Israel : PM Netanyahu Says Peace Agreement Must Be Negotiated, Not Imposed (Mar 20, 2015)

Obama Details His Disappointment With Netanyahu In First Post-Election Comments

Read the Huffington Post article here

Obama kritisiert Netanyahu öffentlich

DIE PRESSE: Der US-Präsident greift den wiedergewählten Regierungschef für seine harte Haltung gegenüber den Palästinensern an und setzt sich für eine schnelle Einigung im Atomstreit mit dem Iran ein.

US-Präsident Barack Obama hat den israelischen Regierungschef Benjamin Netanyahu öffentlich für seinen Wahlkampf kritisiert. Die von Netanyahu kurz vor dem Urnengang gemachten Äußerungen über arabische Wähler stünden im Gegensatz zum "Besten", was der israelischen Tradition eigen sei, sagte Obama der "Huffington Post" vom Samstag. Netanyahu hatte kurz vor der Wahl auf seiner Facebook-Seite vor "Scharen" arabischer Wähler gewarnt, die der Opposition zum Sieg verhelfen könnten. » | APA/dpa | Sonntag, 22. März 2015

L'extrême droite européenne réunie en Russie

LE POINT: Une dizaine de partis de l'extrême droite européenne, pour certains réputés néo-nazis, se sont réunis dimanche à l'invitation d'une formation pro-Kremlin.

Des représentants d'une dizaine de partis de l'extrême droite européenne, pour certains réputés néo-nazis, se sont réunis dimanche en Russie lors d'un forum organisé par une formation pro-Kremlin, défendant les "valeurs traditionnelles" familiales et critiquant les sanctions contre Moscou liées à la crise ukrainienne.

Près de 150 membres de mouvements nationalistes, comme les partis d'inspiration néo-nazie grec Aube dorée et allemand NPD ou le parti bulgare Ataka, réputé pour sa rhétorique violente anti-minorités, ont discuté du "soutien des valeurs traditionnelles" familiales défendues par Vladimir Poutine, du conflit en Ukraine ou encore de la politique "orgueilleuse" des États-Unis. » | Source AFP | dimanche 22 mars 2015

New Dark Age Alert! Malaysian Parties Chase Islamic Vote with 'Death by Stoning' Law

THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: Kuala Lumpur: Six months after Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak stood before the United Nations and urged Muslims worldwide to be moderate in their religion, members of his own party are supporting a law that punishes adulterers with death and thieves with amputation.

Lawmakers from Mr Najib's United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) joined the opposition Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS) to pass Islamic criminal law, or hudud, in the opposition-held state of Kelantan.

The move has drawn criticism from other parties in their respective coalitions, while human rights groups say it's an unconstitutional step for secular Malaysia. » | Niluksi Koswanage and Liau Y-Sing | Monday, March 23, 2015

Australia a Puzzling Hotbed of Islamic State Recruiting

SALON: CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A nightclub bouncer who reportedly became a terror group leader. A man who tweeted a photo of his young son clutching a severed head. A teenager who is believed to have turned suicide bomber, and others suspected of attempting to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State movement. All of them, Australian.

The London-based International Center for the Study of Radicalization and Political Violence reports that between 100 and 250 Australians have joined Sunni militants in Iraq and Syria. Given Australia’s vast distance from the region and its population of just 24 million, it is a remarkable number. The center estimates that about 100 fighters came from the United States, which has more than 13 times as many people as Australia.

Experts disagree about why Islamic State has been so effective recruiting in Australia, which is widely regarded as a multicultural success story, with an economy in an enviable 24th year of continuous growth.

Possible explanations include that some Australian Muslims are poorly integrated with the rest of the country, and that Islamic State recruiters have given Australia particular attention. In addition, the Australian government failed to keep tabs on some citizens who had been radicalized, and moderate Muslims have been put off by some of Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s comments about their community.

Greg Barton, a global terrorism expert at Monash University in Melbourne, said Australia and some other countries underestimated Islamic State’s “pull factor.”

“We’re all coming to terms with the fact that this is a formidable targeter and predatory recruiter that goes after individuals one by one with a very masterful use of technology, and our sense of confidence that because we’ve got society working well makes us secure misses the point,” Barton said. » | Rod McGuirk, Associated Press | Sunday, March 22, 2015

‘In Islam, They Are All Rotten Apples’: Activist Ex-Muslim

NEW YORK POST: There was a time when author and activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali believed it all: that, according to Islam, the infidel should die, that the Koran is infallible, that those who violated sharia law — thieves, gays, adulterers — deserved to be stoned to death or beheaded, as they were each Friday in a public gathering place she and her brother called “Chop-Chop Square.”

Today, she is that rare thing: a public intellectual who, despite death threats and charges of bigotry, calls for an end to Islam — not just as the faithful know it, but as we in the West think we know it.

“The assumption is that, in Islam, there are a few rotten apples, not the entire basket,” Ali tells The Post. “I’m saying it’s the entire basket.”

In her book, “Heretic,” Ali argues for a complete reformation of Islam, akin to the Protestant reformation of the 16th century. Though her own education led her to reject Islam and declare herself an atheist, she believes that for the world’s 1.6 billion Muslims, there must be another way.

“If you are a child brought up to believe that Islam is a source of morality” — as she was, in Africa and Saudi Arabia — “the Muslim framework presents you with the Koran and the hijab. I don’t want to be cruel and say, ‘You grow up and you snap out of it.’ But maybe we who have snapped out of it have not done our best to appeal to those still in it,” she says. » | Maureen Callaghan | Sunday, March 22, 2015

The Baroness, Islamic Extremists and a Question of Free Speech

'The Creator is the one who should decide what the laws
should be,' said Abu Essa Niamatullah

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Two groups campaigning to get British Muslims involved in the election are "clever fronts" to win political access and influence for Islamists holding extreme views, writes Andrew Gilligan.

At first glance, it looks admirable: two closely connected campaigns, called YouElect and Mend (Muslim Engagement and Development), to get British Muslims involved and voting in this year’s general election.

Mend says it is “creating and supporting an environment in which British Muslims can confidently and critically engage in politics”. One of YouElect’s leaders, Jamil Rashid, told the Islam Channel: “We’re all part of this society, so I think it’s extremely important that Muslims stand up and be counted.” Who could disagree? That, no doubt, is why the Electoral Commission has made Mend an “official partner” in registering Muslim voters for the coming campaign; why at least 10 Labour and Tory MPs joined the launch of Mend’s “Muslim manifesto” in the Commons earlier this month; and why even Lynton Crosby, the Conservative campaign director, addressed a Mend fringe meeting at last year’s Tory conference.

Mend also holds events with police chiefs, gets funding from the EU and is a “key partner” in the Hacked Off campaign for state-backed controls on the press. The truth, however, is that these distinguished bodies and people have been conned. Both Mend and YouElect are clever fronts to win political access and influence for Islamists holding extreme and anti-democratic views.

When not giving reassuring interviews, Mr Rashid is a director of the London-based Muslim Research and Development Foundation, the think tank of one of Britain’s most notorious hate preachers, Haitham al-Haddad, an extremist cleric and Sharia judge from east London.

Haddad describes democracy as “filthy”, regards music as a “prohibited and fake message of love and peace”, states that Jews and Christians are the “enemies of Allah” who will “all go to hellfire” and advises Muslims not to “integrate … as simple as that”.

On March 6, Mr Rashid spoke at a rally organised by Cage, the pro-terrorist lobby group which had the week before provoked outrage by describing Mohammed Emwazi, “Jihadi John”, as a “kind and gentle” man who had been “radicalised by MI5”. He described Cage as “the leaders in our community – we are all Cage, and we stand with them in all their endeavours”. Ismail Patel, the director of YouElect, is also spokesman for the British Muslim Initiative, closely linked to Hamas, the terrorist group which wants to destroy Israel, and the Muslim Brotherhood, which wants to replace secular democratic government with a caliphate under Islamic law.

Then there is Mend. It, too, has defended Cage, accusing the media of trying to discredit the group after the “Jihadi John” episode. It, too, has links to Haddad, who, despite his views on democracy, has appeared in a Mend video urging Muslims to vote. He has said in the past that voting may be permissible to return a Muslim majority government in “50 years, something like this” as a prelude to “Islam spreading all over the world”.

Mend is next month launching an election tour, to “reinforce the importance of electoral participation” and encourage Muslims to go to the ballot box. A star speaker at five of the six events listed will be Abu Eesa Niamatullah, another British extremist who opposes democracy. » | Andrew Gilligan | Sunday, March 22, 2015

Pentagon Investigates 'IS Online Threat' to US Military

BBC AMERICA: The US defence department says it is investigating an online threat allegedly made by Islamic State (IS) to about 100 of its military personnel.

A list of names and addresses was posted on a website linked to the group alongside a call for them to be killed.

The group said it obtained the information by hacking servers and databases but US officials said most of the data was in the public domain.

A US security source told the BBC that those on the list were being contacted.

The group, which called itself the Islamic State Hacking Division, said the personnel named had participated in US missions against IS.

It urged its supporters in the US to "take the final step" and "deal with" those named. » | Saturday, March 21, 2015

Der Umgang mit dem Islam in der Schweiz

VIMENTIS: Seit einigen Jahren hat sich die Wahrnehmung von Muslimen weltweit und in der Schweiz verändert. Der Umgang mit Muslimen beschäftigt die Bevölkerung. In der Schweiz gibt es hierzu zwei aktuelle Beispiele: die kantonale Volksinitiative zur Einführung eines Verhüllungsverbotes im Kanton Tessin, das schliesslich Musliminnen das Tragen von Burka und Niqab verbietet. Vergleichsweise hohe Wellen hat 2009 auch die Anti-Minarett-Initiative geworfen. Die am heftigsten diskutierten Themen im Zusammenhang mit dem Islam werden im Folgenden kurz vorgestellt und erläutert.

Muslime in der Schweiz

Der Islam ist nach dem Christentum die zweitgrösste Religion weltweit. In der Schweiz stellen Muslime die viertgrösste Glaubensgemeinschaft dar: nach den aktuellsten Zahlen von 2011 sind dies 320'958 Musliminnen und Muslime. Diese Zahl ist seit der Erhebung von 2000 praktisch konstant geblieben. Während den grossen Einwanderungswellen ab den 1970er sowie 1990er Jahren sind viele Flüchtlinge und Arbeitskräfte aus muslimischen Ländern in die Schweiz gekommen. Etwa 90% der hier lebenden Muslime stammen somit ursprünglich aus dem Balkan und der Türkei. Insofern überwiegt in der Schweiz ein europäisch geprägter Islam. An der Gesamtbevölkerung bemessen machen Muslime nach den Berechnungen des Bundes heute rund 4.5% der ständigen Wohnbevölkerung aus. Die Mehrheit lebt in den Städten, rund ein Drittel besitzt den Schweizer Pass und etwa die Hälfte spricht eine Landessprache als ihre Hauptsprache.

Es ist wichtig zu betonen, dass die Muslime in der Schweiz weder ethnisch und kulturell noch hinsichtlich ihrer Einwanderungsgründe eine einheitliche Gruppe bilden. Die Bandbreite der Auffassungen ihres Glaubens reicht von weltlichen und modernen bis hin zu streng traditionellen Ansichten.

Nach Schätzungen praktizieren nur 10 bis 15% der Muslime ihren Glauben tatsächlich. Dies liegt in der Grössenordnung der anderen grossen Religionsgemeinschaften in der Schweiz. Die grosse Mehrheit der in der Schweiz lebenden Muslime sind also rein „nominelle“, da sie ihren Glauben nicht praktizieren. Dies heisst allerdings nicht, dass sie nicht gläubig sind. » | Von Ronja Harder | Dienstag, 26. November 2013

University's 'Anti-Semitic' Israel Conference Condemned

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Southampton University's decision to organise a conference questioning Israel's right to exist has been condemned as 'legitimising anti-Semitism'

A leading British university has been condemned for hosting a conference questioning Israel’s right to exist which critics say will legitimise anti-Semitism.

Pressure is growing on Southampton University to cancel the three day event, planned for next month, or face growing anger from academics, politicians and its own fund-raisers.

One prominent lawyer has already said he would think twice before hiring someone from the south coast university.

Mark Lewis, who has represented a string of celebrity clients, said he would look “unfavourably” at CVs sent by graduates of Southampton.

And one of its most respected former alumni has returned his degree in protest and at least one major patron of the university is said to be considering withdrawing funding. » | Patrick Sawer, and Jonny Paul | Saturday, March 21, 2015

Zukunft | CH | Brennpunkt: Die Rückkehr vom Dschihad aus Syrien und Irak zurück nach Europa

Mit in der Sendung sind: Beatrice Gall, Geschäftsführerin der Stiftung Zukunft CH, Daniel Zingg, Islamexperte, Pfr. Hansjürg Stückelberger, Präsident Stiftung Zukunft CH und langjähriger Präsident der Menschenrechtsorganisation CSI M.H., Islamwissenschaftler und Theologe, Prof. Dr. Albert Stahel, Schweizer Politik- und Wirtschaftswissenschafter, Professor für Strategische Studien an der ETH Zürich und der Universität Zürich, Lukas Reimann, Schweizer Nationalrat

Diese Sendung wurde zum Teil in Schweizerdeutsch (Schwyzertüütsch) aufgenommen.

Sweden's Foreign Minister Reviled as an Enemy of the Prophet

GATESTONE INSTITUTE: Evidently, Sweden's Foreign Minister was unaware that that by criticizing Islamic sharia customs, such as flogging a blogger a thousand times and the ill-treatment of women, she was, in fact, seen as turning against Islam itself.

There appears to be a genuine but concerning lack of knowledge in the Swedish government about Islam and Islamic affairs.

"It makes no difference what she says. In Islam, it is for Muslims to determine whether or not one has criticized their religion." — Johannes J.G. Jansen, author and historian of Islam.

From a Muslim perspective, any criticism or infringement of sharia law and Muslims' obligation to wage jihad [war in the service of Islam] is a violation of their freedom of religion.

In other words, it is incumbent on Muslims to "terrify" non-Muslims (referring to the Koran 8:60). But when they succeed, Muslim spokesmen accuse their frightened victims of suffering from "Islamophobia," and demand that Western authorities denounce and persecute people beset by the psychiatric malady.

There is nothing, however, to indicate that Margot Wallström and other members of the Swedish government have been driven by fear. They have no knowledge of what orthodox Islam is about, and evidently believe that the religion is benevolent and peaceful, but unfortunately hijacked or misinterpreted by evil men.

As predicted, Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallström's criticism of "medieval" conditions in Saudi Arabia has caused great parts of the Muslim world to rise up in anger against her and Sweden, the country she represents.

"Almost the entire Muslim world joins in the criticism of Wallström," wrote the Swedish national daily Dagens Nyheter on March 19, adding that around thirty Muslim countries have distanced themselves from Wallström's comments. The Arab League has denounced her for criticizing the lack of human rights in Saudi Arabia, and on Saturday the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which represents 57 Arab and Muslim states, as well as the Palestinians, accused her of having "degraded Saudi Arabia and its social norms, judicial system and political institutions". » | Ingrid Carlqvist and Lars Hedegaard | Saturday, March 21, 2015

Islam Critic Ayaan Hirsi Ali Floats Conversion to Judaism

THE JERUSALEM POST: Hirsi Ali says obama [sic] is naïve in his attempt to negotiate a nuclear arms deal with Iran.

Controversial Islam critic Ayaan Hirsi Ali said that she had previously tried to convert to Judaism and suggested that she might attempt to do so again in the future.

At a gathering hosted by Israeli Consul General of New York Ido Aharoni last Thursday, Ali told the crowd that “One day I hope to convert to Judaism,” according to a report by the New York Jewish Week, adding, “I tried it, but it was very difficult.”

Jewish Week Editor and Publisher Gary Rosenblatt, who reported on Hirsi Ali’s comments, noted that it was difficult to tell whether or not she was serious. » | JTA | Saturday, March 21, 2015

Sunni vs. Shia - Differences and Conflict Explained

Sunni and Shia Muslims have enormous conflicts, but the differences between them are frequently misunderstood. The split in Islam after the death of Muhammad is examined, the influence of Ayatollahs, and the political map that is broken down along Shia/Sunni lines are all looked at in this explanation of the wedge in the Muslim world, with Elliot Hill for the Lip News.

Regionalwahlen in Frankreich: Angst vorm Triumphmarsch der Rechten

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Der Front National könnte bei den französischen Regionalwahlen am Sonntag stärkste Kraft werden. Für Parteichefin Marine Le Pen wäre es eine wichtige Etappe auf dem Weg in den Elysée. Präsident Hollande droht ein Debakel.

Eigentlich gehören die Departementswahlen nicht zu den wichtigsten Terminen in Frankreich: Die zu wählenden Räte kümmern sich hauptsächlich um bürgernahe Anliegen wie Haupt- und Mittelschulen, um Straßen, um Altenheime und Feuerwehr.

Doch am Sonntag und eine Woche später wird es anders sein, das Votum wird zu einer Kraftprobe von nationaler Bedeutung. Die Meinungsforscher erwarten, dass der Front National (FN) erstmals landesweit Ratsposten erobert und in zwei, drei Departements sogar die Führung übernimmt. FN-Chefin Marine Le Pen setzt auf eine "Marine-blaue Springflut", die Frankreich überspülen wird. Den regierenden Sozialisten von Staatschef François Hollande droht dagegen ein Debakel. » | Von Stefan Simons, Paris | Samstag, 21. März 2015

Iran Nuclear Talks: Deal Can Be Reached, Says Rouhani

Mr Rouhani said "shared points of view" had emerged
in latest round of talks

BBC AMERICA: Iran's President Hassan Rouhani says that progress made in nuclear talks means a final deal can be reached.

"There is nothing that cannot be resolved," although some differences still remain, Iranian state media quoted him as saying.

US Secretary of State John Kerry also said that "substantial progress" had been made in the talks.

Six world powers are negotiating a deal with Iran aimed at limiting its nuclear activity, with a late March deadline.

Iran insists its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes but world powers fear it has military ambitions.

Mr Rouhani said that in the current round of talks in Lausanne, Switzerland, "shared points of view emerged in some of the areas where there had been a difference of opinion".

They could become "a foundation for a final agreement", he said, according to state news agency Irna. » | Saturday, March 21, 2015

Autorin als "Feind Allahs" beschimpft und verprügelt

Thriller sind ihre Spezialität: Schriftstellerin Astrid Korten

DIE WELT: Astrid Korten schreibt Kriminalromane, in einem davon geht es um einen "Ehrenmord". Nach einer Lesung wird die 53-Jährige von jungen Männern überfallen, geschlagen und als "Feind Allahs" beschimpft.

Die körperlichen Schmerzen, gerade am Magen, die nehmen allmählich ab, das wird schon wieder. Astrid Korten nimmt Schmerzmittel, die helfen ganz gut. Viel schlimmer ist im Moment noch die seelische und mentale Aufarbeitung. Der Schock, das Entsetzen darüber, was ihr vor zehn Tagen widerfahren ist. Das Verdauen des Erlebten. Als die Schriftstellerin in Leipzig am Vorabend der Buchmesse von zwei Männern überfallen wurde, attackiert und getreten – kurz nachdem sie aus ihrem neuen Buch eine Passage gelesen hatte, in der es um einen "Ehrenmord" geht.

Bei dem Angriff beschimpfte sie einer der beiden Männer als "Feind Allahs".

Mehr als eine Woche lang hatte Astrid Korten still gehalten. Nichts gesagt darüber. "Ich wollte den Übergriff zunächst tot schweigen", erklärt sie, "um mich und andere zu schützen." Nun aber entschied sie sich nach langem Überlegen, nach Tagen des Zweifels, doch an die Öffentlichkeit zu gehen und darüber zu sprechen. "Ich lasse mich nicht mundtot machen", sagt sie. Deswegen hat sie ihr Schweigen gebrochen und erzählt hier zum allerersten Mal von den Vorfällen des 11. März. » | Von Florian Kinast | Freitag, 20. Marz 2015

Benghazi Committee Officially Requests Hillary Clinton Surrender Her Email Server

The committee investigating Benghazi formally requested Friday that Hillary Rodham Clinton turn her email server over to an independent third party so it can be scrutinized to determine whether she and the Obama administration complied with open-records laws. Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy sent a letter to the former secretary of state's personal lawyer making the request,…

DANIEL PIPES: Islam Bulldozes the Past

The recent bulldozing by the Islamic State (ISIS) of the ancient cities of Nimrud, Hatra, and Korsabad, three of the world's greatest archaeological and cultural sites, is just this group latest round of assaults across the large area under its control. Since January 2014, the flamboyantly barbaric ISIS has blown up Shi'i mosques, bulldozed churches, pulverized…