Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
THE FINANCIAL TIMES: President George W. Bush’s “freedom agenda” has run into the Middle Eastern sand. The president himself will be the last to recognise this. Speaking in the United Arab Emirates on January 13, he hailed a “great new era” of “the advance of freedom”. “My friends,” he proclaimed to the assembled sheikhs, “a future of liberty stands before you.” Then Mr Bush flew on to Egypt and lavished praise on President Hosni Mubarak, who threw into jail the last man to run against him for the presidency.
As Mr Bush traipsed around the Arab world, Freedom House – which monitors political and civil liberties – issued its annual report. It lamented that “2007 was marked by a notable setback for global freedom”. The lobby group pointed to events in south Asia, the Middle East and the former Soviet Union. The bad news keeps on coming. The violence and instability surrounding the Kenyan and Pakistani elections has underlined the difficulties of holding democratic votes in relatively poor countries with deep ethnic and tribal divisions.
While Freedom House bemoans the setbacks to democracy in places such as Kenya, Pakistan and Egypt, there will be plenty of others who will shrug and say, in effect: “What did you expect?” The Bush administration has been naive. It is pointless – and often counter-productive – trying to push democracy in countries that are not ready for it. Stability and economic growth must come first.
The constituency for enlightened despotism is strong among businessmen, such as those now assembling in Davos for the World Economic Forum. They know that many of their best markets are countries that do not do well in the Freedom House rankings: China, Russia, the Gulf states, Singapore. Yet they can see these countries getting richer, often at spectacular rates.
Businessmen in rapidly growing autocracies will often enthusiastically endorse the line that authoritarian rule has its virtues. Peace and prosperity are what is needed; a premature move to democracy would invite only anarchy. The fact that both Kenya and Pakistan have enjoyed strong growth in recent years – now threatened by election-related instability – will only embolden the advocates of enlightened despotism. Let us not lose faith in democracy >>> By Gideon Rachman
You can comment on this story at Gideon Rachman’s Blog
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
ARAB NEWS: JEDDAH, 19 February 2007 — Saudi Arabia has asked the Dutch government to intervene over remarks by an anti-immigration politician who said Muslims should “tear out half the Qur’an” and wants him to apologize, Al-Watan newspaper reported yesterday.
“The Saudi Embassy in The Hague has begun moves with the Dutch Foreign Ministry against the remarks of rightwing parliamentarian Geert Wilders,” the paper said. “It appealed to the appropriate authorities on the need for Wilders insulting statements to be withdrawn and an apology be given to Muslims ... The embassy has demanded that the Dutch side put an end to such statement.”
Saudi Ambassador to The Hague Walid Abdul Kareem Al-Khereiji said the embassy was making its efforts without media publicity. “Our only aim is to stop the smear campaign against Islam,” he added. Riyadh Wants Dutch MP to Apologize for Anti-Islam Remarks >>> By P.K. Abdul Ghafour
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
DIE PRESSE: Der rechte holländische Parlamentarier Geert Wilders will einen Koran-Film veröffentlichen - das iranische Parlament warnt die niederländische Regierung vor einer "Welle des Hasses im Volk".
Ein Film, den noch niemand gesehen hat, sorgt für Verstimmungen zwischen Holland und Teilen der islamischen Welt. Bisher ist über das zehnminütige Werk nur bekannt, was sein Macher - der rechspopulistische holländische Parlamentarier Geert Wilders - ankündigte. Sein Film solle zeigen, dass der Koran "eine Inspirationsquelle für Intoleranz, Mord und Terror" sei, so Wilders. Wilders hatte den Koran bereits früher als faschistisches Buch bezeichnet, das zur Hälfte verboten werden sollte.
Das iranische Parlament hat nun die niederländische Regierung davor gewarnt, die Ausstrahlung des "antimuslimischen Films" zu genehmigen. Sonst würden die Abgeordneten die iranische Regierung dazu auffordern, die Beziehungen zu den Niederlanden zu überprüfen, kündigte der Vorsitzende des außen- und sicherheitspolitischen Ausschusses, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, am Dienstag an. Er warnte außerdem vor "weitreichenden Reaktionen der Muslime" und einer "Welle des Hasses im Volk", die sich gegen jede Regierung richten könnte, die "den Islam beleidigt". "Antimuslimischer" Film: Iran warnt Niederlande >>>
COURRIERINTERNATIONAL.COM:
Will the Dutch broadcast a film highly critical of the Koran?
DE VOLKSKRANT:
Met of zonder film, in islamitische wereld is Wilders al fenomeen
EXPATICA:
Iran warns NL about Wilders’ film
FRANFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG:
Angst vor einem Film, den noch niemand kennt Von Andreas Ross
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
…while the Home Office works with the internet industry, experimenting with anti-paedophilia strategies to identify terrorist recruiters, it also plans to start pulling down extremist material from the web. "The internet is not a no-go area for government," Smith warned.
THE FIRST POST: Jacqui Smith understands the online terror threat, but does she know how to fix it asks ASH SMYTH
At the launch of a body which aims to stem the radicalisation of young people who might later turn to terrorism, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said in London last week that "stopping people becoming, or supporting, terrorists... is the major long-term challenge of the State".
And if you peeled away the shrouds of management jargon - 'dialogue', 'shared values', 'community cohesion' - and saw past her careful avoidance of any overt references to Islam, it was eventually possible to discern that the Home Secretary was saying it was time to tackle the increasing use of the internet in the radicalisation of young Muslims.
She gave her speech, which came in the same week as headlines concerning Younis Tsouli, the Shepherd's Bush 'cyber-jihadist' who disseminated Islamist materials under the pseudonym of Terrorist 007, to delegates and journalists attending the inaugural conference of the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence (ICSR).
An immediate retort came from the BBC's Frank Gardner: surely a policy decision now to tackle terrorist recruitment was 15 years too late. True; but better late than never, given the stakes.
The Home Secretary is not wrong about the overwhelming importance of the internet. An estimated 5,000 terrorist websites currently help to spread propaganda, radicalise, recruit, fund-raise, train and give operational orders.
Islamist recruitment appears to be on the rise, and the web is vital to this: al-Qaeda has "regrouped" largely through internet use, Sir Richard Dearlove, former head of MI6, told the ICSR conference.
So the government wants to prevent young Muslims from becoming radicalised in the first place. But how to achieve it?
Anti-radicalisation efforts must involve - publicly and intellectually – countering the extreme interpretations of Islam that legitimise mass murder. But they must also be about keeping disenchanted and impressionable 19-year-olds away from pathologically-enticing martyrdom videos. Government opens new front on terror >>>
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
THE GUARDIAN:
· Extremism 'serious but not widespread' on campusesUniversities with large numbers of Muslim students should consider rejecting demands for separate prayer and washing facilities to prevent their campuses segregating along religious lines and risking a climate where illegal extremist views can flourish, the government will suggest today.
· Fine line between analysis and advocacy: Rammell
Institutions are also being advised to consider sharing information on violent Islamist speakers who should be banned from addressing students on campuses, according to guidelines to higher education institutions on how to combat campus extremism.
The higher education minister, Bill Rammell, said that violent extremism was a "serious but not widespread" threat to universities and called on them to foster "academic freedom, tolerance and debate" to prevent any spread of extremist ideas on campus. Students should be allowed to debate and research violent extremism as long as they do not cross over a clear line into perpetuating violence, he said.
"It is legitimate and permissible for people to research the origins of violent extremism, even in some circumstances to say that actually we can understand how that leads people to certain courses of action," Rammell said.
"But I think it is very clear when you look at ... the views that they articulate, there is a line at which you move from analysis and understanding towards outright advocacy of violent extremism. It is that that we are concerned about." New guidance calls on universities to reject separatism and ban those who preach violence >>> By Polly Curtis, education editor
THE DAILY MAIL:
English mosques are so extremist they'd be closed down in Baghdad, says IRAQ'S deputy prime minister
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
DIE PRESSE: Je mehr der Atomstreit abebbt und je üppiger die Öleinnahmen sprudeln, desto deutlicher wird das Versagen von Präsident Ahmadinejad. Die Inflation explodiert, die Wirtschaft stagniert, die Kritik wächst. Es drohen Unruhen.
TEHERAN/ISTANBUL. Das Leben des iranischen Präsidenten Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ist nicht leichter geworden, seit die US-Geheimdienste dem Mullah-Regime im Dezember bescheinigten, ihr militärisches Atomprogramm 2003 gestoppt zu haben. Der Atomstreit mit dem Westen kann nun nicht mehr die wirtschaftlichen Probleme überdecken, in die der Petro-Populist sein Land trotz dramatisch steigender Öleinnahmen geführt hat.
Zum Präsident wurde Ahmadinejad nämlich 2005 nur aufgrund eines sozialen Versprechens: Er wolle den vielen armen Iranern die Erdöleinnahmen „nach Hause bringen“ und ihnen so das Leben leichter machen. Doch fällt ihm das zusehends schwer: Die Wirtschaft stöhnt immer lauter, die Inflation steigt kräftig, ebenso die Preise von Alltagswaren – und das Leben der vielen armen Iraner ist heute schwieriger als 2005.
Subventionen, günstige Kredite
Dabei bezweifelt niemand Ahmadinejads gute Absicht. Der von seiner Regierung jüngst vorgelegte Haushaltsentwurf fürs neue iranische Jahr, das Montag begann, beweist jene Absicht. Da finden sich erhöhte Subventionen für Bedarfsgüter, viele Wohnbauprojekte in der Provinz, vergünstigte Kredite für den Bau von Eigenheimen, höhere Gehälter für Beamte und die Möglichkeit einer frühzeitigen Pensionierung. Und so steigen die Staatsausgaben heuer um 19%, oder rund 200 Milliarden Euro, an.Die konservative Mehrheit im Parlament, geführt vom Parlamentssprecher und Philosoph Gholam Ali Hadad Adel, will das Budget rasch verabschieden. Im März wird gewählt, da sollen die Iraner sehen, was die Religiösen Gutes tun. Die Entzauberung des Mahmoud Ahmadinejad >>> Von Jan Keetman
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
Monday, January 21, 2008
SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Déjà vu in Holland: A Dutch politician plans to release a film that rips the Koran for promoting violence and intolerance. Politicians and Muslim leaders alike are afraid of a repeat of 2004, when filmmaker Theo van Gogh was murdered on the streets of Amsterdam.
A Dutch politician's plan to release a film that charges the Koran with promoting violence and intolerance has sparked controversy in the Netherlands. Government officials are distancing themselves from the project and stepping up security at home and at embassies abroad, while Muslim leaders fear that it could strain relations between the Dutch and their large Muslim immigrant population.
Geert Wilders, leader of the right-wing Freedom Party, says he will release a 10-minute-long film on Friday that shows how the Koran is used by Islamic radicals to promote homophobia, the abuse of women and violence. The film was slated to debut on Jan. 25 but as of last Friday Wilders had not found a Dutch broadcaster willing to air it. If he can not find one by Friday, he says he will post it on the Internet.
As Wilders searched for a broadcaster last week, Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende urged Wilders to exercise restraint. "The Netherlands has a tradition of freedom of speech, religion and beliefs," said Balkenende according to the Associated Press. "The Netherlands also has a tradition of respect, tolerance and responsibility. Unnecessarily offending certain groups does not belong here."
Balkenende said that cities in the Netherlands were on alert for potential protests in response to the film, and diplomats abroad were briefed on responding to potential animosity. Another Anti-Koran Film Stirs Up Holland >>> By Patrick McGroarty
SIOE (Stop the Islamization of Europe)
SIOE (Netherlands)
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
THE TELEGRAPH: Saudi Arabia is to lift its ban on women drivers in an attempt to stem a rising suffragette-style movement in the deeply conservative state.
Government officials have confirmed the landmark decision and plan to issue a decree by the end of the year.
The move is designed to forestall campaigns for greater freedom by women, which have recently included protesters driving cars through the Islamic state in defiance of a threat of detention and loss of livelihoods.
The royal family has previously balked at granting women driving permits, claiming the step did not have full public support.
The driving ban dates back to the establishment of the state in 1932, although recently the government line has weakened.
"There has been a decision to move on this by the Royal Court because it is recognised that if girls have been in schools since the 1960s, they have a capability to function behind the wheel when they grow up," a government official told The Daily Telegraph. "We will make an announcement soon." Saudi Arabia to lift ban on women drivers >>> By Damien McElroy in Riyadh
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
THE TELEGRAPH: Islamic courts meet every week in the UK to rule on divorces and financial disputes. Clare Dwyer Hogg and Jonathan Wynne-Jones report on demands by senior Muslims that sharia be given legal authority
Amnah is a modern British Muslim. She is dressed in a denim skirt and her head is covered in a hijab. Poised and self-assured, she has come to meet Dr Suhaib Hasan, a silver-bearded sheikh who sits behind his desk, surrounded by religious books.
"But why would I have to observe the waiting period?" she asks him. "What are the reasons?" There is an urgency to her questions.
"These reasons don't apply to me, that's what I'm very confused about. If you could give me the reasons why I have to wait three months, then I'll understand."
Amnah is going through a divorce and is baffled at being told that she must wait for three months to remarry, considering that she hasn't seen her estranged husband for two years.
She twists her sock-clad toes into the carpet, grasping one hand with the other in her lap, and fixes Dr Hasan with an intense look. He meets this with a simple reply: "These rulings are all in the Koran. The rulings are made for all."
Amnah has little choice but to comply: Dr Hasan is a judge, and this is a sharia court - in east London. It sits, innocuously, at the end of a row of terrace houses in Leyton: a converted corner shop, with blinds on the windows, office- style partitions and a makeshift reception area.
It is one of dozens of sharia courts - also known as councils - that have been set up in mosques, Islamic centres and even schools across Britain. The number of British Muslims using the courts is increasing.
To many in the West, talk of sharia law conjures up images of the floggings, stonings, amputations and beheadings carried out in hardline Islamic states such as Saudi Arabia and Iran. However, the form practised in Britain is more mundane, focusing mainly on marriage, divorce and financial disputes.
The judgments of the courts have no basis in British law, and are therefore technically illegitimate - they are binding only in that those involved agree to comply. For British Muslims who are keen to follow Islam, this poses a dilemma. An Islamic marriage is not recognised by British law, and therefore many couples will have two ceremonies - civil for the state, and Islamic for their faith.
If they wish to divorce, they must then seek both a civil and an Islamic divorce.
Dr Hasan, who has been presiding over sharia courts in Britain for more than 25 years, argues that British law would benefit from integrating aspects of Islamic personal law into the civil system, so that divorces could be rubber-stamped in the same way, for example, that Jewish couples who go to the Beth Din court have their divorce recognised in secular courts.
He points out that the Islamic Sharia Council, of which he is the general secretary, is flooded with work. It hears about 50 divorce cases every month, and responds to as many as 10 requests every day by email and phone for a fatwa - a religious verdict on a religious matter.
Dr Hasan, who is also a spokesman for the Muslim Council of Britain on issues of sharia law, says there is great misunderstanding of the issue in the West.
"Whenever people associate the word 'sharia' with Muslims, they think it is flogging and stoning to death and cutting off the hand," he says with a smile.
He makes the distinction between the aspects of law that sharia covers: worship, penal law, and personal law. Muslim leaders in Britain are interested only in integrating personal law, he says. We want to offer sharia law to Britain >>> Page 2 and >>> Page 3 By Clare Dwyer Hogg and Jonathan Wynne-Jones
The Origins and Obligations of Sharia Law
Hat tip: Common Sense Against Islam
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
THE FIRST POST: A union of Europe and America might stand up to China, but how realistic is it, asks PHILLIP BLOND
For the first time in several hundred years the West is on the losing side of history. This is the thesis of Edouard Balladur, the former French Prime Minister who in a recent essay argues that "history is starting to be made without the West and perhaps one day it will be made against it".
The 78-year-old statesman believes that Western values are so threatened that the only way to defend global democracy and the rule of law is for the US and the EU to consider a real political, economic and cultural union.
Like many he fears that the West is in cultural decline and unable to face the challenges that confront it. America and Europe, economically stagnant and unable to innovate and prosper in the face of Chinese and Indian economic success, face new shared dangers in Islamic fundamentalism, and the rise of hostile independent states such as Iran and Russia.
For Balladur, the West must undergo a revolution in thinking and come together and defend its common values in the face of unprecedented global threats.
This is more than the delightful delusions of an aloof French aristocrat. These ideas are taken seriously at the highest level. Nicolas Sarkozy is certainly listening: the current President of France, a close confidante and political ally of Balladur, is intrigued by the prospect of a renewed Western project with France at its centre.
Moreover, the British elite have long been seduced by the idea of a transatlantic free-trade pact. While Angela Merkel, the German PM, wants to extend the traditional trans-Atlantic military alliance into new cultural and economic agreements based around common values and beliefs.
Looking at it objectively, Balladur expresses unmistakable geo-political truths. The age of Western dominance is clearly over. America may still be a superpower but within a generation it will be equalled by other nations both economically and militarily. Opinion: Start of a Beautiful friendship? >>> By Phillip Bond
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
THE FIRST POST: For the AKP, democracy is merely a means to a higher Islamic goal, says edward luttwak
If you thought Turkey was no threat to the West, think again. A new generation of politicians is aiming to Islamise the state by stealth. The AKP - Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi, or Justice and Development Party - has a stranglehold on Turkey for the foreseeable future.
The AKP was founded to replace a previous Islamic party banned for extremism. It benefited hugely from the corruption scandals that dragged down the previous government, taking two-thirds of parliament in the 2002 general election (on a third of the vote).
On Friday, its ex-foreign secretary Abdullah Gul narrowly failed to win a victory in the first round of presidential elections. The result was close enough to prompt public demonstrations by secularists ahead of the second round voting on May 2, and a statement from the military - long the guardians of Turkey's secular traditions - warning against a pro-Islam political agenda.
Since coming to power, the AKP has done nothing revolutionary, but it does have a revolutionary agenda. For all their suavity, its leaders seek to transform the country into a Sunni Muslim republic. This collides with institutions and laws strictly limiting Islam's role in public life, and with a long-standing security alliance with Israel.
It also collides with democracy itself, for no Koranic state can have a sovereign parliament free to legalise such abominations as equal rights for women and homosexuals or the drinking of alcohol.
A sinister slogan attributed to the AKP is that democracy is 'a bus we can ride until we reach our station'. Under Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his foreign secretary Abdullah Gul, the party has been cautious until now.
But abroad the AKP has been more strident. Turkey has stepped up relations with Muslim countries and cooled them with Israel. They have capitalised on public suspicion of the Western war on terror and yet have pursued Turkey's application to join the EU. Opinion: Turkey’s leaders plan Muslim Europe >>> By Edward Luttwak
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
TURKISH DAILY NEWS: 'Turkey is already a member of the EU for us,' Volvo Group's CEO says. This world-leading company is making positive noises about Turkey's future as it considers Turkey a regional hub to ease its distribution to the Middle East, Caucasus and the Balkans, and talks of plans for introducing more 'environment friendly' vehicles in the country
The world's leading car, truck and construction equipment manufacturing giant, the Volvo Group, has chosen Turkey as its regional hub for future investments.
“We consider Turkey as a center to distribute our products to the Middle East and the Caucasus. As a first step we have decided to establish an assembly factory for Renault Trucks,” Leif Johansson, president and the CEO of the Volvo Group, told the Turkish Daily News, in an exclusive interview here Friday.
Renault Trucks, a member of the Volvo Group since 1992, which produces light and heavy commercial vehicles, plans to sell more than 100,000 vehicles by 2010. The trucks that are manufactured in factories in France and Spain are assembled in 11 different countries. Turkey will be the 12th, according to Johansson.
“For us Turkey is already a member of the European Union. Not only important due to its geographic location in its region, Turkey is also a good market for us in itself,” he said. Euro bosses to bet on Turkey >>> By SERKAN DEMİRTAŞ
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
WIENER ZEITUNG: Istanbul. Weil der Gründer der republikanischen Türkei, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, in einem Clip bei "YouTube" herabgewürdigt worden sein soll, haben die türkischen Behörden landesweit den Zugang zu dem Internet-Videoportal gesperrt. Statt der "YouTube"-Internetseite erschien am Montagvormittag auf türkischen Computern der Hinweis, dass der Zugang aufgrund einer Entscheidung eines Gerichts Ankara gesperrt worden sei. In dem Video-Clip ist Atatürk angeblich als "türkischer Affe" bezeichnet worden. Wegen Verunglimpfung des Staatsgründers Atatürk, Türkei sperrte erneut Zugang zu "YouTube" >>>
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
DAILY MAIL: A Saudi woman is appealing to Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah to reunite her with the husband she loves after her relatives went behind her back to seek a divorce on the grounds she had married beneath her.
Two years ago, a knock on Fatima and Mansour al-Timani's door shattered the life they had built together. It was the police, delivering news that a judge had annulled their marriage in absentia, thanks to her relatives' efforts.
Under Saudi Arabia's strict segregation rules that means the couple can no longer live together. They sued to reverse the ruling, publicised their story and sought help from a Saudi human rights group.
But, after a spell in jail - for living together illegally - the two remain apart and Fatima is considering suicide, she said, if her recent appeal to King Abdullah doesn't reunite her with the man she still considers her husband.
"I want to return to my husband, but if that is not possible, I need to know so I can put an end to my life," she said. Saudi woman considering suicide after family go behind her back to divorce her from man she loves >>>
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
Sunday, January 20, 2008
DUTCH NEWS: Government security experts have drawn up a 20-page document detailing how to deal with the expected fall-out of the anti-Koran film being made by MP Geert Wilders, the Volkskrant reports on Friday.
The paper says the document, marked 'state secret' has been circulated to need-to-know ministers only.
There are also instructions for diplomatic staff so that they will be ready to deal with protests and embassy evacuation plans have been drawn up, the paper says.
Ambassadors in Islamic countries are currently talking to their contacts about the film. While stressing that freedom of speech is an important in the Netherlands, they are also making it clear that Wilders’ opinions are not shared by the government, the paper says.
The film is due to be screened at the end of the month. [Source: Government ready for Wilders’ film fall-out]
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
LE MONDE: A l'occasion de la prière de l'Angelus, dimanche 20 janvier, entre 100 000 et 200 000 personnes se sont rendues à la place St-Pierre au Vatican pour écouter le pape Benoît XVI et lui apporter leur soutien, après que sa visite à l'université La Sapienza de Rome a été annulée sur fond d'une contestation née parmi les enseignants.
"Merci à tous de votre présence, a lancé le souverain pontife depuis la fenêtre de son bureau, allons de l'avant dans un esprit de fraternité et d'amour pour la liberté et la vérité et un engagement commun pour bâtir une société fraternelle et tolérante". Revenant sur l'annulation de sa visite à La Sapienza, la plus grande université italienne, le pape a expliqué que "le climat qui s'était créé avait rendu inopportune ma présence". Au Vatican, plus de 100 000 personnes défendent la "liberté de parole" du pape Benoît XVI >>>
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
DIE PRESSE: Kairo/Beirut. Mit einem Paukenschlag meldete sich der Hisbollah-Generalsekretär Hassan Nasrallah bei seinem ersten öffentlichen Auftritt seit über einem Jahr zurück. Anlässlich des schiitischen Aschura-Festes schlug Nasrallah vor Zehntausenden seiner Anhänger den für ihn typischen selbstbewussten Ton an. „Wenn Israel gegen den Libanon einen neuen Krieg beginnt, versprechen wir ihnen einen Krieg, der die gesamte Region verändern wird“, rief er unter dem frenetischen Applaus seiner Anhänger.
Hisbollah besitze „Köpfe, Hände und Beine“ israelischer Soldaten, die während des jüngsten Libanonkriegs getötet worden waren. Man verfüge sogar über eine fast vollständige Leiche, ließ er in einem besonders makaberen Teil seiner Rede verlauten. „Die israelische Armee war auf dem Feld so schwach, dass sie nicht nur die Überreste von zwei, drei sondern von vielen Soldaten zurückgelassen hat“, sagte der Hisbollah-Chef. Libanon: Nasrallah provoziert: Israel schäumt über „Leichenteile“-Aussage >>> Von Karim El-Gawhary
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
RADIO NETHERLANDS WORLDWIDE: Far-right groups are calling for a ban on the building of new mosques as part of a new campaign to stop the spread of radical Islam in Europe.
Belgium's far-right Vlaams Belang party teamed up with radical groups from Austria and Germany on Thursday to launch a Charter to 'fight the Islamisation of West-European cities'.
"We are not opposed to freedom of religion but we don't want Muslims to impose their way of life and traditions over here because much of it is not compatible with our way of life," Vlaams Belang's Filip Dewinter told Radio Netherlands Worldwide. "We can't accept headscarves in our schools, forced marriages and the ritual slaughter of animals."
Mosques as catalysts
In particular, the coalition called for a moratorium on new mosques, which they say "act as catalysts for the Islamisation of entire neighbourhoods."
"We already have over 6,000 mosques in Europe, which are not only a place to worship but also a symbol of radicalisation, some financed by extreme groups in Saudi Arabia or Iran," Mr Dewinter explained, citing a large new mosque being built in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam. "Its minarets are six floors high, higher than the illuminations of the Feyenoord soccer stadium!" he cried. "These kinds of symbols have to stop." Anti-Islamisation campaign in Europe >>> By Vanessa Mock
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
THE GUARDIAN: The Dutch government is bracing itself for violent protests following the scheduled broadcast this week of a provocative anti-Muslim film by a radical right-wing politician who has threatened to broadcast images of the Koran being torn up and otherwise desecrated.
Cabinet ministers and officials, fearing a repetition of the crisis sparked by the publication of cartoons of Muhammad in a Danish newspaper two years ago, have held a series of crisis meetings and ordered counter-terrorist services to draw up security plans. Dutch nationals overseas have been asked to register with their embassies and local mayors in the Netherlands have been put on standby.
Geert Wilders, one of nine members of the extremist VVD (Freedom) party in the 150-seat Dutch lower house, has promised that his film will be broadcast - on television or on the internet - whatever the pressure may be. It will, he claims, reveal the Koran as 'source of inspiration for intolerance, murder and terror'.
Dutch diplomats are already trying to pre-empt international reaction. 'It is difficult to anticipate the content of the film, but freedom of expression doesn't mean the right to offend,' said Maxime Verhagen, the Foreign Minister, who was in Madrid to attend the Alliance of Civilisations, an international forum aimed at reducing tensions between the Islamic world and the West. In Amsterdam, Rotterdam and other towns with large Muslim populations, imams say they have needed to 'calm down' growing anger in their communities.
Government officials hope that no mainstream media organisation will agree to show the film, although one publicly funded channel, Nova, initially agreed before pulling out. 'A broadcast on a public channel could imply that the government supported the project,' said an Interior Ministry spokesman. Violence fear over Islam film: Counter-terrorism alert as a Dutch right-winger launches a movie that will denounce the Koran >>> By Jason Burke, Europe editor
AFP:
Unease in the Netherlands over MP’s planned anti-Islam film
Geert Wilders:
Geert Wilders’ official website (in Dutch)
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: A little-known Spanish priest, who has spent his entire life in Asia among the poor, has been elected to lead the Jesuits, the Catholic Church’s largest religious order.
Father Adolfo Nicolás was chosen by 217 electors as the new "Black Pope". The nickname derives from the power and influence he will wield, as well as from the simple black garments he will wear. His appointment came almost two weeks after the Jesuits began their 35th General Conference, at which Father Peter Hans Kolvenbach, the previous leader, stepped down.
Fr Nicolás has lived in the Far East since 1964, when he studied theology in Tokyo, spending his time in the Philippines and Japan.
In the last three years, he has run Jesuit operations in East Asia and Oceania. He speaks five languages.
The appointment reflects the desire of the order, which has 20,000 members around the world, to build bridges with the East. New 'Black Pope' to build bridges with East >>> By Malcolm Moore in Rome
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)
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