaired by HE Abdullah Aqeeda Al Muhairi, Secretary General of Zakat Fund, said that people who have recently converted to Islam “are those whose hearts are to be brought together in Islam. They were clearly mentioned in Verse 60 of Al Tawbah Soura in the Holy Quran as one of the eight categories who deserve to receive Zakat money along with the poor, the needy and others.”
“It is our duty as Muslims to encourage and support those who embrace Islam to help show them the right way of life and to encourage them learn more about their religion and how to behave like real Muslims,” said Al Muhairi. >>> | Thursday, August 26, 2010
Nothing Else, Except Religion Has Changed, Converts Told
DAILY EXPRESS (MALAYSIA): Kota Kinabalu: New Muslim converts should acknowledge that only their religion has changed but not their race, culture, ethnic identity and families, said Hidayah Centre Premier Iftar Programme Director Ustaz Firdaus Said.
He said it is vital for them to remember that their race, culture, ethnic identity and families remain the same before they converted to Islam as long as these do not go against the Islam syariat.
"Hidayah Centre Sabah (HCS) has implemented a unique approach by requiring new Muslim converts to wear batik attire and their respective traditional clothing of their respective ethnic group or race.
"However, we see that many of our new brothers and sisters are not wearing their traditional clothing because they thought that when they convert to Islam, they should leave behind their heritage of culture, tradition and race.
"When in fact, they should not be having such understanding and knowledge because the only thing that change is their religion when they convert to Islam," Ustaz Firdaus Said. >>> | Thursday, August 26, 2010
Sarrazins Thesen: So wird Deutschland dumm
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Thilo Sarrazin hat ein antimuslimisches Dossier verfasst. Das Buch erscheint am Montag und will elementare Lebens-zusammenhänge auf den Punkt bringen. Die Botschaft ist klar: Die islamische Immigration nach Deutschland muss gestoppt werden - aus „letztlich“ genetischen Gründen.
Ist es eine gute Idee, den Bundesbanker Thilo Sarrazin zum Testfall der Meinungsfreiheit in Deutschland zu machen? Es ist keine gute Idee, weil noch niemand Thilo Sarrazin daran gehindert hat, „kein Blatt vor den Mund zu nehmen“ (Sarrazin). Der Vorstand der Deutschen Bundesbank, Sozialdemokrat, früherer Berliner Finanzsenator, veröffentlicht seitenlange Interviews und legt nächste Woche unter dem Titel „Deutschland schafft sich ab“ ein dickes Buch zur Rettung unseres Landes vor. Niemand unterbindet dies.
Dass Sigmar Gabriel seinem Parteigenossen indirekt den Austritt aus der SPD nahelegte, weil er in seinem Buch rassistisch argumentiere, ist gerade kein Maulkorb. Es ist die Artikulation eines Befremdens über Sarrazins „gewalttätige Aussagen“ (Gabriel), die an die Substanz der Partei rühren. Gabriel inszeniert ja kein Parteiausschluss-verfahren, sondern nimmt die Partei vor ihrem Mitglied in Schutz: „Wenn Sie mich fragen, warum der noch bei uns Mitglied sein will – das weiß ich auch nicht.“ Weiter lesen und einen Kommentar schreiben >>> Von Christian Geyer | FAZ | Donnerstag, 26. August 2010
Schaeuble 'Ashamed' at Bundesbank Member Sarrazin's Anti-Immigrant Remarks
BLOOMBERG: Chancellor Angela Merkel and Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble distanced themselves from Bundesbank board member Thilo Sarrazin after he excoriated immigrants as a burden on German society.
Sarrazin’s comments in a recent book, in which he claimed that immigrants from Turkey, the Middle East and Africa are making Germany “dumber,” are “not helpful at all” and “can be hurtful for a lot people,” Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters today. Bundesbank President Axel Weber should consider taking action against Sarrazin, though his options are limited, Schaeuble said.
“I would be ashamed if a leading member of my party expressed himself in this way,” Schaeuble, a Christian Democrat, said in Berlin. Social Democratic Chairman Sigmar Gabriel said he didn’t know why Sarrazin was still a member of his party, Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported.
Sarrazin’s new book, whose title translates as “Germany Eliminates Itself,” makes a case against immigrant groups in Germany and their impact on the country. A former finance minister for the city-state of Berlin, Sarrazin argues that immigrants from countries such as Turkey and Morocco depend on the state and bring down the country’s education level.
“I don’t want the country of my grandchildren and forefathers to be in broad swathes Muslim, where Turkish and Arabic is widely spoken, where women wear headscarves and where the daily rhythm of life is set by the call of the muezzins,” Sarrazin wrote in an extract published in Der Spiegel magazine on Aug. 22. Other extracts have been published in the best- selling Bild newspaper this week. >>> Patrick Donahue | Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Barbarism Alert *! Sri Lankan Woman 'Had Nails Embedded in Body by Saudi Employers’
THE TELEGRAPH: A Sri Lankan housemaid has returned home from Saudi Arabia with 24 nails embedded in her body after allegedly being tortured by her employer, according to officials.
L.T. Ariyawathi, 49, alleged that her Saudi employer had tortured her and drove nails into her body as punishment. Photo: The Telegraph
A government minister said police were investigating a complaint from LT Ariyawathi, 49, that her Saudi employer tortured her and drove nails into her body as punishment.
“We are conducting an investigation and we will coordinate with Saudi authorities to have the suspects arrested,” Economic Development Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena told reporters.
The woman travelled to Saudi Arabia in March and returned home last week, complaining of abuse by her employer. >>> | Wednesday, August 25, 2010
* This is what they call the religion of love and peace, oh, and compassion, of course! Fie on these barbarians! – Mark
Pakistan Floods: Taliban Vows to Kidnap Foreign Aid Workers
THE TELEGRAPH: The Pakistan Taliban is planning to kidnap foreign aid workers delivering assistance in the aftermath of devastating floods, according to an American diplomatic official.
"According to information available to the US government, [Pakistan militant group] Tehreek-e-Taliban plans to conduct attacks against foreigners participating in the ongoing flood relief operations in Pakistan," the official said.
"Tehreek-e-Taliban also may be making plans to attack federal and provincial ministers in Islamabad," the official told the AFP news agency on condition of anonymity.
Weeks of flooding have affected an estimated 17.2m people. At least eight million need emergency humanitarian aid and hundreds of thousands are still stranded and cut off from supplies.
Charities and United Nations agencies have fanned out across the region, and hundreds of relief workers are operating in the north-west of the country, where militants have bases along the border with Afghanistan.
Banned Islamist charities have also emerged at the forefront of aid efforts, using the emergency to win hearts and minds. >>> Rob Crilly in Islamabad | Thursday, August 26, 2010
New York Muslim Cab Driver Stabbed In Rising Tensions Over Ground Zero Controversy
MAIL ONLINE: A cab driver has been stabbed in New York after telling his passenger that he was Muslim.
Ahmed H Sharif was slashed in the face and neck after the passenger, 21-year-old Michael Enright, allegedly attacked him.
The attack came as tensions over plans to build a mosque at Ground Zero are threatening to spill over into the streets of New York.
Sharif picked up Enright at about 6pm on Tuesday evening at East 24th Street and Second Avenue, police spokeswoman Deputy Inspector Kim Royster said.
Sharif - who is originally from Bangladesh - told authorities that during the trip Enright asked him whether he's Muslim.
When he said yes, Enright allegedly uttered an Arabic greeting and told Sharif: 'Consider this a checkpoint'.
Enright then pulled out a weapon - believed to be a folding tool with a knife blade called a Leatherman - and attacked Sharif, Royster said.
Sharif was seriously wounded in the neck and suffered cuts to his forearms, his face and one hand while trying to fend off Enright, prosecutor James Zeleta said.
Manifestation des opposants au centre islamique. Des ultra-conservateurs qui y voient un symbole de l’islamisation de l’Amérique. Photo: Le Temps
LE TEMPS: Le projet new-yorkais de construire une mosquée près de Ground Zero déchaîne les passions et réveille les démons anti-islam
C’est une croisade aux formes et aux calculs multiples. A la radio, Rush Limbaugh, l’empereur des ondes conservatrices, s’en prend à Barack Obama, en tentant de démontrer que le président est bien musulman: «Le fait de l’avoir élu à la présidence, c’est comme se marier avec quelqu’un dont on ne connaît rien. En général, cela arrive quand on est saoul, à Las Vegas.» Sur son blog, Pamela Geller, fondatrice de l’organisation «Stop à l’islamisation de l’Amérique», n’hésite pas, de son côté, à apparaître en bikini, laissant l’eau transparente dévoiler en partie son anatomie avantageuse: «Ceci est mon tchador, ma burka», explique-t-elle, derrière ses lunettes de soleil.
Pour ce corps expéditionnaire d’un nouveau genre, la «mosquée de Ground Zero» est devenue la nouvelle Jérusalem. Tant pis si le projet contesté de centre culturel islamique de 13 étages, comprenant notamment des restaurants et une piscine, ne sera pas à proprement parler une «méga-mosquée», comme le qualifie Geller. Tant pis si ce centre, dont la construction a reçu l’aval des autorités de New York et le soutien du maire Michael Bloomberg, ne sera pas situé «à Ground Zero», là où se tenaient les deux tours jumelles, mais deux blocs plus loin. Le raccourci est trop pratique, l’image trop évocatrice pour ne pas l’exploiter à fond. >>> Luis Lema | Mardi 24 Août 2010
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‘Burn the Quran Day’ Plan Prompts Warnings of Anger, Unrest
CNS NEWS: The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has joined the growing condemnation of plans by a Florida church to burn copies of the Quran on the 9th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.
A spokesman for the Jeddah-based bloc of Islamic states expressed concern Tuesday that the planned action by the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville would stir up “anger across the Muslim world and provoke unrest.”
The OIC said it hoped the U.S. government would “take appropriate steps to protect the sacred religious sentiments of Muslims of America and of the Muslims across the world.”
Dove pastor Terry Jones did not respond to queries Tuesday about the planned event or whether his church had come under any pressure from law enforcement agencies to call it off.
But after the City of Gainesville fire department last week turned down its application for a permit under outdoor fire ordinances, Dove emailed a statement saying that despite the rejection of the application as well as pressure from its commercial insurance provider and the bank holding its mortgage, “we will still burn Korans.”
The non-denominational church has drawn fire from Christian, Jewish and Muslim groups over the plan, which it says will take place “in remembrance of the fallen victims of 9/11 and to stand against the evil of Islam.”
The National Association of Evangelicals late last month said in a statement that the Quran burning would “exacerbate tensions between Christians and Muslims throughout the world” and urged cancellation of the event.
The Anti-Defamation League called it a tactic undoubtedly “intended to cast blame on all Muslims for 9/11, and not the extremists who perpetrated the terrorist attack.”
Also weighing in was the Supreme Council of Al-Alzhar University in Cairo – regarded as the highest seat of learning in Sunni Islam – which called on other American churches to condemn an event it said was aimed at “stirring up hate and discrimination.” Continue reading and comment >>> Patrick Goodenough, International Editor | Wednesday, August 25, 2010
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg * Defends Mosque
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Mayor Michael Bloomberg delivered an impassioned speech on religious freedom at a Ramadan dinner at Gracie Mansion Tuesday night. Video courtesy of Fox News.
* This man is living in a world of his own, he’s living in cloud cuckoo land! – Mark
A Growing Clash of Civilizations in America? : Laura Ingraham's Talking Points: 8/24
US to Step Up Pressure After Al-Qaeda in Yemen Judged World's Greatest Terror Threat
THE TELEGRAPH: Senior Washington officials want to launch CIA drones over Yemen after judging the local branch of al-Qaeda the greatest single threat to the United States.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has come under increasing scrutiny since priming a former University College London student to try to bomb an American air-liner on Christmas Day.
CIA analysts now say the Yemen group is a "more urgent" threat to US security than the core al-Qaeda group based in Pakistan, Osama bin Laden's presumed whereabouts.
The Pakistan group had been badly damaged by Predator drone bomb strikes, one official told The Washington Post, while AQAP was "on an upswing".
"We see al-Qaeda as having suffered major losses, unable to replenish ranks and recover at a pace that would keep them on offence," the official said.
"The relative concern ratios are changing. We're more concerned now about AQAP than we were before."
Al-Qaeda has presented a continuous threat in Yemen since 2000 and before. >>> Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent | Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Double Shahada in Nottingham City Centre by Mansfield Dawah
Ahmad Abul-Baraa - Der Qur'an - Das gewaltigste Buch der Welt
African Clergy Told to Re-evangelise 'Ailing' Anglican Church
THE GUARDIAN: Archbishop of Uganda, Henry Orombi, reiterates opposition to homosexuality at Entebbe meeting of 400 bishops
Anglican bishops gather for the opening of the second meeting of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa in Entebbe. Photograph: The Guardian
The archbishop of Uganda has urged hundreds of African bishops to shake off their fears, shame and superficial dependency and re-evangelise the "ailing" churches of the west.
In a rallying cry to the biggest constituency of the Anglican Communion, Henry Orombi said yesterday was time for Africans to "rise up and bring fresh life in the ailing global Anglicanism".
His call came on the day that US Episcopalians published a guide on liturgical and ceremonial resources for clergy and same-sex couples.
Orombi was addressing 400 bishops who are in Entebbe, Uganda, this week for the second meeting of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa. He told them the "potentials" attending the conference must be free to go to Europe and the US and revive the "Mother Church desperate for the gospel".
Listening was the archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, who faces an awkward week as he visits Uganda for the first time since he took office in 2002.
According to the Daily Nation in Kenya, African church leaders will use the meeting to reiterate their concerns about homosexuality and criticise the archbishop for failing to punish communities that welcome gays and lesbians into the pews and priesthood.
Orombi told the paper: "Homosexuality is incompatible with the word of God. It is good archbishop Rowan is here. We are going to express to him where we stand. We are going to explain where our pains are." >>> Riazat Butt, religious affairs correspondent | Wednesday, August 25, 2010
